It is with great pleasure we share that Asonele Kotu, public relations specialist from South Africa and founder of the reproductive health platform FemConnect, has just been named as one of BBC’s 100 Women 2022, which highlights inspiring and influential women from around the world.
The women on this year’s list have demonstrated excellence in different areas including, politics & education, culture & sport, activism & advocacy, and health & science. Honorees include singer Billie Eilish, Ukraine’s First Lady Olena Zelenska, athlete Yulimar Rojas, and more.
Earlier this year, Asonele was selected as one of 50 Youth Trailblazer Award Winners from around the world leading up to the 2022 International Conference on Family Planning (ICFP2022). The Youth Trailblazer Award is given in recognition of exceptional leadership and innovation that youth have brought, and continue to bring, to the family planning and SRHR field.
Asonele joined ICFP2022 in person in Pattaya City, Thailand this November and took part in numerous aspects of the conference. Notably, she helped launch the Family Planning News Network (FPNN) as one of the inaugural Youth Trailblazer news anchors.
Asonele reported on key topics discussed at the global gathering, including UNFPA’s #8BillionStrong campaign centered on the possibilities surrounding the growing world population. You can watch her reporting here.
In 2021, this BBC 100 Women honor was also bestowed on fellow ICFP delegate and United Nations’ Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health Dr. Tlaleng Mofokeng. Dr. T served many critical roles at ICFP2022, including Communications Co-Chair and host of the opening and closing ceremonies.
On behalf of the ICFP2022 Secretariat, we extend our warmest congratulations to Asonele for receiving this honor and for her tremendous work and contributions to the sexual and reproductive health field.
You can read more about the achievement and this year’s cohort of BBC’s 100 Women below.
