- Season 1 | Episode 11
Piloting Dreams | SDG 4&5
Refilwe Ledwaba is encouraging aviation training and STEM access for young African women through Girls Fly Africa, a platform combining mentorship, skills training, and education to open doors into underrepresented fields. Her work advances Sustainable Development Goals, including SDG 4: Quality Education and SDG 5: Gender Equality, inspiring young women to dream beyond boundaries.
Episode Introduction
Credo Voices, the podcast where we bring you inspiring stories of ordinary people doing extraordinary things. I’m your host, Awele Okigbo, the CEO of Credo Advisory.
In a world where access to education and economic opportunity remains a privilege rather than a right, true empowerment often feels out of reach for many, especially young women in marginalized communities. According to the World Bank, women represent less than a third of the global tech workforce, with an even greater gender gap in STEM fields. Today’s guest on Credo Voices is changing that narrative.
We head to South Africa to meet Refilwe Ledwaba, founder of Girls Fly Africa. Refilwe opens doors for girls in underserved communities by offering mentorship, skill building and funding in aviation and STEM fields. She’s advancing Sustainable Development Goal 4, quality education and Goal 5, gender equality.
Join us for an empowering conversation on how Refilwe’s dedication to mentorship, education and advocacy reshapes women’s possibilities in the skies.
Refilwe Ledwaba is a social entrepreneur, aviator, and advocate for girls’ education who has taken to the skies to inspire and uplift. As South Africa’s first Black female helicopter pilot with extensive experience in flying airplanes, helicopters and drones, she has become a trailblazer in aviation and a leading voice in empowering African women and girls. As the founder of Girls Fly Africa, Refilwe is inspiring young women, particularly those from underserved communities, to consider career paths in aviation and STEM.
Refilwe leverages her experience in aviation and space technology to not only educate young girls but to empower them with the necessary tools to disrupt cycles of poverty and foster a generation of women who dare to dream.
Refilwe’s foundation’s work has received international acclaim, with highlights that include the prestigious Amelia Earhart Memorial Scholarship and coverage from BBC and CNN Africa. She became an Obama Foundation Fellow in 2019 and is also a Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Goalkeeper. Her mission is more than just representation; it’s about reshaping possibilities and proving that girls like her too, can soar. Through her leadership, Refilwe instills confidence, fuels ambition and demonstrates that the potential of young women across Africa is as limitless as the sky.
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