The 2024 WomenLift Health Global Conference was the first ever in-person conference following the rebrand from the “Women Leaders in Global Health Conference”, which was held from 2017-2021. The first Women Leaders in Global Health Conference was hostedby Stanford University in 2017, followed by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine in 2018, and the University of Global Health Equity in 2019. In 2020 and 2021, WomenLift Health hosted virtual conferences, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Like all the previous editions, the 2024 conference served as a rallying point for gender equality in global health. It took place between 6-8 April 2024 at the Julius Nyerere International Convention Center in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania, bringing together more than 1,100 participants from 41 countries to explore what redefining leadership looks like in action under the theme of Reimagining Leadership: New Approaches to New Challenges.
The convening celebrated women and men who are demonstrating transformative leadership and allyship and pioneering bold approaches to policies and programs that are moving the needle on gender equality in health. Through a carefully curated mix of plenaries, panels, workshops, parallel sessions and networking moments, delegates from across health, gender, climate and other development fields were able to share ideas and gain tangible skills to add impetus to the global movement to transform the face of leadership.
Honest conversations and actionable insights were the hallmark of the three-day conference. Creation and expansion of networks were facilitated through dedicated networking sessions and spaces, while carefully curated workshops encouraged the transfer of skills, with the aim of empowering more women from diverse backgrounds to rise to leadership positions and sit at the decision-making table.
In addition, WomenLift Health leveraged the opportunity to extend its support to Tanzanian businesses by working with local service providers such as Penuel’s Investment (event management company) and Hodari Christian School (daycare services), as well as designating spaces for exhibitors to showcase their products and services, including the Doris Mollel Foundation, Uongozi Institute and The Mabinti Centre, an organization that empowers women recovering from fistula with vocational skills and entrepreneurial training to start their own businesses.