OUR STORY



Founded in 2020 by Celeste Fortuin, Mark Weinberg, Lira Greef, and Kailash Bhana, KhulaSaam began as a collective of like-minded activists. It is a network of experienced non-profit and women-led professionals with decades of expertise in feminist research, policy development, and strategic advocacy. Our team supports organisations across both urban centres and rural areas in addressing issues such as gender-based violence, child labour, and civic capacity building. With expertise in gender mainstreaming, strategic planning, policy advocacy, organisational development, and monitoring and evaluation, we help organisations achieve their goals and strengthen their impact.

 
 
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Celeste Fortuin
Senior Associate

She is a feminist researcher with over 20 years’ experience in gender policy, qualitative research, and advancing equality for marginalised communities, with expertise in participatory methodologies, grassroots capacity building, and embedding feminist perspectives in policy and practice.

 

She also mentors academics in gender-related fields and strengthens feminist approaches in research and practice.

 

 

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Kailash Bhana
Senior Associate

She is a development specialist with over 20 years’ experience advancing gender equality in the gender-based violence, human rights, mining, and urban development sectors.

She has held senior management roles in government and the non-profit sector, with expertise in policy and strategic programme development, institutional strengthening, and multi-stakeholder engagement.

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Agnes Shabala
Associate

She is a qualitative research specialist with expertise in social and behavioural change, child development, and public health

 

Has led impactful research across Southern Africa, turning evidence into practical tools that advance gender equality, adolescent health, and community resilience.

CLIENT TESTIMONIALS

"Ms Bhana has outstanding interpersonal skills and develops professional relationships with key partners. She has an excellent work ethic and is able to translate client's strategic imperatives and goals into executable plans and activities that have an impact. I have no reservation in recommending Ms Bhana."

(Reference to work on Gender Workplace Policy and Gender Action Plan, 2019-2021)
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Anne Grunow
Chief Human Resources Officer, Fedgroup:
"Ms. Bhana has an excellent reputation and track-record of work in both the public and government sectors. Her experience has been extensive including conducting research studies for market research purposes and evaluation of the effectiveness of business strategies. She has an impressive work ethic producing consistently excellent outputs."

(Reference to research on Gender-Based Violence, shelters, and policing of domestic violence, 2012-2021).
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Claudia Lopes
Human Rights Programme Manager, Ingoude Company:
"Ms. Bhana and Ms. Fortuin played a pivotal role in the successful delivery of this project. Their responsibilities were wide-ranging and instrumental to its impact, including: Conducting an extensive literature review and scoping exercise to map existing GRB frameworks and best practices, both locally and internationally. Developing a detailed Inception Report that clearly outlined the project’s objectives, methodology, and key deliverables—laying a strong foundation for the project’s success."

(Reference to Gender-Responsive Budgeting (GRB) framework development, March 2023 - July 2024).
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Joint Initiative between Sonke Gender Justice and the South African Parliament: