Chigedze Virginia Chinyepi

Chigedze Virginia Chinyepi is a gender activist and entrepreneurial consultant with more than 2 decades of experience, working in  Civil Society and Private Sector Organisations in Botswana and in Southern Africa. She has spent over a decade in building capacity for women empowerment, lobbying for policy change and economic empowerment of women. Moreover, she is the founder and chairperson of African Women Entrepreneurship Program (AWEP), Botswana Chapter. Chairperson of Gender and Human Rights Thematic Group of the Botswana Council of NGOs, member of the Botswana National Gender Commission,  member of the Global Environmental Facility (GEF) of the United Nations Development Agency (UNDP) Small Grant Program (SGP). Gender Links Alliance member for the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) Protocol on Gender and Development in Botswana.

Since 2009 to date,  have been involved in lobbying and advocating for gender equality in Botswana and the SADC countries. Presented a Shadow report on the Convention of All forms of Discrimination Against Women and girls (CEDAW)  to the United Nations CEDAW Committee in Geneva (2010 and 2019). Participated in the Regional (Botswana, Namibia, Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe) Social Protection Policy Brief development and presented to the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW63 – March 2019)

Region: Southern Africa - Botswana
Area of Expertise: Advocacy, Lobbying and Promoting Gender Equality, Economic Empowerment of women and Elimination of all forms of Gender Based Violence