The future of African democracy can't depend on the courage of women alone. It must also be backed by the capital, partnerships, and political commitment to enable them to lead with impact. 🌍⚡️ At #NalafemSummit2026, our President & CEO Suyen Barahona announced a new $500,000 USD funding initiative.

Day 1 at the Nalafem Summit 2026 🌍🐝 Power without capital remains fragile. If we want young women leaders to truly transform systems, we cannot send them into the belly of the beast without the resources and support systems they need to succeed.

Are you at the #NalafemSummit2026? 🐝 Join us for a roundtable session co-hosted by #ColmenaFund, the Nalafem Sudan Taskforce, and the Solidarity Alliance: 💥African Women Political Leaders Reimagining Peace, Power, and Political Futures 🗓️ July 2 | 10:30 AM 📍Room 1, Emara Ole-Sereni, Nairobi, Kenya

A seat at the table means nothing if it isn't safe. True political change isn't just about including women and diverse voices into the room. Muzna Dureid puts it plainly: we need politics rooted in principles, rights, and real safety for all sharing different views. 🌍🐝 #Syria #ColmenaFund #WD2026

Empathy isn’t a soft skill—it’s power. ⚡ Andrea Ortega from @gwlvoices.bsky.social says it best: more empathy and different perspectives are exactly how we stop repeating old mistakes and build a better, stronger world. #WomenInPolitics #GenderEquality #GWLVoices #ColmenaFund #WD2026

Ainie Haziqah balances being a mother of three, run her own law firm, and serve as the youngest female Secretary-General across all political parties in #Malaysia. She’s proving that when women take the lead, the impact is undeniable. What does women’s leadership mean to you?👇 #ColmenaFund #WD2026

What does it take to support more #WomenInPolitics? Epsy Campbell believes strategic connection is the key. We must bring together women and gender-diverse leaders, from grassroots to national stages, around a fierce agenda for human rights, democracy, and peace. 🐝✨ #ColmenaFund #WD2026

What happens when diverse women lead? ✨ For Umama Fatema, a #GenZ movement leader in #Bangladesh, it means completely redefining the future. To transform our societies, we need women from all backgrounds and identities at the decision-making table. #GenderEquality #ColmenaFund #WD2026

Diplomacy isn't just about managing crises; it's about reshaping who gets to lead the solution. History shows that when women lead peace talks, the results actually last. Yet, the rooms where the biggest decisions are made still don't reflect the world's diverse voices from the frontlines.

#ColmenaFund is proud to join the #NalafemSummit2026 as a sponsor under the theme, "Power Meets Capital: When Women Back Women," in Nairobi, Kenya (July 1–2). We will also co-host a vital roundtable discussion: 💥 African Women Political Leaders Reimagining Peace, Power, and Political Futures 💥

Women and girls remain disproportionately affected by conflict-related sexual violence. The International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict (June 19) serves as a vital and urgent reminder of this reality. #EndSexualViolenceInConflict #WomenPeaceAndSecurity #WomenLead

🐝There can be no durable peace, no thriving democracy, and no sustainable future without the full, equal, and meaningful political participation and leadership of women in all their diversity. Peace, democracy, and gender equality are inseparable. #FeministForeignPolicy #GlobalSouth #PEFMadrid2026

"It was totally empowering and encouraging to see women standing for their community and what they stand for, even through all the difficulties." 🌟 Haruka from the Academy of Gender Parity (Japan) brings us to the final part of our side event at #WD2026 reflection series.

How to start educating ourselves to be the change for our people and our countries? 🌏 Tatiana of the Maori Women's Welfare League shares a powerful reminder in part 2 of the reflection series from our #WD2026 side event. 🐝 #ColmenaFund #GenZ #Millennial #WomenInPolitics #NewZealand #Narrm

How do we enable more women political leaders to take charge and take power? 💥 We’re sharing 3 key reflections from our #WD2026 side event, and we are kicking things off with this crucial question from our partner Preethi Herman, co-founder and CEO of #NguvuCollective. 🐝

✨ At #WD2026, we were honored to participate in vital conversations organized by @gwlvoices.bsky.social and #GQUALCampaign on the future of key international institutions for the defense of human rights, and the need for equality of global leadership to actually reshape power. #ColmenaFund

Sneak peek of #ColmenaFund at #WD2026 @womendeliver.bsky.social  ✨ We were proud to co-host: 🔹 From Movements to Power: A Dialogue with Gen Z and Millennial Women in Politics 🔹 A Dialogue on Transformative Futures of Peace

Today at #WD2026! 🟣 Join us at 12:00 PM in Meeting Room 106 for our side event *From Movements to Power: A Dialogue with Gen Z and Millennial Women in Politics* ✊🏾✨ #WD2026 #ColmenaFund #WomenInPolitics #FeministLeadership

The hive will be present at @rightscon.org 2026! Colmena Fund, in collaboration with Instituto Update and Pollicy, invite you to the side-event: Women’s Political Leadership in the digital age: Tech Solutions to address and disrupt Gender-Based Violence. RSVP at colmena.fund/rightscon

Powerful words from activist Gloria Sengha on what democracy actually looks like versus what it should be. It’s not just a definition in a textbook; it’s the right to basic services, the respect for fundamental rights, and the active participation of every citizen. 🌍✨ #ResistePersistReimagine

📣 Our President and CEO, Suyen Barahona, will be joining an esteemed panel for the GQUAL Campaign side event "Holding the Line: Gender Equality and the Future of Global Leadership" at @womendeliver.bsky.social, to discuss critical strategies to drive gender parity in global decision-making. #WD2026

Visibility is the first step toward power. 🧡🤍🩷 On #LesbianVisibilityDay, we celebrate the lesbians who lead, dream, and drive change. At Colmena Fund, we believe that reimagining political power requires centering those who have been left out for too long.

Season 2 Finale: Gloria Senga on the Frontlines of Justice "My condition as a woman does not determine me." ✊🏾 In our final episode, we sit down with Gloria Sengha, a Congolese lawyer and activist who has dedicated her life to dismantling the structural imbalances in her country.

*From Movements to Power: A Dialogue with Gen Z and Millennial Women in Politics* ✊🏾✨ 🟣 Join us at @womendeliver.bsky.social in Narrm (Melbourne) for a powerful session exploring accountability, compromise, and new political strategies for real impact. #WD2026 #ColmenaFund

Sustainability is impossible without equity. 🌍✊🏾 From the Amazon to the Pacific Islands, climate political champions and activists are on the frontlines defending their territories and the planet. They aren’t just "impacted" by the climate crisis, they are the ones leading the resistance. 🗣️

🌏✊ Change calls us here! From 27–30 April, over 6,500 advocates, leaders, and movements will come together in Narrm (Melbourne) for @womendeliver.bsky.social, regionally hosted by the Oceanic Pacific for the first time, on the unceded lands of the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung people of the Kulin Nation.

The future is today. 🇰🇪 Tabitha Oluoch, a Youth Participation Champion at Siasa Place, is challenging the idea that young people must wait their turn to lead. She is dedicated to ensuring that young people—especially women from sidelined communities—are no longer ignored in decision-making spaces.

“No one understands the challenges that we go through. It takes us to speak for us.” 🗣️✨ 🎙️ Tabitha’s advice for young women looking to enter politics is simple yet profound: stop waiting for permission.

How do we make politics make sense to everyone? ✨ 📣 Tabitha Oluoch explains how she simplifies complex laws to reach young women. Instead of using confusing jargon, she breaks down the 2024 Finance Bill into its real impact on everyday items like bread and sanitary towels. #ResistPersistReimagine

We don’t have to do this alone. 🐝 Hon. Winnie Kiiza highlights that a true support network is the backbone of leadership. We don’t have to figure everything out from scratch. By learning from the mistakes and strengths of those who walked before us, we build a stronger foundation for everyone.

“Reimagining democracy means centering people’s issues and putting the right persons in the right places for the good of our communities.” ✊🏾✨ Hon. Winnie Kiiza reminds us that true #democracy requires the right ingredients: justice, fairness, participation, and the freedom to speak without fear.

“You just have to defy the narrative and defy what other people may think is the norm.” 📣 From selling pancakes as a young girl to being the first woman Leader of the Opposition in Uganda, Hon. Winnie Kiza shows us that while obstacles are real, our collective power is stronger.🐝

🎙️ NEW EPISODE ALERT! We welcome Hon. Winnie Kiiza, Uganda’s first female Leader of the Opposition and MP for 15 years. In this episode of #ResistPersistReimagine, she talks about the "double standards" women face in politics and how she broke those barriers to open doors for the next generation. 🐝

If we had no say in it, how will it work for our needs? 🗣️ In our latest episode of #ResistPersistReimagine, Kenyan Senator Crystal Asige explores why "borrowed" systems often fail to meet our unique regional needs. #WomenInPolitics #Kenya #ColmenaFund

How do we lead authentically while ensuring no one is left behind? https://f.mtr.cool/rtiyrnxdqe  Originally from Mombasa, Kenya, Senator #CrystalAsige, reflects on this through her diverse work in music, advocacy, and disability rights.

"Who are you?" It’s the question Senator #CrystalAsige says you must answer before stepping into any leadership role. 🌍✨ In Season 2, Episode 4 of our podcast, she explains that leadership isn't about the title, it's about the legacy you leave behind and the values you refuse to compromise.

You don’t need a political background to change the world. 🌍 Full story on Season 2, Episode 4 of #ResistPersistReimagine. https://open.spotify.com/episode/1jbFaXLbh8nvzY524XY5OY?si=_8_Nw9iGSHmQdpC15RA1Fw

Reimagining political power means building from intersectionality. 🌍✨ This International Transgender Day of Visibility, we honor trans leaders across the Global South. We cannot change how power works without those most impacted by systemic barriers.

"Courage will make you act even when you're afraid." As Fadzayi Mahere shares, courage is a political necessity for African women. While structural barriers are designed to instill fear, courage provides the tools to start difficult conversations and transform society—even in hostile environments.

The political system wasn't built for women—and it’s time we talked about it. ⚡ 🎙️ In Episode 03, Season 2 of #ResistPersistReimagine, Fadzayi Mahere, a lawyer and former MP in #Zimbabwe, shared a powerful message about how women in politics are often left "on their own" without money or support.

Season 2, Episode 3 is now live! https://f.mtr.cool/iiusyrlwut  From teaching law to surviving maximum-security prison, Zimbabwean lawyer and former MP Fadzayi Mahere shares her experience as a women actively engaged in politics.

"We push for a Sudanese solution." 🎙️ In episode 03 of our podcast #ResistPersistReimagine, Samia El Hashmi, co-founder of Mutawinat, shares a powerful message for the international community: Stand in solidarity, but do not impose.

Humanitarian aid is vital, but political power is what will end the war. 🇸🇩✊🏾 In our latest episode, Samia El Hashmi from #Mutawinat delivers a sobering reminder: Sudanese women are the most affected by this conflict, yet they are being sidelined in the conversations that determine their future.

🎙️ 🐝 “We are not just talking about percentage, we are talking about the importance of engaging women and why women are important for #democracy.” Sudanese lawyer Samia El Hashmi explains why the fight for democracy in #Sudan is inseparable from the recognition of women as full, autonomous citizens.

"Democracy is not a destination. It is a tool that enables us to practice our rights as citizens." ⚖️ In Episode 2 of #ResistPersistReimagine, we sit down with Samia El Hashmi, a legal powerhouse and co-founder of Mutawinat. 🧵

Ever feel like you’re playing a game where the rules weren’t written for you? As Bina Maseno from #BadiliAfrica explains, everything from the way you walk to the way you campaign is traditionally coded as masculine. For young women, this creates a “double marginalization”.

What does #democracy look like to you? For Bina Maseno, ED of Badili Africa, it looks like a seat at the table for women in all their diversity. As she shares in the Season 2 premiere of our podcast, inclusion directly impacts the quality of our policies and the priorities of our budgets.

Today at #CSW70 in NYC! We are honored to co-host a high-level side event: "Across the Line: Confronting Online and Offline Violence Against Women in Politics." Join us as we move from identifying harms to building solutions for justice, platform governance, and safety innovations. 🧵 (1/3)

Season 2 is here!📣 Resist, Persist and Reimagine: A New Era for African Women’s Political Power.🎙️ In our premiere episode, we sit down with Bina Maseno, Executive Director of Badili Africa, to explore how we can consolidate our numbers to move the needle on justice and safety across the continent.🌍

Big news from the Hive! 🐝✨ On International Women’s Day, we are thrilled to announce Season 2 of the #ColmenaFund podcast: "Resist, Persist, and Reimagine: A New Era for African Women’s Political Power." 🌍✊🏾