Elizabeth Mpofu

Born in 1959, Elizabeth is an active farmer, founding member and former chairperson of the Zimbabwe Small Organics Farmers Forum (ZIMSOFF). The organisation has 19,000 members, 13,000 of whom are women engaged in organic farming. Elizabeth is also a former board member of the Eastern and Southern Africa Smallholder Farmers Forum (ESAFF) and the Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA).

In 2017, she spearheaded the creation of the African Women's Collaboration for Healthy Food Systems, addressing the continued marginalisation of peasant and indigenous women in Africa. She was soon joined by women leaders from six African countries, and together they developed the Collaboration's Declaration of Intent.

From 2013 to 2021, she served as general coordinator of La Via Campesina, an international peasant movement comprising 164 organisations from 73 countries representing around 200 million farmers, including those from peasant, landless, and indigenous communities. She advocates for food sovereignty in various forums on behalf of the coalition. In 2016, she was appointed Special Ambassador for Pulses in Africa by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).