Wanjiru Kamau

A Kenyan educator who revolutionized grassroots education for girls in rural Africa.

Wanjiru Kamau (1938–2019) emerged as a transformative figure in Kenya's education sector, particularly for marginalized communities. Born in a remote village in Nyeri County, she defied societal norms by becoming one of the first girls in her region to attend secondary school. Her journey, however, was fraught with challenges—familial pressure to marry early, lack of funding, and cultural biases against female education.

In 1972, Kamau founded the Ushindi Girls' Academy, a boarding school that provided scholarships to girls from pastoralist communities. Unlike conventional schools, Ushindi integrated vocational training with academic curricula, teaching agriculture, renewable energy tech, and entrepreneurship. By 2005, over 80% of its graduates pursued higher education or started businesses—a staggering achievement in a region where female literacy rates hovered below 40%.

Kamau's advocacy extended beyond classrooms. She lobbied the Kenyan government to enact the Gender Parity in Education Act (1998), which allocated funds for girls' sanitary products and transportation in rural areas. Her TEDx talk, 'When a Girl Learns, a Nation Rises', has inspired global NGOs to replicate her model in Somalia and South Sudan.

Critically, Kamau challenged the 'bride price' tradition, collaborating with tribal elders to delay marriages until after secondary school. Her efforts reduced child marriage rates by 60% in Central Kenya between 2000–2015, according to UNICEF reports.