20/10/2025
At Busara, we believe that when we talk about women in leadership, we can’t approach it as though the problem lies with women and that all we need to do is fix them.
The truth is, we need to transform the institutions and spaces where women are exercising leadership so they can truly thrive and bring their full gifts to the table.
That’s why we’re inspired by the Community of Practice we’re convening among Co-Impact partners who are driving change within powerful institutions of law and economics in Mexico, Kenya, Nigeria, India, South Africa, Mexico and Brazil. These partners are engaging with institutions that shape economic and legal norms, such as the judiciary, the banking sector, law firms, and university faculties, all of which have enormous influence on women’s ability to enjoy their rights.
Recently, we gathered in Phuket, Thailand, to learn from one another and deepen our shared understanding of how institutional change for women’s leadership really happens. Some of the rich questions and insights that emerged included:
💡 How do we dismantle the institutional barriers that block women’s leadership?
🔥 How can we anticipate and navigate backlash, rather than being derailed by it, when advancing women’s leadership initiatives?
🌍 How do we support women within institutions to act as change agents, not passive recipients of external programmes?
🎯 How do we ensure our work reflects that not all women’s experiences are the same and apply a truly intersectional lens to advancing women’s leadership?
⏳ And knowing that deep institutional change takes time, how can we embed transformation so it endures beyond typical donor timelines?
Our Community of Practice will continue meeting over the coming year to explore these questions and learn from each other’s experiences. Busara Africa is excited to walk this journey with such visionary partners and to share the powerful insights that emerge from this collective learning about women’s leadership and institutional transformation.
