Ms. Evelynne Change, Chief Economist at CABRI’s long-standing funding partner, the African Development Bank (AfDB) at the 2024 Building Public Finance Capabilities Framing Workshop
With the South African National Women’s Day upon us next month on 9 August, it is an opportune time for CABRI to recognise and celebrate women in Public Financial Management (PFM) – those within our constituency as government officials and all of its partners and stakeholders.
Over the past decade, CABRI has witnessed an exponential increase in the role of women in PFM. This has not only been in the form of leadership positions occupied by women in government and organisations but also at grassroots level, where women continue to bring awareness and inspire action to issues affecting women in all areas of life - and to the attention required to put actions in place to address them.
Through CABRI’s work, we have noted the transitional move from traditional PFM topics, with more emphasis made in PFM agendas and budget reform initiatives on issues such as climate change, social services for children, health, education, gender responsive budgeting, amongst others.
Advancing Inclusive PFM, requires women to be at the frontlines to bring about change. CABRI has witnessed the trailblazing role women play in their respective key positions and most recently, the notable levelling playing field by more women participating in CABRI programmes.
It is important to recognise the remarkable women we collaborate with to tackle some of the continent’s most pressing PFM challenges. As highlighted by Ms. Evelynne Change, Chief Economist at CABRI’s long-standing funding partner, the African Development Bank (AfDB) at the 2024 Building Public Finance Capabilities Framing Workshop last month,, it is great to see the gender composition of participating CABRI member country-teams (Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, Kenya, Mauritius) with more women forming part of the teams. Additionally, all country-team coaches are women, great in their field of PFM. We thank Ms. Change for the years of dedication and support to CABRI and for ensuring synergies in our PFM efforts.
South Africa, as host country of the CABRI Secretariat, has made great strides in closing the gender gap in government. In the recent G20 ranking, South Africa is in joint second place with Australia, with women accounting for 48.6% of the senior civil service. [1] We recognise the CABRI/South Africa country representatives, as leaders in their ministries that continue to support and form part of our work.
Equally, we recognise all of the CABRI 17 member countries, with representatives forming the CABRI General Assembly, notably women in leadership positions within their ministries. In a CABRI podcast last year, Ms. Maleshoane Lekomola, Budget Controller of the National Budget in the Ministry of Finance of the Kingdom of Lesotho, noted the increase in the number of women participating in CABRI programmes. Ms. Lekomola further acknowledged the headway made in the representation of women in Lesotho’s Ministry of Finance, with all leadership positions currently occupied by women. CABRI celebrates the hard work and dedication of all women PFM practitioners and for pushing the PFM agenda forward!
CABRI will not be able to do the work it does without the support of its funding partners. We note the women that support our work at the AfDB, the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH (GIZ), the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. And just as importantly, the women in our strong technical networks that jointly collaborate and partner with CABRI and continue to highlight PFM transformational agendas for a more Inclusive PFM.
And finally, we celebrate and recognise the CABRI Secretariat! Presently, the Secretariat sits at 100 percent women carrying out the important work we do. Not only have we become a strong influence on one another but serve as role models to the young generation of women PFM practitioners and professionals.
Women in PFM, CABRI recognises you, celebrates you and thanks you for your immense contributions towards inclusivity and to elevating the work force dynamics.