The event took place at U.S. Embassy and three women were selected from over one thousand nominations submitted by U.S. Embassy Kigali’s Facebook fans.
Awarded at the fourth annual Rwandan Women of Courage award are; Leonne Laura Uwizihiwe, Vanessa Bahati and Esperence Gasore.
Since 2007, the U.S. State Department in Washington, DC has presented International Women of Courage awards to inspiring women from around the world who have demonstrated exceptional courage, strength, and leadership in advocating for human rights, social justice, and women’s equality and advancement.
In 2015, the U.S. Embassy in Kigali launched the “Rwanda’s Women of Courage,” to recognize inspiring women of Rwanda.
About the Awardees
Leonne Laura Uwizihiwe is a teacher and an advocate for gender equality. She has been a strong advocate for girls’ empowerment through mentoring students at the FAWE school, petitioning the government to provide social services to keep teen mothers in school, and campaigning against female genital mutilation across the region.
Vanessa Bahati is the founder of the Jordan Foundation. The mission of the Foundation is to improve the lives of visually impaired children between the ages of three and eight years old. The Jordan Foundation helps visually impaired children and their families thrive by offering health and educational services, emotional support, and socioeconomic empowerment.
Esperence Gasore is a nurse and founder of the NGO Rwanda Children and director of Rwanda Children’s Health Center. The Rwanda Children’s Health Center provides health services to poor and vulnerable families in Ntarama. Rwanda Children also provides social support to the community through education and entrepreneurship programs, clean water programs, and incoming generating skills programs.
Since 2015, 13 women of courage have been recognized by the U.S. Ambassador to Rwanda.
Leave a Reply