Conversations with the Pathfinders - Kenyan Women in Politics, Leadership, Social Mobilization & Constitution Making

Abstract

This book is a great account of ordinary women doing ordinary things that yielded extraordinary results. The Pathfinders’ stories in this book demonstrate the variety of jungles that women find themselves in as they navigate different circumstances in their daily lives. The women pathfinders have literally taken Antonio Machado’s admonition: Traveler, there is no path, and made the path for themselves and other women by walking it. The book communicates a powerful message that collective determination and grit can lead to results that transcend the interests of the individual travelers along life’s journey. - Prof. Patricia Kameri-Mbote.

In the post-independence story, the woman has remained invisible unlike that of men who are considered the sole heroes of the Republic of Kenya from the colonialists. The term ‘heroine’ was yet to be conceived. Consistently and largely ignored in the telling their full story in pre-independence, women have been treated as fillers to the story of the second liberation, which commenced after 1963, culminating in the Constitution of Kenya, 2010. History is always prominent because historians chose to highlight what one hand did despite the equal, seamless, and complementary function of the other hand. Indeed, this is the trigger of this Conversation with the Pathfinders, for the woman to pour her story- not to counter but show the contribution she has made and how it has shaped the country today and the path to the future. - Njeri Rugene.

The transformation of the Kenyan society that has been ushered in by the Constitution adopted by the country in 2010 took the efforts of very many actors. The contribution of the women‘s movement as captured in this book is testimony not only to the agency of women in constitution-making but also to the power of collective action. It documents for posterity the toil that this pioneer group of women made in charting a path towards greater involvement of women in politics and leadership. It is mandatory reading for anybody interested in women’s empowerment, leadership, and constitutional governance. - Prof. Collins Odote.