Africana Woman

Kako is the embodiment of motherhood. She has been a single mother. She has adopted orphaned children. She has mothered a daughter in a loving marriage. She is also a mother to the young women she meets in her work space and community. Her children are adults and yet she never stops being a mother. Listen to Kako's story about how she evolved in this role, what her children taught her and how she...

Do you know that in Sub Saharan Africa there is an Infertility Belt at a rate of 33% (in comparison to the world average of 8%). This means that in your group of three friends at least one of you is likely to experience primary or secondary infertility. AND YET WE DO NOT TALK ABOUT IT. We shun childless women. We label them. We ostracise them. We judge these women. My guest today, was so brave and...

As parents we want the best for our children. When we select their education path are we asking the right questions? Have we taken everything into consideration from the impact that the social setting can have on your child? Your child may spend only 4 years in another country but the social effects can impact them for life. Have you researched about what happens beyond the classroom? Have you mad...

Children should be seen and not heard. If we refuse to hear them, what are the young people in your life not telling you? That is a question we should all ask ourselves. Our guest on the Africana Woman podcast is 21 year old Natasha Kananda, who shares her life story. How she was double orphaned at a very young age. Then what she did as her coping mechanisms. My hope is that you really hear her an...

As we continue to speak to young African women, I thought it pertinent to talk about how communication plays out in African homes from the perspective of younger people in a household. My guest Lengwe Bobo takes us on a fascinating discussion about Rape Culture, Parenting Stylyes, Youth Exposure and her own personal experience with depression. Even though her mother is a medical doctor she did not...

For the next few weeks, we shall have a series where we amplify the voices of young women. They too have powerful stories to share, and lessons to teach. For whatever reason we tend to perpetuate the gap in the generation divide. But we need to start talking to each other. We need to listen and actually hear what the other says, we need to embrace each other.  I have been fortunate enough to meet...

Oooooo this health series is really coming for my edges. Like Carolyn does not hold anything back as she explains how our spiritual pain manifests in her body. Basically when we have physical ailments we are treating the symptom and not the disease, the root cause. If you listen carefully there are a couple of moments that Carolyn did a cold read on issues I have. So this episode is a combination...

I am a big supporter of seeking professional help for your mental health. In many of our communities doing so could be frowned upon and seen as an act that can bring shame on your family. This means that we may know that we need to find help, yet we have no one to ask for guidance on how to go about finding a therapist, what to expect and how long to be in therapy. All those questions will be answ...

In this month of April we will be discussing our health from different aspects. First up is your mind health. Our last guest, Juliana Bitarabeho, so eloquently said that everything starts with health, no matter how much you are empowered, if you are not healthy you will not progress. Our guest today takes this statement even further by saying it all starts in the mind. This is a woman who was orig...

So you made it to the top, you are sitting at the proverbial table. You are the leader you always dreamt you would be. Yet, the feeling of imposter syndrome sneaks in. Then doubt sets in, you begin to second guess your decisions, you start comparing yourself to other people. You fear the consequences of when you believe the people around you will discover you are really not qualified to be at that...

As we continue to celebrate International Women's Day 2021 and Women's History Month, it gives me great pleasure to introduce Yosola Adigun from Nigeria. We have an in-depth conversation about women leading and being successful by tapping into their feminine attributes. Yosola gives practical tools and numerous examples of how she has managed to climb the ladder in a male dominated industry and be...

This interview is so rich in the breadth of the topics covered. We ALL have a story to tell. Often we take it for granted or make assumptions about people because of the mountain top they sit on. We forget that they were not placed there but undertook a journey. Talking to Liza (pronounces L-ee-za), made me realise that your life leaves breadcrumbs to your purpose.    First we talk about her famil...

What it means to be African falls under a wide umbrella. It thrills me to share a mighty story from the beautiful island of Mauritius. Anusha and I met during the Young African Leaders Initiative Southern Africa in 2017. In person she is such a bright light and I have since enjoyed watching her career soar from height to height. Inviting her to be a guest was an obvious choice however, I was delig...

Africana Woman Visionaries is the premier network for female entrepreneurs of African descent.  You may have heard about it or seen it on social media but are not quite sure how exactly you, as an entrepreneur, can benefit from the services and opportunities offered in this dynamic community. Therefore, the leadership team took time to explain the Africana Woman Visionaries to you in detail. In th...

We all know that in Africa we have been sold the dream that the grass is greener on the other side. But is it really? We often complain about the images portrayed about Africans on the global stage; from the emaciated baby with a distended stomach and fly on the mouth to streets lined with garbage. Sadly, this tiny percent of the African story has been magnified to the status of an absolute and on...

Do you know as educated women we are still subject to abuse on different levels. Words like Narcissist and Gaslighting have become commonplace. However, do you really understand how it works? What emotional and psychological abuse looks like?   This is a powerful story about a woman who lost her life as she knew it in the blink of an eye. Being wrongfully institutionalised in a mental hospital in...

Have you ever met someone who changed the whole trajectory of your life? Paula Rogo joined me for an insightful conversation about her experiences of moving from the US back home to Kenya as an adult to start a business and settle down. So many factors to consider from building your network, making friends as an adult, work ethic, and managing expectations. Paula has followed a career path that is...

Welcome to Part 2 on our conversation about Racism in Africa, with Muma Sinkala. I love speaking to Muma because she is not afraid to call a spade a spade. If you have not see the first episode on this topic, make sure you go watch it first. Last week our conversation covered colonialism, African dependency on white saviours and Africans being the gatekeepers. This week we spoke about what we as A...

The topic of Racism in Africa is quite heavy. However, we cannot keep sticking our heads in sand and pretending that it does not exist on the continent. My obvious choice of who to brave this topic with was Muma Sinkala and she did not disappoint. It was such a rich discussion. Albeit sometimes uncomfortable but that is okay.  Our conversation covered colonialism, African dependency on the white s...

Annie Mbako @nieniedo , is back for Part 2 of our discussion called Brit(ish) Africans; Newcomers to the Game. Quick recap of what we covered; What the attraction is to moving to the British isles. What Africans experience in relation to Afro Caribbeans and White people. How Africans deal with racism. Whether Africans are thriving in the UK. Money habits as Africans. Black Tax. Building generation...

The Africana Woman spotlight this week is on Annie Mbako @nieniedo , ooooo this chat became so juicy. I always like to make sure the topic is exhausted, and there was so much information she was giving. Or maybe I'm just nosey lol. All the same, this topic will be in two parts. Annie is Cameroon born and a British national. We covered everything from how Africans end up in the British Isles. What...

Thank you Lumba Kalumba for giving us a colourful insight into your journey in the political world. She is an Africana Woman with so much grace from Zambia.  Certainly during the Corona pandemic women across the world are proving how they are leaders of substance even through this crisis. Proving the relevance of our voices in the political space. African women have traditionally had roles of poli...

This is part two of my conversation with Khanya Sosibo @mskaysos . Make sure you catch Part 1, for all the wisdom dropped by this Africana Woman. We spoke about Success, Self-love and being Single. In this edition we dove deeper into the pains and joys of being a professional single African Woman. We learned "You are Fat!" is Not a greeting. Three things one should know about yourself before jumpi...

Khanya Sosibo @mskaysos (IG) is a powerhouse Africana woman from South Africa. This conversation was soooo much fun; we laughed and learned. She was dropping gems throughout the chat. We talked about defining Success, Self-Love and being an educated professional Single African woman. Can you relate? I certainly can being a 36 year old single parent.    Practicing self preservation is a form of sel...

Elishibah Msengeti Poriot @theclassroomoutside (IG) kicks off the Africana Woman podcast with an appropriate conversation about African Women Role Models. She is a deep well of knowledge on the topic.   African Women Role Models is of particular importance to me. I remember being young and being broken hearted because the dolls did not look like me. Representation in the simplest areas count.   I...