Gisele Yitamben

Gisele Yitamben
Association for the Support of Women Entrepreneurs

Gisele Yitamben is an economist by training, is a dynamic leader and expert on entrepreneurship development, information and communication technology and gender equality. She is the founder and President of the Association for the Support of Women Entrepreneurship, best known by its French acronym ASAFE, a social enterprise. An ardent defender of the rights of underprivileged persons, and notably women and youths, her actions have always targeted improving the welfare of those around her through searching for access to productive resources and technical services (e.g. alternative finance, training and high added value jobs).

In 2004, she initiated street football in Cameroon and her team ranked number 6 out of 48 countries represented at the 2006 Homeless World Cup in South Africa. Since then, her team has participated at The Homeless World Cup in Denmark, Australia and Brazil. Gisele Yitamben is the member of the expert group that advises the Director General of UNESCO on issues related to education for Sustainable Development.

Gisele Yitamben is a researcher and member of the research network GRACE through which her expertise has led to two books on women and ICT. She is a Schwab foundation fellow and has won several international and national prizes in recognition for her achievements. She was ranked among the 40 world's outstanding social entrepreneurs for the year 2002. Gisele Yitamben is the President of New Faces New Voices (NFNV) Cameroon, a chapter of NFNV an organization that works in changing policies, changing lives as well as investing in African women so as to multiply faces that will multiply voices.