First Lady Rachel Ruto has hailed Kirinyaga as a trailblazer in women’s leadership and empowerment, praising Governor Anne Waiguru for creating opportunities for women to lead and build sustainable livelihoods.
Speaking during a Joyful Women Organization empowerment forum in Kirinyaga on Thursday, Rachel said the county had demonstrated the potential of women by electing Waiguru as one of Kenya’s first female governors in 2017.
“There is great power in women who choose each other. Kirinyaga has also shown that women are not only the backbone of our communities. They can lead them,” Rachel said.
She observed that women in Kirinyaga had, for generations, played a central role in sustaining families, producing food and driving the local economy. She said their empowerment was therefore critical to the county’s development.
Rachel urged women to take advantage of available opportunities and play a greater role in Kenya’s economic transformation.
“Women must not remain sidelined in our economy. They must be active participants, entrepreneurs, investors, producers and leaders in our country’s transformation,” she said.
She commended Waiguru’s administration for programmes that equip women with skills and resources to become economically independent.
She cited WezeshaMama and the Kaitheri Apparel Centre in Kerugoya, where women produce school uniforms and hospital linen.
Rachel said such county initiatives were complemented by national programmes aimed at expanding financial inclusion and supporting women-owned enterprises.
The First Lady noted that the Women Enterprise Fund had disbursed more than Sh28 billion to over 2.28 million beneficiaries nationally, while the Hustler Fund had advanced more than Sh90 billion to 28 million borrowers.
She encouraged women to organise in groups and use available opportunities to access capital, grow businesses and overcome barriers to economic advancement.
Rachel also extended practical support to families, farmers and traders, providing 260 bags of beans, 300 bags of rice, 1,005 blankets, 1,000 mosquito nets, 40 boxes of soap and 100 mattresses.
Farmers received 5,000 coffee seedlings, 5,000 Hass avocado seedlings and milk cans, while 100 market shade umbrellas were provided to support small-scale traders.
Waiguru said her administration had deliberately prioritised women, youth and persons with disabilities, focusing on sustainable livelihoods rather than handouts.
“When you uplift a woman, you uplift the family and transform the community,” Waiguru said.
The governor revealed that more than 35,000 residents had benefited from county empowerment interventions over the past nine years.
They received equipment such as tents, chairs, car-washing machines, catering equipment and Meko gas cookers.
More than 5,000 assistive devices, including wheelchairs, crutches, hearing aids and prosthetics, have also been distributed to persons with disabilities.
Waiguru further noted that the Kirinyaga County Empowerment and Development Fund had so far received Sh90 million to provide women, youth and persons with disabilities with capital, training and innovation financing.
She stressed that partnerships with organisations such as Joyful Women were key to expanding women’s access to financial resources, skills and business knowledge.
Joyful Women CEO Elizabeth Koskei said the organisation had continued to strengthen women’s capacity to participate meaningfully in the economy.
“Kirinyaga women are women of strength and among the most powerful contributors to the county’s economy,” Koskei said.
Joyful Women has 3,058 members organised in 326 groups, with programmes focusing on financial empowerment, entrepreneurship and skills development.
Koskei said the organisation was expanding grassroots training to equip women-owned enterprises with skills in artificial intelligence, digital marketing and financial management.
She also praised Waiguru’s Wezesha Kirinyaga programme.
For beneficiaries, the impact has been reflected in growing businesses and improved livelihoods.
Eva Mwangi, a Joyful Women member and owner of Beyond Limit Group in Mwea, said the organisation had helped her access loans and grow a business she started with Sh2,000 in 2016.
“Through Joyful, I have been able to access loans. As a group we have a turnover of Sh1.9 million, and we now have a catering business that can cater for 3,000 people and above,” Mwangi said.
Another beneficiary, Susan Wanjiku Maina from Kiamugumo, said her 17 years in Joyful Women had enabled her to expand horticulture and dairy farming while supporting her family and financing her child’s university education.
The forum brought together national and county government officials, Joyful Women leaders, elected representatives and hundreds of women from across Kirinyaga.
