Kenya can look to young female leaders in these trying times

Even during the coronavirus crisis, one of the most challenging periods Kenya has faced this century, there are many things for us to be hopeful and positive about. 

One such thing is the undeniable talent and potential of our youth, which cannot be dimmed by any disease or natural disaster. We are extremely fortunate to have young leaders who are working on ground-breaking projects in high tech and working for the good of the nation. 

One such young leader,  Ms Ogutu Okudo, was included in the recent Forbes Africa 30 under 30 list. Okudo is a 28 year old entrepreneur and the founder of Women in Energy and Extractives Africa, which she founded at the age of just 20 in 2012. Her organisation aims to bridge the gender gap across oil, gas, mining and alternative energy sectors on our continent. With 15 staff members, it is active across 15 countries. 

In addition to organising youth SME capacity building, Women in Energy and Extractives Africa researches gender assessment studies and petroleum policies. President Kenyatta was one of the first people to recognise her talent as a young female Kenyan trailblazer in 2018.

The President has a history of supporting young people, especially women in their business ideas and initiatives. Ones who have clear visions for the future, and are working not only for their own self-improvement but for that of all of Kenya. Ones who look at a difficult problem and rather than turning back, push further forward.

In 2019, she accompanied the President as part of his delegation to the UN General Assembly in New York. There she addressed the UN’s Economic and Social Council.

The faith President Kenyatta has in her work is key to building on the strength of the organisation. Approximately 10,000 Kenyan high school girls have benefitted from their STEM Outreach Campaign. It offers skills training to informal sector future entrepreneurs, and teaches them the science, technology, engineering and mathematics knowledge that will help them break into male dominated fields in the future.

Government support for programmes that help young women advance in the workplace is key to our economic growth. Fortunately, this is something clearly recognised and valued by the president. In just three decades, it is predicted that 70 percent of Africa’s population will be under the age of 35. In other words, we will have a youth population of about 1.7 billion. 

While women will make up just over 50 percent of that, as Ms Okudo has noted, patriarchal systems in Africa limit women from being factored as the key to economic growth. Supporting more women’s transition into positions of leadership in formal economic industries is not just an issue of feminism. It is a matter of overall economic growth. 

 Failing to acknowledge this not only belittles the intelligence and capabilities of half of the labour force. It keeps us, as a country and a continent, in a lower economic bracket. But with an already large and growing youth population, Kenya can still achieve becoming a middle income economy in the next decade.

That is because youth today are much more in touch with common global challenges and are thus more motivated to drive development agendas, both in rural and urban settings. With widespread internet and social media use, youths today who are growing up and entering the workforce will come up with entirely fresh ways to address Africa’s most significant challenges: Economic, environmental, food security,  gender equality, healthcare and innovation. Young people today are more informed about these issues than ever. They just need the support to let them experiment, create and innovate. 

As Okudo explains, it is essential that women be at the forefront of innovation, technology and research since they “are the first to embrace new ideas and frequently recognise the global and local dynamics of development when given the opportunity to drive the agenda.”

This is the kind of woman leader we need more of. With the president’s support, hopefully many more will flourish during this period of crisis. A pandemic is an ideal time to think about what are the most pressing challenges of our time, and to brainstorm ways to build new businesses that use innovative technologies for the better of our country.

While it is hard not to be pessimistic right now, there is actually little reason to be. Kenya’s strength will not be ruined because of the pandemic, and we might just emerge with even more youth and women-led SMEs to carry us to the next stage of our development.

The writer is a public policy student in Australia.