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Winnie Byanyima

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June 12, 2009

Winnie Byanyima

former Director of the UNDP Gender Team, Bureau for Development Policy

Winnie Byanyima discusses her background, what led her into politics and the challenges she faced as a woman in Uganda.

Winnie Byanyima, Director of the UNDP Gender Team, Bureau for Development Policy, was elected three times to the Uganda legislature and was a founder of the Assembly’s women’s caucus. Before joining UNDP, Ms. Byanyima served as Director, Women, Gender and Development Directorate of the African Union Commission. She was also a founding member and first chair of the Forum for Women in Democracy (FOWODE), a national NGO. Ms. Byanyima has served on many expert and advisory panels and as a consultant of the UNDP, UNIFEM and other UN agencies. She is a member of the Executive Board of the African Capacity Building Foundation and the International Centre for Research on Women. Recently, she was a member of the UN Millennium Development Goals Task Force on Education and Gender Equality. Ms Byanyima has authored several publications on issues of gender and governance, including a handbook she co-authored for the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) entitled “Parliaments, the Budget Process and Gender,” and “A Rising Tide,” a biography of prominent Ugandan women politicians and activists. Ms. Byanyima holds an M.Sc. and a B.Sc. in Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering from Manchester University (UK).

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Date of Interview
Region
former Director of the UNDP Gender Team, Bureau for Development Policy

Winnie Byanyima discusses her background, what led her into politics and the challenges she faced as a woman in Uganda.

Winnie Byanyima, Director of the UNDP Gender Team, Bureau for Development Policy, was elected three times to the Uganda legislature and was a founder of the Assembly’s women’s caucus. Before joining UNDP, Ms. Byanyima served as Director, Women, Gender and Development Directorate of the African Union Commission. She was also a founding member and first chair of the Forum for Women in Democracy (FOWODE), a national NGO. Ms. Byanyima has served on many expert and advisory panels and as a consultant of the UNDP, UNIFEM and other UN agencies. She is a member of the Executive Board of the African Capacity Building Foundation and the International Centre for Research on Women. Recently, she was a member of the UN Millennium Development Goals Task Force on Education and Gender Equality. Ms Byanyima has authored several publications on issues of gender and governance, including a handbook she co-authored for the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) entitled “Parliaments, the Budget Process and Gender,” and “A Rising Tide,” a biography of prominent Ugandan women politicians and activists. Ms. Byanyima holds an M.Sc. and a B.Sc. in Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering from Manchester University (UK).

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Date of Interview
Region
former Director of the UNDP Gender Team, Bureau for Development Policy