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Forbes
3 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Forbes
She Is The Music And Nashville Women Team To Give Young Female Artists A Voice
L - R Maggie Rose, Sinclair, Jillian Jacqueline, Mary Margueritte, Stella Prince, Summer Joy Look at any list of the greatest country artists of all time and you'll see the number of female artists who have dominated the genre – Patsy Cline, Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn, Reba McEntire, Trisha Yearwood, Barbara Mandrell, Emmylou Harris, June Carter Cash, Tammy Wynette, Tanya Tucker, Taylor Swift, The Chicks, The Judds, Crystal Gayle, Alison Krauss and Martina McBride leading up to the more contemporary artists; Shania Twain, Kelsea Ballerini, Carrie Underwood, Kacey Musgraves, Miranda Lambert, Ella Langley, Lainey Wilson, Dasha, Megan Moroney, Sierra Farrell, Willow Avalon, Alana Springsteen. There's no question from the roots of the genre until today women have played a pivotal role in the success of country music. All of this begs the question: how the hell can only eight percent of the artists played at country radio right now be women? That's right, eight percent! This is according to a recent study by The Tennessean. Gender inequity at radio is sadly nothing new. I remember Melissa Etheridge and Sheryl Crow telling me in separate interviews how rock radio told them both separately at the beginnings of their career that rock radio could not add two women at once. However, where other genres are getting better, country seems particularly egregious. To not even reach 10 percent is insulting to all involved and indicates how much needs to change, which is exactly what a group of industry power players are attempting to do in Nashville. She Is The Music, a non-profit organization co-founded by Alicia Keys, Jody Gerson, Ann Mincieli and Samantha Kirby Yoh, dedicated to increasing the number of women working in the music industry, has teamed up with radio veteran Leslie Fram's FEMco and Marcie Allen's Anzie Blue, Nashville's only independent female-owned venue, which has a 95 percent female staff, have teamed up for a monthly showcase dedicated to featuring up and coming female artists in all genres. 'We are thrilled to announce our Nashville She Is The Music artist showcase and educational workshop series in partnership with Marcie Allen and Leslie Fram. There are so many talented women in Nashville; artists and songwriters deserving of a break and recognition, as well as aspiring executives who can learn more about our business through the workshops. Bringing these events together monthly will allow us to continue to spotlight and increase the number of women working in our industry,' Gerson told me. Leslie Fram and Marcie Allen 'This monthly series is about more than just performances and panels—it's about creating real access and opportunity. By connecting talented women with the right people, resources, and education, we're helping to open doors that can lead to lasting careers and a more inclusive future for the music industry,' Michelle Yablans, Executive Director of She Is The Music said. The series kicked off last week, Wednesday July 16, with a sold-out show. The next one will be August 27 and will include Brittney Spencer. I spoke with Fram as well as artists Maggie Rose and Stella Prince, who performed last week, about the series and why it is so essential to wake up country radio to the glut of female talent out there not being given a chance by radio. Steve Baltin: How has your radio background influenced you? Leslie Fram: It's tough because I came from a radio background, but not country radio. I came from rock radio, and I always as a program director thought that the best way to really serve the audience and to get ratings was balance and that was balance of sound and balance of gender. Unfortunately, it's not like that in country radio. I've never programmed country radio, but I worked at CMT for 13 years. We started in 2000 programming all of our channels 50/50 male female because of the disparity for women on country radio. It was really our way of supporting female artists. Baltin: When did you start in radio?? Fram: I started radio in 1980, and I did top 40 radio for many years and then in 1992, me and several other people created 99 X in Atlanta and it was the beginning of in the early 90s there were a handful of alternative radio station stations around the country. KROQ L.A., 91 X San Diego, HFS Q 101 Chicago, 99 X Atlanta and it was right at the beginning of the whole Seattle movement. So, I was on that radio station doing mornings and program director at that radio station and I worked there for 17 years. So, my early beginnings in radio were top 40, then right into alternative and then I worked in New York for three years at a radio station 101RXP and I did mornings with Matt Pinfield and programmed that station. And it was like a rock hybrid. Then I came to Nashville to do country in CMT in 2011. And the first thing I noticed was the lack of support for women. I was shocked because women dominate pop and the pop charts. The way the system worked here, especially around that time, is it was really difficult to even get on a tour unless you had a song on the radio. So, all of the elements were really against women and yeah, there was a time when it was great for women in country, but the fact that the numbers are so low and that we've gone backwards, we're really hurting livelihoods. A lot of the programs that we established at CMT were for women, like 'Next Women of Country.' We started this franchise at the end of it. Before I left, we had over 111 women that were in the program. We'd play their videos and push out content. We started a tour for women, all because women needed a stage to play on, to get paid, and to be recognized. And I believe women are making some of the best music. It's just really difficult for them to get on terrestrial radio. That is one of the reasons why I wanted to, when I started my company, really start another franchise to support women in all genres. Baltin: How have you seen the lack of support affect women? Fram: It's really been my fight from the beginning of supporting women because what I've seen firsthand and heard stories, I've seen how the lack of support has affected a lot of women, especially in the country genre. Baltin: So, tell me about then the event Wednesday night and how this will lead to change. Fram: I think because our missions are all aligned with, She Is The Music and what Marcie has been doing at AB, what I did at CMT and what I'm doing with FEMco, I think it just reinforces our mission to combat gender discrimination, to try to create equitable opportunities for female artists. We want to create this broader movement for inclusivity in music. And I think what we're doing with all genres, if you looked at who played the other night, the beauty of it is that some of the artists that didn't know each other, now they know each other, they're all exchanging phone numbers, they want to write with each other. Sinclair, who I've known since I moved here 13 years ago, who's an amazing pop artist, fell in love with Summer Joy and wants to work with her. So, those are the type of things that we see happen. And knowing now that She Is The Music wants to do this on a monthly basis is really meaningful. Summer Joy Baltin: What are the long-term goals? Fram: In Nashville, we also try to support the female producers, engineers and songwriters. But it's still not easy in those [other] genres as well to even get on to festivals and tours. It's very difficult in country because a lot of the artists really dictate who go out on tour with them. What's great is we do have a lot of male artists that bring women out on tour. Keith Urban's one of the best, but then you have the female artists that really support other female artists. Miranda Lambert's been doing it for years, and so this is really a way to broaden this appeal and broaden this movement, and I think it will. We had a great turnout the other night, and again, seeing the camaraderie between the artists to me is the most special part of that night. Baltin: Will there be plans at some point to take this out on the road? Fram: I one thousand percent believe it's viable because if you look at what Brandie Carlile has done with her festival and again, it's all genres. There are so many amazing female artists, as you mentioned, even in the Americana space, that I completely love. And I think the time is now to do something like this. Again, I think the genre lines are blurred. You have a lot of artists that cross a lot of different lines. And it's just about great music and celebrating female voices. I was at those original Lilith Fair's. And what's great is that when I worked at this alternative station in the '90s, 99X in Atlanta, we played Sarah McLachlan. We were the No Labels station. We just wanted to play great music. We supported Sheryl Crow and Sarah McLachlan. And Sheryl, living in Nashville I get to see her all the time, she waves the flag for other women all the time. And a lot of these women that are up and coming are just getting into their careers, she has been a mentor to them. So, I think the time is right. Baltin: Like you said, the time would be right for another touring package. But for the moment you're starting in Nashville, it's going to be monthly. Will you also be looking to bring in special guests, because obviously if you're having new artists do this, you want to bring people in to draw attention to it? Fram: Yeah, we will definitely have special guests. I think it's going to grow into something that we don't even know what's going to happen next, but at least we've started, and we've seen that the environment is perfect. Nashville has so many talented women in all genres. And we're starting to get outreach from women that have heard about it, they would love to be part of it. So, I'm really excited that she is the music and AB want to do this on a monthly basis. It's probably one of my dream come true scenarios. I love all music, but I really, right now want to help the female artists. Baltin: Leslie was telling me that one of the nice things about Wednesday was artists developing these relationships. Stella Prince: That is absolutely true. I think my favorite thing about Wednesday night was obviously that it was an all-female lineup, but something interesting about it was that it was all different genres of women artists, and I feel like that doesn't happen too often. Every artist was in their entirely different genre, and I thought that was just the coolest thing, just going one after the other. There was folk, country, Americana, rock. It was really interesting, And I know that they did that on purpose, and they want to continue to do that and have it be all genres. I thought that was the most unique part of the whole evening. Baltin: Do you feel like you learn then by being with artists at different points in their career? Prince: That's exactly right. Maggie Rose is an artist who I've heard of for years and it was my first time meeting her on Wednesday night. She was so sweet, she came up to me and said, 'I moved to Nashville when I was 19 and I did this and this at this age.' It was such a moment where it was so amazing to have that connection with another female artist and learn from them and hear about their story. I feel like that's kind of the whole goal of their events is passing down the torch and having female artists just learn from each other and get to know each other and support each other. That's exactly what it was Wednesday night. Baltin: So how would you like to see it expand? We talked about bringing in bigger artists who could draw attention to it as special guest stars. Prince: Yeah, I think that's an unbelievably brilliant idea. And what I've done for the past couple months is do the Stella Prince and friends events at AB. (t's been four to five female artists each time and I just started doing that in LA at Hotel Café. So, I really love that idea of having it be a continuous thing and the idea of taking it on tour is so interesting to me because I've done one event like this in London one event in Berkeley in Maine and Connecticut and then we did it in New York city. And that I almost think is my favorite part of doing it, because when you pick the local artists, that is so interesting and so cool to find those up and coming local artists. Baltin: For you, how important are things like this to not only draw attention to the fact there are so many female artists out there, but also get to meet everybody? Prince: The fact that it's not competitive and it's lifting each other up, I think is the single thing that's going to change everything. And I know that everyone talks about how it's so competitive, especially among young women, but the fact that it's just a different mindset, especially Wednesday night, of everyone going into it, everyone being on the same page, and everyone being supportive of everyone, I think that positivity and that attitude is really going to change the game. It really is going to change everything. Baltin: How do you see it changing? Prince: What this is doing to me is it's giving women opportunities. The reason there's so much competition is because there's not that many opportunities for women or there haven't been. Now that all these initiatives are starting to take place that's what's making it feel like women have a place, women can do this too and It's really phenomenal. What I want to come out of it is I want the industry to see that female artists can do this, that women have a place in music. L - R Cathy Lewandowski, Nicole Onufrey, Scarlett Burke, Marcie Allen, Stella Prince Baltin: What did this show mean to you? Maggie Rose: I would say that the inequity at country radio specifically was a big factor in me leaving the genre, but the inequity is pervasive and it's in every space. Leslie Fram has been a cheerleader of mine for a long time. I picked up a magazine that had a feature on her and I'm just reading through it and there's a quote from her about me specifically saying, 'This town can't figure it out. All these labels went to go see Maggie for a showcase and they said they loved what she does, but they don't know what to do with her.' And she just got really sick of this complacency that she was seeing in our town of, if there's not this cookie cutter mold that the female artist fits in, or if the radio station has met its quota for, having however many females on their playlist, then they say, 'Okay, we're good.' And it's just been stagnant for so long. And the other night was so awesome because every artist was really different and had their own voice and originality and there is variety and the female artistry in Nashville, I think was represented so wll that night. We haven't mined that gold in our town well, and we all need to do a better job of it and Leslie is such a great proponent for that. Baltin: Why do you think that is? Rose: Kacey Musgraves doesn't get played, Margot Price doesn't get played. I have a podcast called Salute the Songbird. It's all women and there's no shortage of guests that I want to have. I've done four seasons of it and the list of who I want to interview is way longer than who I've gotten to talk to thus far. Sadly, a portion of the conversation always comes to this topic, at least for a little bit of our conversation, because my theory is that country music in the commercial sense has been co-opted by a larger cultural thing that doesn't really have as much to do with the artist as it does with the movement and like the associations with commercial country music. The Recording Academy just came out with a new category of traditional country music. I think that's a step in the right direction to start to identify the nuances in all the sub-genres that are emerging in that genre. But my nomination for the Grammy last year was the Americana Album nomination. And I was in that category with Sierra Farrell and Charlie Crockett and people who I think consider themselves to be country. But there's not really a home for them in Nashville, in country music, in that community, where they're going to get played on the radio. Baltin: Do you see change coming? Rose: I am an optimist, and I believe that excellence will survive and rise to the top. It just takes some persistence and tenacity to get there but a song that I have coming out a week from yesterday is a song called 'Poison in my Well' that I played on Wednesday and my duet partner is Grace Potter. She and I have talked about this at length too because she has that career where she's beloved, she's every musician's favorite musician but she and I are not getting played on the radio, we're not in that short playlist on any station but I think we have meaningful careers and people that seem to follow, but we're not getting that like commercial push that I think we would both enjoy a break like that. And I do think some people are getting breaks where it's not a meritocracy and it's hard to figure out why something gets all this weight thrown behind it and other things don't. So, I think we do need a conversation of what Leslie is doing with FEMco. Baltin: Tell me about the show Wednesday from your perspective. Rose: What I would like to see happen specifically as it pertains to Wednesday is a higher frequency of events like that because there is an abundance of artists who I think need to be amplified. And I realized that we just need a little nudge within our own community of female artists to share those trade secrets and to feel comfortable to be like, 'Yeah, this does suck. And this is how I navigated this situation.' Feeling like we have an open forum to talk about it cause there's some of that happening on social media, but I think it still makes us feel like we're all working within silos, and we aren't. We're very much connected to each other. And musically, we were all really different the other night but those are relationships that I feel like I'm going to have for a long time just because of what the night was about and the things that we got to talk about backstage. So, having that community there and feeling like it's okay to air our grievances and try to find solutions together I think is what will result from more of the family.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
More men are returning to the office. Here's why that matters for women.
The return to office is in full swing, but you might notice more men around the water cooler. According to the Department of Labor, men are returning to the office in greater numbers than women. In 2024, 29% of employed men reported working from home, down from 34% the previous year. Approximately 36% of women worked from home last year, unchanged from 2023. What's behind these numbers? It's likely a result of return-to-office initiatives in male-dominated industries like tech, Cory Stahle, senior economist at Indeed, told Yahoo Finance. Women accounted for only about a quarter of computer and mathematical jobs in 2024, according to the data. For some roles, like computer programmers and computer hardware engineers, the share is even lower — 17.8% and 14.3% — respectively. 'Many of these return-to-office efforts are coming at a time when demand for workers in male-dominated industries has weakened, giving employers the upper hand,' Stahle said. As for the unbudging number of women working remotely over that two-year period, there could be an explanation for that finding as well, according to Stahle. Female-dominated fields such as private education and health services, leisure and hospitality, and state and local government have been less affected by return-to-work mandates, he said. 'Many of the jobs in these industries are already in-person roles.' Obstacle for gender equity Whether women are trying to move up or break into fields where office time is required, the trend away from remote arrangements could have far-reaching repercussions for gender equity. Here's why: Nearly 9 in 10 CEOs said in a 2024 survey that they 'will reward employees who make an effort to come into the office with favorable assignments, raises, or promotions.' That could also play out in the gender wage gap that has persisted across industries for decades. Last year, women earned an average of 85% of what men earned, according to Pew Research Center. Will the pay gap get worse if in-office attendance is a prerequisite for pay bumps? "In theory, remote work can be viewed as either a positive or negative amenity: It may offer greater scheduling flexibility, enhancing work-life balance, but it may also limit access to face-to-face mentoring and raise concerns about potential career growth penalties,' said Zoë Cullen, a lead researcher for a National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) study on remote work. We do know that roughly 8 in 10 CEOs envision a full return to the office in the next three years, and many of those making it mandatory have threatened employees with termination if they fail to follow the company's return-to-office mandate. So far, the types of jobs being hit by these mandates have been well-paying, white-collar roles, Stahle said. 'If a worker can't or chooses not to return to the office and loses their higher-paying job as a result, that will have clear implications for the pay gap and the economy,' he said. The arc of remote work Remote work has been facing into the wind all year. Organizations that describe their workplace environment as remote shrank dramatically between 2024 and 2025, according to a study by Payscale. Despite the pressure, plenty of workers, not just women, are standing their ground on full-blown return-to-office attendance and are willing to take a pay cut to hold on to some flexibility. A majority of job candidates would accept a pay cut to work remotely, according to a new survey by Criteria Corp. On average, employees are willing to accept a 25% pay cut for partly or fully remote roles, according to the NBER study. All that said, the balance of power has shifted. In 2023, when workers had the upper hand in a tight labor market, the odds of being penalized for not coming into the office were low, or in many cases, not realistic for employers, who were well aware that workplace flexibility was one way that they could hang on to and lure skilled workers. Return-to-office demands by many tech-oriented employers, including Amazon, Google, and Meta, hit a fever pitch earlier this year. 'In a softening labor market, employers have more leverage to demand in-office work,' Marc Cenedella, founder of Ladders Inc., a career site for jobs that pay $100,000 or more, told Yahoo Finance. 'The great resignation is over. The great return is upon us.' Sign up for the Mind Your Money weekly newsletter By subscribing, you are agreeing to Yahoo's Terms and Privacy Policy Hybrid to the rescue Compromise, however, has inched in. And that playbook can work for many women, who still shoulder a disproportionate share of caregiving responsibilities for children and aging parents, and need and value flexibility more than men. Flexible work benefits have stabilized enough to suggest a permanent place in employers' benefits, according to a new SHRM Employee Benefits Survey. Overall, hybrid office environments — where attendance is generally three days a week for so-called knowledge workers (not front-line ones) — are the norm now at more than half of companies, followed by traditional office environments at 27%, with remote-first environments making up only 16% of office types, per Payscale data. In fact, while 4 in 10 organizations deployed a return-to-office mandate in recent years, an increasing number have done a bit of soft shoe around the specific requirements and have loosened the rules depending on job type and for those who are top aging population factor Long-term trends in the workforce could ultimately help women gain ground. 'As the baby boomer generation ages and companies grapple with fewer younger workers and our labor market tightens, companies can't afford to overlook any segment of the workforce, especially women,' said Gwenn Rosener, co-founder of recruiting firm FlexProfessionals. Because fewer people are born each year, our workforce is going to start to shrink, and we need workers to make products, provide services, and pay taxes, Bradley Schurman, a demographic strategist, told Yahoo Finance. 'So, as we enter this period of the Super Age, with more people over the age of 65 than under the age of 18, this is going to create market conditions that are going to increase the demand for workers of all ages because the supply is so low,' he said. 'Women will be able to negotiate for greater benefits and for greater salaries and more flexibility. And it's not just women, disabled and other marginalized groups will likely benefit too." Kerry Hannon is a Senior Columnist at Yahoo Finance. She is a career and retirement strategist and the author of 14 books, including the forthcoming "Retirement Bites: A Gen X Guide to Securing Your Financial Future," "In Control at 50+: How to Succeed in the New World of Work," and "Never Too Old to Get Rich." Follow her on Bluesky. Sign up for the Mind Your Money newsletter Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
More men are returning to the office. Here's why that matters for women.
The return to office is in full swing, but you might notice more men around the water cooler. According to the Department of Labor, men are returning to the office in greater numbers than women. In 2024, 29% of employed men reported working from home, down from 34% the previous year. Approximately 36% of women worked from home last year, unchanged from 2023. What's behind these numbers? It's likely a result of return-to-office initiatives in male-dominated industries like tech, Cory Stahle, senior economist at Indeed, told Yahoo Finance. Women accounted for only about a quarter of computer and mathematical jobs in 2024, according to the data. For some roles, like computer programmers and computer hardware engineers, the share is even lower — 17.8% and 14.3% — respectively. 'Many of these return-to-office efforts are coming at a time when demand for workers in male-dominated industries has weakened, giving employers the upper hand,' Stahle said. As for the unbudging number of women working remotely over that two-year period, there could be an explanation for that finding as well, according to Stahle. Female-dominated fields such as private education and health services, leisure and hospitality, and state and local government have been less affected by return-to-work mandates, he said. 'Many of the jobs in these industries are already in-person roles.' Obstacle for gender equity Whether women are trying to move up or break into fields where office time is required, the trend away from remote arrangements could have far-reaching repercussions for gender equity. Here's why: Nearly 9 in 10 CEOs said in a 2024 survey that they 'will reward employees who make an effort to come into the office with favorable assignments, raises, or promotions.' That could also play out in the gender wage gap that has persisted across industries for decades. Last year, women earned an average of 85% of what men earned, according to Pew Research Center. Will the pay gap get worse if in-office attendance is a prerequisite for pay bumps? "In theory, remote work can be viewed as either a positive or negative amenity: It may offer greater scheduling flexibility, enhancing work-life balance, but it may also limit access to face-to-face mentoring and raise concerns about potential career growth penalties,' said Zoë Cullen, a lead researcher for a National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) study on remote work. We do know that roughly 8 in 10 CEOs envision a full return to the office in the next three years, and many of those making it mandatory have threatened employees with termination if they fail to follow the company's return-to-office mandate. So far, the types of jobs being hit by these mandates have been well-paying, white-collar roles, Stahle said. 'If a worker can't or chooses not to return to the office and loses their higher-paying job as a result, that will have clear implications for the pay gap and the economy,' he said. The arc of remote work Remote work has been facing into the wind all year. Organizations that describe their workplace environment as remote shrank dramatically between 2024 and 2025, according to a study by Payscale. Despite the pressure, plenty of workers, not just women, are standing their ground on full-blown return-to-office attendance and are willing to take a pay cut to hold on to some flexibility. A majority of job candidates would accept a pay cut to work remotely, according to a new survey by Criteria Corp. On average, employees are willing to accept a 25% pay cut for partly or fully remote roles, according to the NBER study. All that said, the balance of power has shifted. In 2023, when workers had the upper hand in a tight labor market, the odds of being penalized for not coming into the office were low, or in many cases, not realistic for employers, who were well aware that workplace flexibility was one way that they could hang on to and lure skilled workers. Return-to-office demands by many tech-oriented employers, including Amazon, Google, and Meta, hit a fever pitch earlier this year. 'In a softening labor market, employers have more leverage to demand in-office work,' Marc Cenedella, founder of Ladders Inc., a career site for jobs that pay $100,000 or more, told Yahoo Finance. 'The great resignation is over. The great return is upon us.' Sign up for the Mind Your Money weekly newsletter By subscribing, you are agreeing to Yahoo's Terms and Privacy Policy Hybrid to the rescue Compromise, however, has inched in. And that playbook can work for many women, who still shoulder a disproportionate share of caregiving responsibilities for children and aging parents, and need and value flexibility more than men. Flexible work benefits have stabilized enough to suggest a permanent place in employers' benefits, according to a new SHRM Employee Benefits Survey. Overall, hybrid office environments — where attendance is generally three days a week for so-called knowledge workers (not front-line ones) — are the norm now at more than half of companies, followed by traditional office environments at 27%, with remote-first environments making up only 16% of office types, per Payscale data. In fact, while 4 in 10 organizations deployed a return-to-office mandate in recent years, an increasing number have done a bit of soft shoe around the specific requirements and have loosened the rules depending on job type and for those who are top aging population factor Long-term trends in the workforce could ultimately help women gain ground. 'As the baby boomer generation ages and companies grapple with fewer younger workers and our labor market tightens, companies can't afford to overlook any segment of the workforce, especially women,' said Gwenn Rosener, co-founder of recruiting firm FlexProfessionals. Because fewer people are born each year, our workforce is going to start to shrink, and we need workers to make products, provide services, and pay taxes, Bradley Schurman, a demographic strategist, told Yahoo Finance. 'So, as we enter this period of the Super Age, with more people over the age of 65 than under the age of 18, this is going to create market conditions that are going to increase the demand for workers of all ages because the supply is so low,' he said. 'Women will be able to negotiate for greater benefits and for greater salaries and more flexibility. And it's not just women, disabled and other marginalized groups will likely benefit too." Kerry Hannon is a Senior Columnist at Yahoo Finance. She is a career and retirement strategist and the author of 14 books, including the forthcoming "Retirement Bites: A Gen X Guide to Securing Your Financial Future," "In Control at 50+: How to Succeed in the New World of Work," and "Never Too Old to Get Rich." Follow her on Bluesky. Sign up for the Mind Your Money newsletter Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Zawya
5 days ago
- Business
- Zawya
Empowering Women through Clean Energy: African Development Bank Launches Country Diagnostics to Accelerate Inclusive Energy Transitions
In a significant step toward advancing inclusive climate solutions, the African Development Bank ( in partnership with the Climate Investment Funds (CIF) ( has launched the Gender and Renewable Energy Country Diagnostics ( pivotal initiative exploring the nexus between gender equity and energy access in six African countries: Ghana ( Liberia ( Mali ( Lesotho ( Madagascar ( and Malawi ( Commissioned by the Bank under CIF's Scaling Up Renewable Energy Program, the diagnostics provide evidence-based, country-specific recommendations to enhance women's leadership, financial inclusion, and participation in Africa's clean energy economy. Focusing on localized, actionable solutions, the reports identify opportunities to embed gender considerations into national energy planning, investment strategies, and policy frameworks. They also propose inclusive financing models that de-risk women-led energy enterprises and highlight the need for capacity-building efforts to strengthen technical skills, entrepreneurial readiness, and leadership among women in the renewable energy sector. The findings were officially unveiled at a virtual launch event on 30 June 2025, hosted by the Bank's Climate Change and Green Growth Department and Gender and Women Empowerment Division. The event brought together stakeholders from government, civil society, the private sector, and development institutions, underscoring a strong regional commitment to gender-equitable and resilient energy transitions. Opening the event, Al Hamndou Dorsouma, Manager of the Climate Change and Green Growth, reaffirmed the Bank's commitment to a just and inclusive energy transition. 'Gender equality is a source of serious innovation and sustainable growth,' he stated, emphasizing the need to translate diagnostic findings into concrete reforms, strengthening institutional coordination, and gender-responsive business and financing mechanisms. He noted that the initiative directly responds to growing country-level demand for stronger gender integration in energy strategies, building on earlier successes in East Africa. Nathalie Gahunga, Manager of the Gender and Women Empowerment Division, closed the event with a compelling call to action. She urged governments, development partners, NGOs, financiers, and the private sector to turn the data into transformative investments, innovative programs, and inclusive policy reforms. 'The real work begins now,' she declared, calling for cross-sector collaboration to remove structural barriers and unlock women's full participation in Africa's green economy. Fewstancia Munyaradzi, Executive Director of Rand Sandton Consulting Group ( presented a consolidated action plan focused on closing financing gaps, building institutional capacity, and integrating gender-responsive approaches into energy policy and project design. At the African Development Bank, gender integration is a core priority. Gender considerations are mainstreamed in 100 percent of the Bank's climate operations—from design through implementation. These diagnostics reflect that commitment, providing practical tools to help countries operationalize gender equality in energy planning and programming. As Africa advances on its path to energy transformation, diagnostics are now available to guide gender-responsive policy and investment decisions across the continent. They affirm that gender inclusion is not only a development imperative but a cornerstone of sustainable, resilient progress. This new effort builds on the Bank's earlier collaboration with the Climate Investment Funds in 2020, which produced Gender and Sustainable Energy Access country briefs for Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda ( Those briefs guided gender-sensitive energy interventions and highlighted the importance of sex-disaggregated data, national-level engagement, and context-specific recommendations. To review the Country Diagnostic Studies on Gender and Renewable Energy, click here ( Ghana (https:// Liberia (https:// Mali (https:// Lesotho (https:// Madagascar (https:// Malawi (https:// Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Development Bank Group (AfDB). About the African Development Bank Group: The African Development Bank Group is Africa's premier development finance institution. It comprises three distinct entities: the African Development Bank (AfDB), the African Development Fund (ADF) and the Nigeria Trust Fund (NTF). On the ground in 41 African countries with an external office in Japan, the Bank contributes to the economic development and the social progress of its 54 regional member states. For more information:
ABC News
10-07-2025
- ABC News
Sexual assault survivors call for pre-recorded testimony laws to be expanded
Amira* describes her court experience as akin to a "second rape". "The original act of violence was essentially replicated, just in a courtroom in front of the prosecution, defence, judge and a jury of 12 people," she says. "I felt like I was the one on trial." Warning: some people may find details in this story distressing. In 2022, Amira's sexual assault case finally went to court three years after she reported the alleged crime, and six years after it had occurred. The now 26-year-old describes a "looming sense of doom" as the trial approached. "During that time my life was effectively on pause … it affected every part of my existence; my relationship, my work … there was no focus on healing. Just a lot of waiting." When her day in court came, it was worse than she anticipated. She came face to face with her accused perpetrator on multiple occasions, including any time there was a break from proceedings. During cross-examination, defence lawyers grilled her about aspects of her life that were deeply personal, including telling the court she had been taking antidepressants at the time of her alleged rape — details they had subpoenaed from her health records. "It was brutal," Amira says. During the trial, Amira barely slept, and describes being so nauseous that she struggled to keep water down, let alone food. "It was tortuous," she says. "No-one deserves to be put through what I went through." Amira, alongside other victim survivors and gender equity campaigning organisation Fair Agenda, is calling for the criminal justice system to be reformed so that complainants in sexual assault cases have the right to pre-record testimony for trials. This option is offered in Queensland and the Northern Territory and some changes are underway in Western Australia, but other states and territories are yet to follow. Extending the right to pre-recorded testimony was one of a number of recommendations made by the Australian Law Reform Commission's (ALRC) review into sexual assault cases earlier this year. "If I had the opportunity to pre-record testimony, it would have given me some control over what happened, because I felt like prey sitting in the witness box," Amira says. Criminal justice researcher Julia Quilter from the University of Wollongong has spent more than 25 years researching sexual violence, and spent a decade practising as both a solicitor and barrister in criminal law. She argues the proposed reform would be transformational for the health and wellbeing of sexual assault victims. "I think this would be a game changer. It needs to happen, because what's happening at the moment is not working." Professor Quilter reviewed 75 sexual offence trials from 2014 – 2020 in New South Wales and found disturbing patterns. Lines of inquiry that tried to undermine a complainant's character were common, including questions about their history of drug and alcohol use, mental illness or the removal of children from their care. "Those sorts of character assassinations are obviously very traumatic for complainants to have to deal with, and that's before we even get to giving evidence about the circumstances of the sexual offence," Professor Quilter says. The impact of that trauma can be profound, according to Tara Hunter, director of clinical and client services at Full Stop Australia, an organisation that provides 24-hour support to victims of sexual violence. Ms Hunter has worked as a social worker for more than 30 years and supported many clients through the court process. "What we most commonly hear is [victim survivors] feel they themselves are on trial, because of the nature of questioning and the sense of victim-blaming they feel," she says. "One of the more common responses that people experience to sexual violence is shame, so [these lines of questioning] embed the impacts of that shame response." Ms Hunter explains that for many sexual assault victims, there are psychological impacts from testifying in court, including sleeplessness, depression, anxiety, hypervigilance, and a loss of sense of safety. All of this can have wide-reaching impacts on a person's life. "It can really impact their relationships in terms of their ability to connect with people, including people who are supportive," Ms Hunter says. "I've seen people change schools, drop out, not finish their uni courses. I've witnessed so many young women's life trajectories change." Both Professor Quilter and Ms Hunter believe pre-recorded testimony has the capacity to mitigate the health impacts on complainants, in part because it reduces the potential trauma of having to be in court with the accused and their supporters. As Professor Quilter explains, complainants currently have the option to give testimony via video link, but this will often be in the court building itself. Pre-recorded testimony can also be provided much closer to the alleged incident, so that complainants are not at the whim of an "unpredictable" court system characterised by long lead times and last-minute adjournments. "All the evidence indicates that having to wait around with this thing hanging over your head for potentially some years is one of the reasons complainants can't move on with their lives," Professor Quilter says. The other advantage of pre-recorded testimony is that it can improve witnesses' recall of key details of the alleged incident. "There are potential improvements in memory because of course the longer we leave something, the harder it's going to be for anybody to recall the details," Professor Quilter says. She adds that pre-recording means questions asked during cross-examination can be "edited" at the request of the prosecution before reaching (and potentially prejudicing) the jury. This is currently permitted in Queensland and the Northern Territory and is something Fair Agenda has been pushing for in its campaign for a uniform model of pre-recorded testimony. "One key benefit of pre-recorded testimony is that the judge can remove any inadmissible or inappropriate content before it's shown to the jury," campaign manager Jacinta Masters says. "So, if the defence lawyers are relying on rape myths — such as asking about the victim's clothing or sexual history — this can be edited out." She adds that the necessary technology already exists in courtrooms across Australia, with children given the right to pre-record evidence in all states and territories. "The infrastructure is already there, so we're not starting from scratch," Ms Masters says. "What's missing is the legislation to give all survivors the right to testify on their own terms." On this point, Ms Hunter says it is important to remember that not every complainant will choose to give pre-recorded testimony. But it is important that they have the choice, she argues. While pre-recorded evidence "won't fix every problem with the justice system", Ms Masters says, it will give victim survivors more agency and control over the court process. "[This] is a crucial step towards a system that puts their wellbeing at the centre." In a statement to the ABC, a spokesperson for the NSW Attorney-General said the ALRC recommendation for pre-recorded testimony would be considered at an upcoming meeting of the standing council of Attorneys-General. A spokesperson for the Victorian Government said "we understand the trauma" and have a number of strategies. People with cognitive impairment would be able to give pre-recorded evidence in committal hearings by 28 December this year, but the spokesperson did not indicate whether pre-recorded video would be more widely implemented in the future. An ACT Government spokesperson said it was aware of the recommendation but "there are risks that [pre-recorded evidence hearings] and it could create further delay and inefficiencies in the trial process if not implemented correctly". Meanwhile, Western Australia has a bill before parliament, which will allow complainants to pre-record testimony, but only in cases where a judge agrees. The ABC also contacted the Attorney General of Tasmania but they did not respond to questions before deadline.
