Breaking Barriers: Advancing Dual-Career Women and Girls in Tanzanian Sports
Currently serving as Assistant Lecturer, Board Member, and Secretary of the Women and Environment Committee at the Tanzania Olympic Committee (TOC) Board, Suma Stephen Mwaitenda is deeply committed to advancing the education and promotion of athletics for dual-career women and girls in Southern Highland Tanzania.
With a background in Quantity Surveying, Arbitration, and Sports Organizations Management, Suma is actively involved in various leadership capacities, including Vice President of the Tanzania Institute of Quantity Surveying, President of the Women in Africa Sustainable Infrastructure Mobility Scheme, and a Board Member to Contactors Registration Board.
Within sports, Suma holds key positions as a Board Member of the TOC and former Chairperson of the Yanga Princess Women’s Football Team, which achieved notable success in the Serengeti Women’s Premier League. Her contributions also extend to roles in the Young Africans Sports Club, where she chaired critical committees and mobilized members and fans.
In her community, Suma actively trains, mentors, and researches the challenges facing women and girls in sports in Tanzania. She serves as a Member of the Tanzanite Women’s Sports Festival to advance gender equality in sports.
Suma will be mentored by Joanne Wallen, Sr. Director, USTA National Campus, and her team at the U.S. Tennis Association in Orlando, Florida.