The Global Fund for Widows is the world’s largest non-profit organization economically empowering widows in the developing world. GFW does this by building Widows’ Savings and Loan Associations, or “micro-banks,” which provide widows with a permanent source of capital from which they can launch micro-businesses. Up to date, Global Fund for Widows has built 236 banks around the world, empowered 30,343 widows and helped 74.515 of their children across Egypt, Kenya, Tanzania, India, The Dominican Republic, Nigeria, Cameroon, Malawi and Bolivia. For this work, Heather Ibrahim-Leathers, the founder and Chairwoman of GFW was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Global Fund for Widows uses its success in the field to advocate for widows at the United Nations General Assembly, United Nations Security Council, United Nations Human Rights Council, US Congress, and the UK House of Lords