1.9 FAWE implemented Women in Political Participation (WPP

doRCAS MWIgERERI

Political Leader, Entrepreneur, Scientist Young women in Political participation Arising in Kenya

“The people of Embakasi North deserve a leader who can listen to their pleas and provide lasting solutions to their problems. It has always been my desire to be a servant leader and there’s no better place to start than home. Charity begins at home and my home is Embakasi North Constituency”. dorcas Mwigereri, FAWE WPP Alumni and Member of Parliament Aspirant for Embakasi North Constituency, Nairobi Kenya

Dorcas leadership journey began in Buruburu High school when she was appointed sanitation prefect and later Head girl. At the University, she vied and was elected the Vice President during the 2015/2016 academic year. At 27-yearold, Dorcas is a PhD candidate doing her Research on Use of Machine Learning/ Artificial Techniques for forecasting the amount of solar power a given surface area can receive at the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology in Kenya. She holds MSc. in Information Technology and BSc. Computer Science from Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology.

Born and bred in the sprawling slum of Dandora in Nairobi, Kenya’s capital, Dorcas has beaten all odds to rise to leadership. Dandora slum, is one of the toughest neighborhoods in Nairobi famed for crime, early teenage pregnancies, drug abuse and other social vices. Dorcas has become a voice for change and good governance in society.

Dorcas is one of over 100 FAWE WPP alumni, who were taken through the women in politics training in the second WPP Academy. Ms Mwigereri, shares that before the FAWE training, she engaged in Politics in an unstructured way, but through the WPP training she has learnt how to come up with a proper strategy, better communication style to increase her visibility and resource mobilization skills especially community mobilization. The training also gave her an opportunity to come up with a Personal Development Plan which is key for her success in 2022 elections. Dorcas will be vying for Member of National Assembly for Embakasi North constituency in the 2022 general elections

So far Dorcas has supported various youth and women groups Dandora constituency to establish and run a viable project. They have managed to pay school fees for some students including rehabilitating students from the Dandora dumpsite back to school. They work closely with the community sensitizing them on promoting peace and tolerance especially during the 2022 electioneering period.