Rebeca Gyumi

Rebeca Gyumi is the founder and executive director at Msichana Initiative, a local NGO which aims to empower a girl child through education and address key challenges which limit girls’ rights to education. A lawyer by profession, she was named the 2018 U.N. Human Rights Prize recipient and the 2016 UNICEF Global Goals Award winner for her work in advancing girls’ rights in Tanzania. She has worked for over eight years with Femina as a TV personality and youth advocate. Rebeca is involved in different campaigns and social charities as a volunteer and ambassador, advocating for safe schools and quality education to Tanzanian students.

She is passionate about girls and women’s empowerment. She has paneled and facilitated different national and international forums, with a focus on youth and girl empowerment. In 2013, she was selected by the U.S. Embassy in Tanzania under the U.S. Department of State to attend International Visitors Leadership Program (IVLP) for youth with leadership potential. She won the 2017 inaugural IVLP alumni award for social innovation and change for her landmark win at the High Court. Rebeca is a University of Cape Town Emerging African Leaders (EALP) Fellow, sits on a number of boards at the national level, and represents Msichana as a member of the advisory group for UNICEF and UNFPA Global Programme on Ending Child Marriage.