As President Kenyatta Landed in American soil there was good news that four young Kenyan leaders in the on-going Mandela Washington Fellowship in the US have won
grants worth Sh8.7 million
to start and expand their
projects. Ms Hope Mwanake, Ms Florence Kamaitha, Mr Mshila Sio and Mr Eric
Muthomi were among 36 participants from sub-Saharan Africa who received Sh2.2 million each from
the United States African Development Foundation. The independent federal agency supports African-led community enterprises by providing seed capital and technical support.The agency issued Sh78 million to the 36 social and business
entrepreneurs to create jobs. Mr Sio, 34, who is founder and director of Agua Kenya, a water purification and wastewater treatment firm in Ruaka, Nairobi, plans to set up a water treatment centre at one of the Kenyan universities to train young people in an effort to make clean and safe water accessible to all. Ms Kamaitha,
who has been leading
a campaign aimed at distributing sanitary towels to underprivileged
girls to reduce absenteeism from school, plans to use her grant to
manufacture Kenya’s first eco-friendly, affordable, and quality sanitary
towels from banana fibre. Ms Mwanake, 27, a co-founder of Trace Kenya Group, a community-based environmental conservation organisation in Gilgil intends to make roofing tiles and ceiling boards from recycled plastic and glass. “I’m hoping to create 20 direct employment opportunities for the youth. I
am very passionate about the environment and young people,” the Fellow
at Yale University said during the group’s reception at the Kenyan
embassy in Washington, DC.On his part, Mr Muthomi, the founder and CEO of Stawi Foods and Fruits
Limited in Nairobi, decided to play his cards close to his chest, and
turned down Nation’s interview request.
