NGO promotes clean cooking for women empowerment

BELEM: A Non-Governmental Organisation, the Mwanamke Initiatives Foundation (MIF), has reiterated its commitment to scaling up clean cooking solutions as a catalyst for improved health, women’s empowerment and environmental protection.

This renewed focus comes as the organisation reports significant progress under its flagship programme, ‘Upishi Salama’, which has already helped 2,000 households shift from traditional cooking methods to cleaner and safer alternatives in the country.

According to MIF, more than 4,000 community members have been reached through awareness campaigns, advocacy initiatives and capacity-building efforts aimed at accelerating behavioural change in energy use.

Speaking to the ‘Daily News’ on the sidelines of the COP30 Climate Conference in Belem, Brazil, MIF’s Head of Programme, Ms Alice Mushi, said clean cooking must be recognised as an essential pillar of sustainable development.

“Clean, safe and sustainable cooking is more than a household practice; it is a pathway to better health, economic liberation and environmental protection,” she said.

Ms Mushi emphasised that clean cooking should be viewed as both a climate and gender priority, noting that women bear the greatest burden of indoor air pollution, time spent collecting firewood and health risks associated with traditional cooking.

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“Women have carried the weight of unsafe cooking for generations,” she said. “By transforming cooking practices, we are directly transforming their lives.”

She noted that MIF deliberately places women at the forefront of the clean energy transition.

Through training, mentorship and market-awareness programmes, the foundation equips women and youth with skills to engage in the production, distribution, entrepreneurship and maintenance of clean cooking technologies.

“Our goal is to ensure women are not just beneficiaries, but leaders in this space,” Ms Mushi stressed, adding that the approach has boosted household incomes, strengthened community resilience and increased public awareness of climate impacts.

Reflecting on MIF’s participation at COP30, she underscored the importance of ensuring African voices especially women’s voices are heard on the global stage.

“Clean cooking is a climate solution, and Africa needs to be part of that conversation,” she said. “For us, COP30 is beyond attendance. It is a platform to strengthen strategies, unlock collaborations and mobilise support for solutions shaped by communities themselves.”