Women Standing Award 2025 - These women who change the game
The Women Standing Award 2025 is much more than a reward. It is a celebration. A celebration of determination, resilience, and courage of women who have chosen to undertake, to persevere, and to transform their community.
At the end of a demanding incubation journey, these women presented their projects during the Demo Day, the flagship event of the Women Standing project, before a jury that evaluated them on their motivation, their progress, the viability of their activity, and their real economic impact. Among all the participants, several distinguished themselves with remarkable performances - women who did not just dream, but who built, innovated, and proved that women's entrepreneurship is a powerful driver of local development.
Discover below the 4 winners who left their mark on this 2025 edition:
Diane Akimana - Founder of Eldi Company
1st Women Standing Award 2025 - Cohort 1
When others see waste, Diane sees a resource. Founder of Eldi Company, this visionary entrepreneur took the bold bet to transform local biodegradable materials into eco-friendly charcoal - a cleaner, economical, and more sustainable alternative to traditional charcoal. Her product meets a concrete need for many households in her municipality of Kayanza, while reducing the pressure on forests and improving air quality in homes. Driven by her determination and sense of innovation, Diane does not just produce energy - she produces change.
Jeanine Ntakarutimana – Founder of the Isuku Cooperative
2nd Women Standing Award 2025 - Cohort 3
Jeanine Ntakarutimana a décidé de s'attaquer à l'un des défis les plus silencieux mais les plus urgents auxquels font face les femmes et les jeunes filles de sa communauté de Gihanga : l'accès à des solutions hygiéniques dignes et abordables. A travers la Coopérative Isuku, elle fabrique localement des serviettes hygiéniques lavables et réutilisables en coton 100 % naturel-durables, accessibles et respectueuses du corps et de l'environnement. Son initiative est une réponse concrète à trois enjeux à la fois : la santé, l'économie des ménages et la dignité des femmes. Avec Jeanine, chaque serviette fabriquée est un acte de solidarité féminine.
Gyslaine Manirakiza - Founder of Manish Wash
3rd Women Standing Award 2025 - Cohort 1
Hygiene is a right, not a luxury - and Gyslaine Manirakiza has made it her entrepreneurial fight. Founder of Manish Wash, she has envisioned a solution that is both ingenious and sustainable: wall-mounted soaps securely fixed to the walls, designed to withstand water and heavy, repeated use. A local innovation that meets a concrete daily need, combining practicality, hygiene, and longevity - for homes, schools, businesses, and all communal spaces. By choosing Manish Wash, every family, every institution invests in their health and in the economy of their community. Gyslaine, on the other hand, invests in something even greater: the future.
Eudécie Uwamahoro - Founder of Fresh Field Food Company
4th Women Standing Award 2025 - Cohort 2
Eudécie Uwamahoro has made pride in "consuming local" the driving force of her business. Founder of Fresh Field Food Company, she transforms locally grown sunflower seeds into pure, natural, high-quality oil - without additives, without compromise. By mastering the entire transformation chain, from seed to bottle, she enhances the agricultural production of her municipality of Kayanza and offers consumers a healthy product of which they can know every step of the manufacturing process. Eudécie does not just sell oil. She sells a conviction: African agri-food excellence is possible, and it starts here.