THE MWANANCHIS PERSPECTIVE

(rachael mwikali a feminist and a human rights activist) when i meet her ,she first bursts into a loud laughter and says Hakuna struggle ndogo na kubwa ,struggle ni struggle and agrees to share her story.... who is Rachael? am a feminist and a human rights defender who believes in women power,there is nothing that can limit a woman. what do yo do ?i convene a coalition for grassroot human rights defenders,am a member African grassroots women liberation and also mathare womens rights movement. what is your biggest fulfillment? my biggest fulfillment is seeing women speaking out after is poke out about the challenges i faced as a woman what challenges do yo face in your daily work? i get criminalized because of my gender,gender bias is a thing of the past. what can you tell others who would love to join the struggle? Everyone has a role to play in the struggle,and there is no small or big struggle ,a struggle is a struggle so you must be bold and dare to be diff...

Ever imagined a woman boda boda driver? Well meet this two lovely women from malindi who are passionate about boda bodas. With her Asian hair tied in a pony tail,her tall torso and cute smile which exposes her soft features,wrapped up in abui bui one can hardly believe that she is a boda boda driver. She seemed eager to share her story and couldn't help giggling,(I noticed that she was almost blushing from all the attention. "I started with my father's tuk tuk in 2005,then in 2010 icame to malindi and immediately picked up a boda boda and decided to take the challenge head on!" She continues to say that it was almost a taboo in her family for girls to cycle ,having come from a tough asian/Kikuyu family,her Indian dad didn't buy that idea. Mrs,caroline wanjiku looks at me straight and says "I have two big boys ,am not young! This time am left tongue tied,just gazing. Mrs Anne Natheka narrates almost the same story as caroline,"Am a mothe...

Is there a need of having elections? What will it change to vote or not to vote? A section of Kenyans have vowed not to vote in this coming elections,others are undecided whether to vote or not to vote. According to a youth interviewed in local news segment "Monday special"in citizen TV,"voting isn't going to change anything,since the elections aren't going to be credible anyway?" Another woman once told me "hata nkikupigia kura ntafaidika Na nini" Such trends and answers are very worrying especially as young people! The question would be how do we liberate ourselves from all this circus. But do people understand the power their vote holds ? Do they know that we have the power not the leaders? Article one of the Constitution talks of sovereignty of the people and supremecy of the Constitution,and that all the powers in the Constitution belongs to the people of Kenya. If we refuse to vote this elections then we will give a Lee way and a g...

Gone are the days when women use to belong strictly to the kitchen,its high time the society wore a gender lens in addressing some of the emerging issues. Some utterances made by renowned leaders are quite heart breaking,for instance when the president of Nigeria says that his wife belongs to the kitchen,it depicts how the society at large is affected by gender blindness. Does it then mean that we are aware of the capabilities and skills women possess but we are in denial? Quite often the society uses the alibi that the girl child is overempowered but to what extent? There is a very huge need of implementing goal give of the SDGs,Gender equality.for example in some of the offices what is the ratio of men to women considering their post and influence in decision making in that company? Just like any other gender women need to be given chances influence change by including them and giving them full participation in decision making. In as much as we are in the 21st century we sti...

This years intenational youth day took Mombasa county by storm following a series of youthful events and sessions,from youth forums,youth summits and many other activities. The theme for the day being "YOUTH AND CIVIC ENGAGEMENT" ,Which begs the question what percentage of the youths are involved in issues of policies for example? how well does youth know the constitution? do the youths know the roles of their leaders as per the constitution? However this year the youths proved to the county that they are awake and have decided to to take full responsibilities in gorvernance matters.we witnessed a number of youths attending pulic forums on matters affecting them not forgeting youth summits.  The  youths in  Mombasa county have found anew mantra"MUSIPOTUHUSISHA,NAJIHUSISHA!!!!" to mean that change is a process that begin internally from an  individual,and therefore they are ready to involve themselves in matters of development and gorvernance. For example ;th...

Most developing countries have been faced with many challenges among st them proper waste disposal. In Kenya its not any different as this also a big challenge especially in slums. Mombasa county has a population of about 1M people,yet has only one dump site the mwakirunge dump site. The mwakirunge residents do not conquers to the fact that health is wealth as the dirt and waste of Mombasa county is disposed right in their village.The dump site which occupies a large area has become a dream a killer to many. There are alot of hazards associated with the dump site include:Air pollution,school  dropouts,poor environment leading to diseases.However all isnt lost as mwakirunge residents have hopes and no clearly what should be done.!   "hiki kibara kiondolewe kabisa ,hama kama haiwezekani hizi taka zigawanywe chuma kando,plastiki kando na kujengwe ukuta,au kujengwe kiwanda kila moja apate kazi" says a resident.

Its high time the world starts to look at kenya  and africa at large from another angle and realize there is more they can give than receive.we as kenyans for instance have so much to offer to the world if only we can cook one meal that is promoting local content. Kenyan has 42tribes that are very diverse but joined at the umblical cord because they are all children of mother kenya and grandma africa thats an asset! the different cultures could be a learning point of many individuals,from dressing of native materials like the lesos,kikoi,shukas ,and mahando to the great music of taarab,bango ,mugithi,ohangla and kilum i not forgerting  the native foods like osuga,mokimo,pilau,papa,kimanga and muthokoi. if only we could embrrace this great culture and herritage that we have and be proud to export it,for instances having an influence in fashion through the african fabriques,supporting local and home grown talents in film and music industry. i keep believing that its never l...