TaLI was founded by Nyaradzo Mashayamombe who has become the founding director and programmes coordinator. Nyaradzo was born and bred in a rural community where she witnessed the difficulties the girl child suffered from culture and patriarchy. It is at this stage of her life Nyaradzo determined that the girl child was under-privileged. She received her education in the Rural Shurugwi, and then advanced herself through various professional courses in the cities; she has also become an accomplished musician. TaLI was born out of a vision for a ‘Safe World’, where girls can dream as much as boys, and get access to the resources they need to become who they want to be – thus creating and promoting gender equality. 

The founder had noted the gaps that exist in bringing up empowered girl children. Nyaradzo believes that, the empowerment of the girl child cannot be complete without the inclusion of the communities in which they are socialized. This is primarily based on the fact that Zimbabwe like most African states is a patriarchal society. Patriarch makes it impossible to raise empowered girls. This means that we have to engage the society and promote a paradigm shift on behavior change. This will involve engaging those entrusted with the upkeep of girls – the family, community and other stakeholders. This can only be achieved by reaching out and involving other relevant stakeholders that among others include the families, communities, men boys, NGOs, government and policy makers. This holistic approach would bring a change to girls’ lives for generations to come. This also means that once communities are targeted, it means the ‘would-be-perpetrators’ are also educated on the rights, and the impact of abuse on the girl children.

In Africa, there is an adage that says; ‘It takes a Village to raise a child’. It is true in the sense that a girl does not live in a vacuum. TaLI was also created to inspire girls to change their lives through confidence building, Inspiration and Exposure as well as educating them on their Reproductive Health rights with special interest on the effects and prevention of HIV and AIDS.