Janet Kariuki
Career And Mentorship Trainer, M-Pesa Foundation Academy
Bold Question: How might we prepare Kenyan youth for the gig economy?
Path to Metis: Janet’s journey in youth empowerment began immediately after high school where she served as a junior member of parliament for Laikipia East Constituent in 2005 and 2006. This was driven by the need to empower youth and give them a voice in the policy and governance of the country allowing them to take charge of shaping their future. In this position, she was among the first drafters of the national youth policy.
In Egerton University, Janet was a Chairperson for the students’ league for three years, under the Institute of Gender, Women and Development studies. In this capacity, she spearheaded a girl child education fund that saw 21 girls go through secondary school education. Through her leadership, they created a movement of over 200 gender activists at the university.
In her career as an educator, Janet identified early with the struggle of secondary school students to make informed career choices due to low exposure of their options. This led her to develop a career path selection manual that saw increased transition rate of learners to accredited tertiary institutions. Her purpose to create opportunities for decent jobs for youths took her to Yusudi - Jijali program as a mentor.
Here she coached over 40 youths on career paths and development. The need for Not in Education, Employment or Training Youths (NEET) to get decent living drove her to found Elevate Coaching and Mentorship Academy, a social enterprise that focuses on skills development and on preparing the workforce to be future ready. In Elevate she has successfully coached and mentored over 200 youths in getting employment opportunities. Janet focuses on freelancing as the vehicle to future the job market and thus trains the youths on soft skills needed to reach and grow the clientele allowing for use of their technical skills to earn a living through freelancing jobs.
Currently, Janet is a career and mentorship trainer at M-Pesa Foundation Academy. She holds a Master of Science Degree in Community Development from Kenyatta University and a Bachelor’s Degree in Education Extension from Egerton University.
More About Janet: LinkedIn Elevate Coaching and Mentorship Academy Facebook
