Ziza Social Investing
Investing in Women. Investing in Resilience. Investing in Growth.
Across Africa, women entrepreneurs are rebuilding communities, creating jobs and driving economic recovery in places affected by conflict.
Yet, millions of women with the ambition, skills and determination to grow their businesses remain excluded from formal financial systems and investment opportunities.
Ziza Social Investing was created to change that.
A new initiative from Women for Women International, Ziza Social Investing connects capital with women-led enterprises in conflict-affected economies, helping women move beyond survival and build thriving businesses that strengthen families, communities and local economies.
Because when women gain access to opportunity, entire communities move from crisis to collective strength.
A Different Approach to Investment
Most investment models begin with capital.
We begin with women.
We know that access to finance alone is rarely enough to help an entrepreneur succeed, particularly in fragile and post-conflict environments.
Women entrepreneurs also need trusted networks, business knowledge, mentorship and ongoing support.
That is why Ziza combines capital with the community infrastructure and relationships that Women for Women International has spent decades building.
By connecting investment with support, we aim to help women entrepreneurs grow stronger businesses, create jobs and build lasting economic resilience.
Meet Josephine
When conflict forced Josephine to flee her village in South Sudan, she lost nearly everything.
Her home was destroyed. The land where she farmed was no longer accessible. Displaced by violence, Josephine, her husband and their children were forced to rebuild their lives from scratch.
But Josephine refused to give up on her future.
After joining our Strong Women, Strong Nations programme, she learnt business skills, financial management, future planning and trauma healing. Through a loan from her local women's savings group formed during the training, she was able to start a small kiosk selling food items next to her home.
Today, that business helps her provide for her children, pay school fees and meet her family's daily needs.
The business skills training helped me start my own business. Now I can support my children in school and provide for their needs.
Like millions of women living in conflict-affected communities, Josephine does not lack ambition, determination or ideas.
What she needs is access to opportunity.
Ziza Social Investing was created for women like Josephine.
Seeing Women as Economic Leaders
Women survivors of conflict are too often viewed only through the lens of humanitarian need.
But every day, women across Africa are running businesses, supporting families, employing neighbors and helping communities recover from crisis.
They are farmers, traders, shop owners, cooperative leaders and entrepreneurs.
They are economic actors with the potential to drive growth and resilience in some of the world's most challenging environments.
Yet traditional financial systems frequently overlook them.
Ziza exists to help change that narrative – from vulnerability to opportunity, from aid recipients to business leaders.
Built on Three Decades of Trust
For more than 30 years, Women for Women International has worked alongside women survivors of war, helping them rebuild their lives and strengthen their communities.
Through our Stronger Women, Stronger Nations programme, we have supported more than 650,000 women across conflict-affected regions and built extensive networks of women entrepreneurs, Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs), cooperatives and community leaders.
These relationships are rooted in trust, accountability and local knowledge.
Ziza Social Investing builds on this foundation to reach women entrepreneurs who are often invisible to traditional investment systems but are already creating value in their communities.
Why it Matters
Conflict costs Africa billions of dollars every year and disrupts livelihoods, markets and opportunities.
At the same time, women-led enterprises represent one of the continent's greatest untapped opportunities for inclusive economic growth.
When women are able to grow their businesses:
- Families become more financially secure.
- Children are more likely to stay in school.
- Communities become more resilient.
- Local economies grow stronger.
Investing in women is not only a social imperative. It is an economic opportunity.
Join Us
We believe women survivors of conflict are not only rebuilding their lives – they are helping rebuild economies.
Ziza Social Investing is creating a new pathway for inclusive growth, one rooted in resilience, entrepreneurship and opportunity.
Whether you are an investor, philanthropic partner, business leader or supporter, we invite you to join us.
Together, we can unlock the potential of women entrepreneurs and help build a more resilient future for communities affected by conflict.
