Masiyiwas Named Among TIME’s Top 100 Global Phil...

Masiyiwas Named Among TIME’s Top 100 Global Philanthropists

Oscar J Jeke – Zim Now Reporter

Zimbabwean philanthropists Strive and Tsitsi Masiyiwa have been named among TIME magazine’s Top 100 Philanthropists in the World, in recognition of their sustained efforts to advance education, healthcare, and youth empowerment across Africa.

The Masiyiwas join an illustrious list that includes global figures such as Warren Buffett, Oprah Winfrey, David Beckham, Aliko Dangote, and Jack Ma. Their inclusion highlights the transformative impact of their philanthropic initiatives, particularly through the Higherlife Foundation and Delta Philanthropies.

The recognition comes as the Masiyiwas, alongside other global donors, back a major new initiative—The Beginnings Fund—which aims to tackle maternal and newborn mortality in sub-Saharan Africa. The US$500 million fund, launched this month, is designed to save more than 300 000 lives and improve care for 34 million women and infants by 2030.

Operating in 10 African countries—including Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Kenya, Ethiopia, and Uganda—the fund will support high-impact, low-cost interventions in overstretched hospitals. Focus areas include preventing maternal infections, treating postpartum bleeding, and addressing respiratory distress in newborns.

“In collaboration with African governments and organisations, the Beginnings Fund will make targeted investments in the products, people, and systems required to improve and scale the quality of maternal and newborn care,” said Tsitsi Masiyiwa, who played a leading role in mobilising support for the initiative.

The fund was born out of a Zoom call between key partners, including the ELMA Foundation, following a report about a woman who tragically lost her triplets in a hospital. Strive Masiyiwa praised his wife’s leadership, saying, “She has worked tirelessly for more than a year, building partnerships for a fund we couldn’t realise on our own.”

Elizabeth Tanya Masiyiwa, daughter of the couple and CEO of both Delta Philanthropies and Higherlife Foundation, will serve on the fund’s investment committee.

The Beginnings Fund is backed by a coalition of influential philanthropies, including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation, the Mohamed bin Zayed Foundation for Humanity, and others. Its launch comes amid warnings from the World Health Organization that progress in reducing maternal and newborn deaths has stalled, with Africa accounting for 70% of global maternal deaths.