The BBC has revealed the names of the inspiring and influential women on the BBC 100 Women list for 2024, including Afro-pop musician Noella Wiyaala Nwadei and UK-Ghanaian architect Lesley Lokko.
- Known by her stage name Wiyaala, Ghana’s popular singer is recognised for her sense of fashion and unique style. Many of her lyrics shed light on the exploitation of African women.
- Lesley Lokko’s work “to democratise architecture” has earned her the Royal Institute of British Architects 2024 gold medal, making her the first black woman to receive the prestigious award.
Other notable names from the BBC 100 Women 2024 list include rape survivor Gisèle Pelicot, astronaut Sunita Williams, actress Sharon Stone, Olympic athletes Rebeca Andrade and Allyson Felix, singer Raye, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Nadia Murad, visual artist Tracey Emin, climate campaigner Adenike Oladosu, and writer Cristina Rivera Garza.
The theme of the 2024 list is ‘resilience’, and BBC 100 Women acknowledges the toll this year has taken on women around the world by celebrating those who – through their resilience – are forging new lives and changing futures as the world changes around them.
BBC 100 Women remains committed to exploring the impact of the climate emergency, highlighting women who are working to tackle the very real impact of climate change across the globe. Some of these climate pioneers include forest campaigner Nejla Işık (Turkey), artist and climate advocate Inna Modja (Mali), farmer and trainer Naomi Chanda (Zambia) and chemical biologist Rosa Vásquez Espinoza (Peru).
The African women included in this year’s list include:
- Naomi Chanda, farmer and trainer (Zambia)
- Nour Emam, Fem-tech entrepreneur (Egypt)
- Safa Ali, Obstetrician (Sudan)
- Sara Berkai, Designer of DIY science kits (UK/Eritrea)
- Noella Wiyaala Nwadei, Afro-pop musician (Ghana)
- Inna Modja, artist and climate advocate (Mali)
- Hend Sabry, actress (Tunisia)
- Kasha Jacqueline Nabagesera, Diversity and inclusion campaigner (Uganda)
- Annie Sinanduku Mwange, miner (Democratic Republic of Congo)
- Hala Alkarib, Activist against sexual violence in war (Sudan)
- Maheder Haileselassie, photographer (Ethiopia)
- Lesley Lokko, architect (Ghana / UK)
- Hinda Abdi Mohamoud, journalist (Somalia)
- Joan Chelimo Melly, Long-distance runner (Kenya/Romania)
- Adenike Titilope Oladosu, climate justice advocate (Nigeria)
- Kauna Malawi, Union leader for content moderators (Nigeria)
The announcement of this year’s list kicks off the BBC 100 Women 2024 season. Special content will include interviews, documentaries, features, and digital and social journalism across the BBC’s UK and global TV and radio services, BBC iPlayer, and BBC.com.
From women leading efforts to tackle the climate emergency at the forefront of extreme climate science to women in Iran surviving in one of the world’s most notorious prisons and risking their lives to push for a seismic shift in one of the world’s most restrictive regimes – this season’s extraordinary content will highlight and commemorate women with the most extreme stories of resilience and hope.
Fiona Crack, Founder of BBC 100 Women and co-controller of BBC World Service Languages & Deputy Global Director, said: “This year, women have been at the forefront of resilience – from combating disinformation to enduring the harsh realities of survival in conflicts like those in Sudan and Gaza and driving political change.
At the BBC, we are proud to shine a spotlight on these extraordinary women, from high-profile figures to those whose remarkable contributions often go unrecognised. Through our global reach and commitment to highlighting diverse voices, we look forward to bringing you a season of incredibly impactful stories.”
The full BBC 100 Women List 2024 can be found here.
Special content from this season will include:
BBC 100 Women In Conversation: Raye
British singer-songwriter Raye has had the kind of year other artists can only dream of. She won six Brit Awards and became the first woman to win the Songwriter of the Year accolade. After leaving her record label to become an independent artist, her debut studio album, My 21st Century Blues, was a critical and commercial hit – establishing her as one of the biggest solo artists in the game. BBC 100 Women sat down with Raye to discuss life as an independent artist, the music industry’s relationship with women, and how she copes with pressure and fame.
Airs on Saturday 7 & Sunday 8 December on BBC iPlayer, BBC News Channel and BBC World Service YouTube. Find more timing information here.
BBC 100 Women In Conversation: Allyson Felix
With a record 20 World Championship medals and 11 Olympic medals to her name, Allyson Felix is the most decorated track and field athlete in history. A dangerous pregnancy and the death of a close friend turned her into a fierce advocate for better maternal healthcare for black women.
The retired athlete was behind the first nursery ever to open in an Olympic village during the Paris 2024 Games and is now a member of the International Olympic Committee Athletes’ Commission. BBC 100 Women sat down with Felix to talk about the challenges of combining motherhood and elite sport and improving working conditions and safety for women athletes.
Airs on Saturday 28 & Sunday 29 December on BBC iPlayer, BBC News Channel and BBC World Service YouTube
BBC 100 Women In Conversation: Sharon Stone
Actress Sharon Stone shot to international fame in the 1990s following her breakthrough role in Basic Instinct. Her performance earned her a nomination for a Golden Globe, but it was Casino – directed by Martin Scorsese – that won her the award, as well as an Oscar nomination.
Life in the spotlight came with its unique challenges, including leading to stereotyped roles as a femme fatale – a label she didn’t always enjoy. Following a near-fatal brain haemorrhage in 2001, she has dedicated her time to adopting new endeavours as a humanitarian, author, and now, painter. BBC 100 Women sat down with Stone to talk about movies, art and life outside Hollywood.
Airs on Saturday, 4 & Sunday, 5 January 2025, on BBC iPlayer, BBC News Channel and BBC World Service YouTube.
BBC 100 Women In Conversation: Nobel Prize winner Nadia Murad
Nobel Peace Prize laureate Nadia Murad endured the Yazidi genocide in Iraq, carried out by the group calling itself Islamic State (IS) in 2014. She was captured by IS militants, forced into slavery, and subjected to rape and abuse. After her escape, Murad bravely recounted her ordeal to the world to raise awareness about conflict-related sexual violence.
She partnered with human rights lawyer Amal Clooney to hold IS accountable and launched Nadia’s Initiative to advocate for reparations for survivors. On the tenth anniversary of the Yazidi genocide, the human rights activist sat down with BBC 100 Women to talk about her work seeking justice for her community and what needs to be done to eliminate sexual violence in war.
Airs on Saturday 14 & Sunday 15 December on BBC iPlayer, BBC News Channel and BBC World Service YouTube. Find more timing information here.
BBC 100 Women Documentaries
Sex for Gold
Deep in the Amazon rainforest, sex is traded for gold dug straight from the earth. The lives of women here are shaped by the illegal gold mines known as ‘garimpos’ and the brothels that spring up alongside them. For some, they are a source of survival, for others, they are a source of suffering.
With unprecedented, intimate access, BBC 100 Women travelled to the Brazilian Amazon to reveal the hidden lives of three women caught in this dangerous web, risking the violence of the mines for their dream of a better future.
Airs on Saturday 7 & Sunday 8 December on BBC iPlayer, BBC News Channel and BBC World Service YouTube. Find more information on times here.
Raid on the brothel next door
It all starts with a friendly voice that offers vulnerable women an opportunity when they need it the most – until the pin drops, and they realise their lives will never be the same. In Spain, both a destination and a transit country for victims trafficked for sex into Europe, mostly from Latin America and Africa, an elite group of women investigators are fighting international gangs to liberate women from the sinister trap they are caught in.
BBC 100 Women followed them as they engaged in round-the-clock surveillance operations and raids, with unprecedented access into the heart of a global crime that is often hidden just in the flat next door.
Airs Saturday 14 & Sunday 15 December on BBC iPlayer, BBC News Channel and BBC World Service YouTube. Find more information on times here.
Iceland: A Women’s Paradise?
Iceland is often considered a great country to be a woman, as it tops world rankings when it comes to gender parity. Parental leave conditions for mothers and fathers are so good that nearly 90% of working-age women have jobs. Almost half of the country’s MPs are female, and a high number of women hold managerial and executive positions.
But it is also a country with persistently high rates of gender-based violence. Is Iceland the gender equality paradise it is branded to be? BBC 100 Women explores what the country is doing right – and whether things are as good as they seem for women.
Airs on Saturday 21 & Sunday 22 December on BBC iPlayer, BBC News Channel and BBC World Service YouTube
Secret Ink
In South Korea, only a handful of medical doctors can ink tattoos – those who consider themselves artists are effectively engaging in an illegal activity. Despite the threats of fines and even prison, there is a thriving underground scene in Seoul where female tattoo artists face extra risks and vulnerability.
Once associated with gangsters and stigma, older generations of South Koreans still see tattoos as inappropriate. BBC 100 Women meets the women who are navigating this precarious work environment whilst trying to earn a living and those fighting to overturn the law so that artists no longer have to live in fear of being reported.
Airs on Saturday, 11 & 12 January 2025 on BBC iPlayer, BBC News Channel and BBC World Service YouTube