Q:
Hi Muthengi it’s awesome to have you today
A:
Thank you for the opportunity to engage.
Q:
Who is @muthengi
Answer: I Am a Mandela Washington Fellow 2014, young African leader,
philanthropist, a child of God, a role model, a mentor, founder of Donate A Pad initiative
Q: What
is Donate A Pad initiative about?
A: We
donate sanitary towels to poor girls in rural Kitui to keep them in class every
term.
Our aim is to keep girls in class every school year. No girl should miss
class because they lack sanitary towels. We also provide mentoring programs,
career guidance, and talent development and provide Menstruation health
management information.
Q: What
influence your decision to be the change that others can emulate?
A:
I saw girls use unhygienic methods during their menstruation period and due to
this they miss classes for 5days and I don’t want this to continue.
Q:
Why did you go into this field?
A:
I am passionate about empowering girls to complete education. Education opens doors of opportunities and
helps us make better decisions. Our girls need role models. Did you know 31M girls of primary age are not
enrolled in school? These girls need a role model to show them benefits of
education. Did you know girls miss close to 5 days of school due to lack of
sanitary towels?
Q:
How did you start this and can you share a brief of your first experience
A: I
had gone for a function near where I work and i met a girl who had skipped
class due to lack of sanitary towels. I decided to see the district
commissioner and told him I wanted to give the girls sanitary towels. I had to do something. I talked to our chief
and they agreed. The chief introduced me to the teachers of the schools I support
Q:
When did you start this project?
A: December 2012.
Q:
What are the challenges you went through:
A:
Since I finance the initiative from my
salary the main challenge is finances as I want to reach out to as many
girls I can but I can only do with what
I have. Another challenge is Time because I work full time in UNHCR. But i have
learned to create time to empower girls because this is what I love doing.
Q:
What's the level of impact of your work and how many of these girls are back in
schools
A:
I support 200 girls in 9 schools in Kitui. The girl’s performance in
school has improved and they are confident. They are encouraged to engage in
Sciences, Mathematics Technology subjects. Girls are encouraged to read books.
The girls are exposed to great career choices, talent development and
encouraged to be involved in STEM.
Q:
Advice for youths waiting for the perfect time before starting
A:
You’ve got to start working on your goals. Be passionate about it and love what
you do. Most important do something. The perfect time is now. Start now with
the little you have. If you wait, you might wait forever.
Q:
Your advice for youths and for those aspiring to be the change
A:
Don’t be idle, look for something to do. Don’t give excuses and take risks. i
want to encourage them to work on their passion, talents and gifts the millions
will come as they are working.
Q:
How did you feel when your passion is opening doors for you to do more?
A:
i felt motivated and empowered
to continue doing what I am doing. I Felt honored someone recognized me and my
work.
Q:
In what Nation are you doing this and would you honor any invitation from
another nation?
A:
This is in Kenya. I met a fellow from Lesotho who is interested and plans are
underway to introduce the program in Lesotho. It’s something that can be
replicated in any country. I met like minded fellows and we are planning on
working together. We have to grow and reach out to other girls in Kenya and
other countries. Girls need to know Education is important.
Q:
How will you feel when you see your girls doing great in few years to come?
I
will be grateful and fulfilled
Q:
Should brands, organizations, individual wants to support, how do they go about
it
A:
They can Support in any way they can. They can support by providing sanitary
towels and school fees for the girls. They can also be mentors & role
models to these girls. They can reach us via muthengi08@gmail.com
Q:
Any word for YALI Network?
A:
Yes it has changed me. Most important the networks i made in the program is
awesome. The knowledge i got and the experience during my internship is amazing
.Thank you YALI Network.
Q:
Any word for White house and @FLOTUS – Michel Obama for this great investment?
A: They believed in us young leaders and
provided us opportunities to improve and grow. Now we are fully equipped. We
promise we will in turn motivate, train and use everything we have learned to
build our Nation
Q:
Your advice for African leaders:
A:
Engage and involve the youth in developing our countries. Believe in us. Let's
work together to solve issues.
Thank
you for having me on board. I love inspiring people with my story
Facebook: Mo Muthengi
Twitter: @muthengi
Instagram: @mo_kuto
I have four years of experience in refugee program support in terms of Information Technology, Project Management and Database Management in United Nations High Commissioner for refugees (UNHCR). I am a quick learner, proactive, flexible, team player and ability to multitask and prioritize while attending to details thus being effective on what I do. I hold a BSC in Information Technology from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology and I have a certificate in Project Management.
As a Resettlement Database Assistant I prepare and generate weekly and monthly resettlement statistics as well as provide database management support in terms of maintenance, updating and devise and deploy disaster recovery and archiving procedures. I also train new users as well as staff members on how to use our database system. I monitor and optimize the performance of the database to ensure we get quality data when reporting. I provide weekly and monthly reports to the head of the unit to be shared in the operation and the branch office. I provide ICT services support (Help Desk support) to the staff in our unit. I also control and monitor user access to the database. I supervise interpreters who translate for us especially when interviewing refugees to avoid language barrier between the refugee and caseworker.
I am Founder of Donate A Pad (Christine Muthengi’ s Foundation) Initiative that was created in December 2012 operates in Kitui county in Eastern province that ensures girls in primary schools are provided with sanitary towels to prevent them from missing school during their menstrual cycle because they cannot afford sanitary towels hence by providing the sanitary towels we ensure they go to school continuously and thus improving their performance in school. This Initiative is about empowering the girl child in the rural areas through education and nurturing their talents by providing mentors to talk to the students and encourage them to be better people in the society. We donate sanitary towels beginning of each term to nine schools in Kitui. Other than mentorship programs we also provide career development and coaching the students so that they are aware of what they want to do and to be in future. We encourage the students to also nurture their various talents.
Upon completion of the Washington Fellowship, I seek to use the knowledge, skills (leadership) and the networks to improve and grow Donate a Pad Initiative and empower the youth through mentorship programs, workshops and training as well as continue supporting the girl child in the education sector. Work with the Kenyan fellows to disseminate what we will learn during the fellowship to the youth as well as work on projects that will bring solutions to our country Kenya and Africa at large.
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