MANUFACTURING
Wangu Ngunjiri
Organization: Bargain craft
Meet Wangu Ngunjiri, Founder and Creative Lead at Bargain Craft. She is the Honoree in the Zuri Awards 2023 manufacturing category for her work in promoting gender equity and inspiring and creating opportunities for women in the furniture manufacturing industry. With a professional background in Civil Engineering, Wangu is a seasoned professional with a passion for empowering women and promoting inclusion in a male-dominated industry.
Despite the challenges of working in a male-dominated industry, she has remained committed breaking down gender barriers by training women who start as casuals and acquire artisanal skills that improve their earning potential. She has also implemented policies that ensure equal pay for equal work thus pushing back gender bias.
In addition, Wangu has implemented a personal development program at Bargain Craft called the Morning Meeting, which aims at growing her team both personally and professionally.
Instagram: www.instagram.com/Bargaincraft
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wangu-ngunjiri-b3066a71
Judith Musembi
Organization: Mojo Skincare Products Limited
Meet Wangu Ngunjiri, Founder and Creative Lead at Bargain Craft. She is the Honoree in the Zuri Awards 2023 manufacturing category for her work in promoting gender equity and inspiring and creating opportunities for women in the furniture manufacturing industry. With a professional background in Civil Engineering, Wangu is a seasoned professional with a passion for empowering women and promoting inclusion in a male-dominated industry.
Despite the challenges of working in a male-dominated industry, she has remained committed breaking down gender barriers by training women who start as casuals and acquire artisanal skills that improve their earning potential. She has also implemented policies that ensure equal pay for equal work thus pushing back gender bias.
In addition, Wangu has implemented a personal development program at Bargain Craft called the Morning Meeting, which aims at growing her team both personally and professionally.
Instagram: www.instagram.com/Bargaincraft
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wangu-ngunjiri-b3066a71
Esther Macharia
Organization: E-Bakers Creations
Esther Macharia is a mother of two, an Award Winning Baker, Founder and Director of E-Bakers Creations-a baking & confectionery firm, Renowned Trainer, Recipe Developer, GBV Activist and Entrepreneur running two outlets one on Kiambu Road and another in Syokimau.
She is a Human Resource Graduate & Post Graduate Diploma holder from Makerere University, she has a Higher Diploma in Cake Baking and Pastry along with several other Diplomas, Certificates and Qualifications from World Renown institutes such as City & Guilds. She is also a member & honoree of Women in Business (KNCCI).
Due to her passion for baking she started off as a Home Baker and eventually expanded her business to two outlets and later diversified to include value addition of Dairy products such as yoghurt, milk shakes and ice cream etc. She has trained over 800 students across the country.
She is very passionate about social and economic issues affecting the society, Gender Based Violence and empowering women to establish businesses and self improve on their economic realities. She was a Finalist in Mrs Universe Kenya 2022 and won Mrs Universe - Machakos County with her GBV Project taking the Overall Winner Position in the Passion Project Category. She aims to sponsor and support victims and survivors of GBV in her training programs and in partnership with other well wishers and organizations.
Interact with her;
ARTS & CULTURE
Waruguru Kiai
Organization: Village Girl Thoughts and Dreams
Beverly Jalango
Organization: ProSABA Collective
Joy Mwangi
Organization: Ada Animation
HUMANITARIAN
Patricia Njeri
Organization: Birth and Beyond
Patricia Njeri is the Founder and Director Birth and Beyond an organization that empowers teenage mothers focusing on creating solutions that give teenage mothers an edge in the society where they remain relegated to their own designs and ensuring they thrive and reach their optimum potential.
The initiative operate around four key pillars;-
- Recruitment which involves going out to the field to identify the young mothers.
- Psychosocial counseling/debriefing with professional counsellors.
- Dignity Kit& Food packs which they offer to the young mothers
- Vocational training where they source sponsorship from well-wishers.
Grace Kiboi
Organization: Springs of hope childrens home
Milka Hadida
Organization: Civil Society Coordination Board
EDUCATION
Seleyian Partoip
Organization: Murua Girl Child Education Program
Seleyian has 12 years’ experience in community development and project management. She is the founder and director of Murua Girl Child Education Program. She is passionate about child protection, human rights and women/girls empowent a skilled community Facilitator and Researcher. She Serves in the secretariat of the Youth Anti FGM network in charge of programs. Narok County Gender Technical working group and the Narok County Children advisory committee.
Fatma Ali
Organization: Path Youth Organization
Sylvia Khasoa Sore
Organization: Simama na Dada Initiative
Sylvia Khasoa Sore is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Simama Na Dada (SND) Initiative a Swahili name meaning “Support a Sister” which she started in 2013 and is registered as a Community Based Organization (CBO). This initiative is anchored on the belief that increasing the number of adolescent girls successfully completing the education cycle is a critical component of efforts to build their wider empowerment and in particular ensuring that they are able to be involved in decision making over all aspects of their lives including over their reproductive and sexual health rights.
For the past 9 years since initiation, SND has been able to Mentor and train more than 600,000 young people, Provided dignity kits to more than 850,000 adolescent girls, young mothers and women (AGYW) to ensure that they Menstruate with dignity and stay in school. 350,000 girls are under their Monthly Mentorship-Leadership and distribution of dignity kits programs.
YOUNG ACHIEVER
Elizabeth Mwangi
Organization: Gwiji for Women
Elizabeth Mwangi is the founder and director of Gwiji for Women, a tech startup in the gig economy that empowers low income women from the slums through a mobile app. Gwiji identifies, vets and trains these women before onboarding them on to their platform where they are exposed to a pool of readily available and well-paying cleaning jobs. Through Gwiji, these women have raised their incomes from less than $2 to an average on $10 a day, allowing them to provide for their children. For her impactful work, Elizabeth was named among Business Daily Top 40 Under 40 Women of 2023.
Download the Gwiji App Here: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.cleaning.gwijico
Ann Gacheke
Organization: Neema G.B.V Rescue Centre
Elizabeth Mwangi is the founder and director of Gwiji for Women, a tech startup in the gig economy that empowers low income women from the slums through a mobile app. Gwiji identifies, vets and trains these women before onboarding them on to their platform where they are exposed to a pool of readily available and well-paying cleaning jobs. Through Gwiji, these women have raised their incomes from less than $2 to an average on $10 a day, allowing them to provide for their children. For her impactful work, Elizabeth was named among Business Daily Top 40 Under 40 Women of 2023.
Download the Gwiji App Here: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.cleaning.gwijico
Babara Mula Omwayi
Organization: Spark Empower Mentorship Program
abara Mula Omwayi #ZuriAwards 2023 Young Achiever Nominee is an accomplished sales and marketing executive with over 17 years’ experience in the marketing industry. She is the CEO of Spark Communication Limited, a fast growing marketing firm in East Africa. Babara is a result driven entrepreneur and marketing professional with a proven track record of planning, project management, developing and implementing integrated marketing campaigns.
Spark Empower Mentorship Program targets young ladies enrolled in higher learning institutions(universities/colleges) aged between 20-25 years old. It focuses on mentoring 10 girls each year, through group sessions with key speakers in the industry. The number is limited to 10, for an effective and intimate one on one hand-held experience. The end goal for the program is to create “A Community of Influence” through which these 10 mentees will be required to influence 10 new ladies from the community to join the mentorship program and get mentored too.
INNOVATION
Aruna varsani
Organization: Rintz Industries
Aruna Varsani #ZuriAwards 2023 Innovation Honoree is the founder Rintz Industries an organization dedicated to saving underwater life and restoring the marine ecosystem by 2030, as well as reducing the number of deaths and illnesses caused by pollution and contamination. She has collaborated with local government to implement programs that reduced waste generation and promoted sustainable practices in a coastal community which led to the protection and restoration of the local marine life and improved access to clean water and sanitation for the residents.
HEALTHCARE
Dahabo Abagaro Bagajo
Organization: Ramata Nursing Home
Rachel Ogola
Organization: Eczema society of Kenya
Rachel Adhiambo Ogola -Advocate of the High Court of Kenya, Certified Mediator, associate arbitrator, Human rights Activist with a biase in children and women's issues, Mentor and Healthy skin advocate, CEO and founder Eczema Society of Kenya, Committee member at the International Alliance of Dermatology Patient Organisations(Globalskin) Canada.
Eczema Society of Kenya is a platform that was started to improve the lives of people with Eczema.They spread awareness and improve information on Eczema, Advocate against stigma of Eczema, Advocate for access to affordable treatment and medication of Eczema.Lobby for more research of Eczema.
Elizabeth Akinyi
Organization: Live Well Care Solution Center
STEM
Wangari Kuria
Organization: Farmer on Fire
Mumbi Ndung'u
Organization: Power Learn Project
Muchunku Kawira
Organization: Dada STEM
Muchunku Kawira is the Programs Lead at Dada STEM, where she plans and implements programs that are aimed at bridging the gender gap in STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics). She created a network of women in STEM in Tharaka Nithi County in Kenya while organizing the very first Women in STEM Conference in Tharaka Nithi County, a platform to help women and girls to interact and network so as to facilitate the exchange of knowledge, ideas and good practices among themselves from relevant industries and fields while demystifying that STEM is a male field. With her passion for kids, she tailored a program to help kids in the rural areas to learn about technology and STEM at large, which is achieved through ‘Kids Coding Week’ that happens when children close school for holidays. She is also a doctoral student in Computer Science while working as a lecturer at the university. Here, she mentors the university students while acting as an active role model.
AGRICULTURE
Wanjiru Mambo
Organization: Wedgehut foods limited
MEDIA
Queenter Mbori
Organization: Standard Group PLC
RENEWABLE ENERGY
Margaret Mbinya Kasuki
Organization: Quaccey Suppliers
Margaret Kasuki is the founder and director of Quaccy suppliers which sensitizes people to stop cutting down trees for charcoal and firewood and instead embrace biogas. By constructing biogas plants for the families, the initiative has seen many women and young children relieved from the burden of looking for firewood and charcoal and engaging in other beneficial activities. It has also improved agriculture via the use of slurry from the digesters as organic fertilizers for farming thus reducing the level of hunger and poverty in the country.
SPORTS
Susan Njoki
Organization: Mea na Mimea
Susan Njoki #ZuriAwards 2023 Sports Nominee is a sports for development practitioner at KSSA and an advanced football coach at Kahawa Pride Fc.She is the co-founder of Mea na Mimea project that is conducted under KSSA.She is also a Bundesliga Youth Ambassador and in 2019 she was among the 16 coaches selected in Africa by World Remit for Arsenal Future Stars Program.
Kahawa Sports & Social Alliance (KSSA) as an idea was conceived in 2005. Since its inception, it has been recognized as a pivotal component in ensuring the success and growth of football in Roysambu constituency as it was the only Soccer Academy before becoming the only Sports for Development organization.
Phoebe Kariuki
Organization: Kahawa Sports and Society Alliance
Phoebe is a degree holder in Exercise and Sports science and a Multisport Coach for kids. Founder of The Ambassador's ladies cup that aims at creating a level playing field where every girl has the opportunity to create a better future for themselves by offering them a platform to showcase their talents in a safe and supportive space, address issues affecting females in sports(Gender inequality) and ensuring girls see sports as a viable career path for them through mentorship by females in the sports industry.