Strengthening Our Organization. Expanding Our Impact.

Building on Uzima’s organizational capacity, this project focuses on strengthening the
organization’s ability to advance gender equality through improved internal practices, staff
development, advocacy, research and evaluation, strategic partnerships, and digital
systems.

The project focuses on five major capacity-building areas.

1. Gender-Responsive Practice
Uzima is strengthening staff capacity to apply Gender-Based Analysis Plus (GBA+) and
culturally responsive approaches throughout organizational practices, programs and
services.
The project includes:

• GBA+ capacity training for staff
• Cultural competency and bias-reduction training
• Integration of gender-based analysis across projects, HR tools, organizational structures
and services
• Development of an Internal Gender-Responsive Application Plan
These activities are intended to strengthen the organization’s ability to apply genderresponsive
and culturally informed approaches throughout its work.

2. Advocacy Capacity
The project strengthens Uzima’s organizational readiness to participate in advocacy and
contribute to gender-equitable systems change.
Activities include:
• Advocacy skills training
• Learning about legal rights and systemic barriers
• Bias mitigation and bystander-to-upstander practices
• Development of an Advocacy Strategy Framework
• Development of Internal Advocacy Guidelines
• Strengthening skills related to SMART objectives, stakeholder and power analysis,
strategies, tactics and key messaging

ening its ability to understand community needs, collect meaningful
information and evaluate the relationship between project activities, outcomes and
organizational goals.

3. Research, Monitoring and Evaluation
Uzima is strengthening its ability to understand community needs, collect meaningful
information and evaluate the relationship between project activities, outcomes and
organizational goals.
Activities include:
• Monitoring and evaluation training
• Training staff on basic data-collection tools
• Strengthening baseline data and project evaluation practices
• Conducting a needs assessment with 50 Black women
The needs assessment will strengthen Uzima’s understanding of barriers to equality and
help inform future programming.

5. Digital Capacity and Organizational Systems
The project also strengthens the digital systems and tools that support Uzima’s programs
and organizational operations.
Activities include:
• Staff training on project-tracking tools such as KEELA and QuickBooks
• Strengthening project management and results tracking
• Training on secure digital communication
• Increasing awareness of cybersecurity risks, including hacking and scams
• Developing Internal Digital-Use Guidelines
These activities support safer, more consistent and effective use of digital tools across the
organization.

This project focused on strengthening Uzima’s organizational capacity to advance gender
equality for Black women in Toronto while improving the organization’s long-term financial
health and sustainability.

The project focused on three major areas:

Financial Planning and Management
Uzima strengthened its financial management structures and skills and developed a threeyear
financial plan to support stronger long-term organizational planning.

Financial and Activity Reporting
The project supported the development of tools, resources and processes to improve
financial and activity reporting.
Training, workshops and seminars were also used to strengthen staff knowledge and
internal organizational practices.

Fundraising and Financial Sustainability
Uzima developed a repository of project fundraising resources to strengthen future
fundraising capacity.
The project also included two strategic retreats focused on strengthening organizational
planning and long-term financial sustainability.

What This Project Strengthened
Through this project, Uzima focused on:
• Long-term financial planning
• Financial management capacity
• Financial and activity reporting
• Staff knowledge and skills
• Fundraising capacity
• Strategic organizational planning
• Financial sustainability