Men as Gender Equity Champions in Zambia: Helping Women and Girls Shape Their Futures

In many rural communities across Zambia, deeply rooted social norms have long dictated household dynamics. Traditional gender roles often place the burden of unpaid domestic work on women, limiting their access to land, leadership and financial resources. For young girls, harmful practices such as child marriage also frequently interrupt their education, cutting short their potential before it can fully unfold.

Through programs aimed at helping rural entrepreneurs prosper, iDE Zambia is shifting that narrative through its Gender Equity and Social Inclusion (GESI) strategy, engaging men as key allies and advocates of positive masculinity.

These "GESI Champions" are becoming a force for change against age-old gender stereotypes in rural households across Zambia.Across rural communities, iDE identified and trained influential men and women in their households, workplaces and communities, equipping them to challenge harmful norms, positively influence other men and help create more equitable spaces where women and girls can participate, lead and thrive.

In Mpongwe District, iDE-trained GESI champions like Aaron Kantumoya show how change in one household can spread across a community. After gender equity and social inclusion training with iDE, Aaron embraced joint decision-making and began involving his wife in everyday household choices. Today he is a role model, encouraging other men to recognize the value of women's voices.

Through eight village savings groups, Aaron reaches more than 200 community members, promoting shared responsibility and women's participation. His advocacy has also helped shift attitudes toward women's land rights: 25 male community members have followed his lead, jointly acquiring land certificates with their wives.

The impact goes beyond equality; it has boosted income, too. Aaron and his wife have built businesses in poultry, agro-dealing and crop production with iDE Zambia's support, helping their family grow its savings. As a GESI Champion, Aaron continues to challenge traditional beliefs about land ownership and joint decision-making, creating greater security for women and children in his community.

When women entrepreneurs prosper, household incomes can rise by more than 5 percentage points and community resilience by 20 points. In developing countries, 17% of women run their own businesses and another 35% aspire to, with more than half viewing entrepreneurship as their path to economic empowerment. Supporting women farmers alone could help end food insecurity and save the world nearly $1 trillion.

iDE Zambia is helping foster shared household decision-making among entrepreneurs in its programs. But the goal goes beyond creating advocates who talk about gender equality, it's about equipping community members to model the change they want to see, turn conversation into action, and create an environment where women and girls have greater opportunity to contribute, make decisions and realize their full potential, supported by men.

"GESI Champions are making a profound impact in their communities," said Mercy Mweetwa, iDE GESI officer. "By promoting equal opportunities and uplifting marginalized groups, they are empowering community members to become active citizens and champions of holistic, sustainable development."

The GESI Champions have reached more than 8,000 families so far, challenging harmful norms and practices. Their work is also encouraging greater male participation in activities traditionally seen as women's roles, including nutrition cooking demonstrations.

"Men are breaking down barriers that contribute to malnutrition and limit opportunities for growth," Mweetwa said. "GESI Champions are challenging harmful traditions, encouraging greater male engagement, and empowering communities to take ownership of their own development."

In Lufwanyama District, GESI Champion Hendricks Kasongo is showing how community action can protect girls from harmful practices. Hendricks supported an underage girl who had been married off by her parents, putting her education at risk. Rather than treat the situation as a private family matter, he engaged the family and worked with school leadership to advocate for her return to school. The girl left the marriage, returned to school and went on to sit for her seventh grade exams.

Hendricks helped her reach that academic milestone, and also gave her an opportunity to regain her voice, rebuild her confidence and pursue a more promising future.

"Gender transformation cannot be achieved by women alone," said Sylvester Kalonge, iDE Zambia country director. "It requires men, women, traditional leaders and communities to recognize their role in creating an environment where everyone has an equal voice, opportunity and ability to contribute to their community's development."

By engaging men, iDE is breaking generations of rigid gender roles. Since 2024, the organization has trained and equipped 111 Gender Equity Champions, 93 men and 18 women, across the Central, Copperbelt and North-Western provinces, equipping male entrepreneurs and the partners of women entrepreneurs with advocacy and facilitation skills. In turn, these men are becoming gender champions themselves, challenging the everyday practices that keep women marginalized in their homes and communities.

iDE understands that women's entrepreneurship, in partnership with men, is a key driver of household prosperity in low- and middle-income communities. iDE aims to power 1 million women entrepreneurs to foster prosperity for 100 million people in their communities.

This article was written by Pezo Siabasimbi, iDE Zambia