Fatuma Gedi is a Kenyan politician from

Wajir Wajir ( so, Wajeer) is the capital of the Wajir County of Kenya. It is situated in the former North Eastern Province. History A cluster of cairns near Wajir are generally ascribed by the local inhabitants to the Maadiinle, a semi-legendary peo ...

town. A former member of the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repre ...

from

county. The former Women representative for Wajir county. In 2017 she won the seat through Party for development and reform, under the reign of the fourth president of the Republic of

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta (born 26 October 1961) is a Kenyan politician who served as the fourth president of Kenya from 2013 to 2022. Kenyatta was chosen by Daniel Arap Moi as his preferred successor, but Kenyatta was defeated by opposition le ...

. She lost her seat after 2022 Kenya general election to Fatuma Abdi Jehow, a member of

Orange Democratic Movement The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) is a centre-left political party in Kenya. It is the successor of a grassroots people's movement which was formed during the 2005 Kenyan constitutional referendum campaign. This movement separated in Augu ...

(ODM).

Early Life and Education

Fatuma Gedi, a daughter of Mzee Gedi Ali. She lost her dad on 27th Sunday December 2020. Gedi was born in 1988 in Wajir town, in the

North Eastern The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...

part of Kenya. She completed her secondary education in 2004. She then obtained her Diploma in Public Relations between the year 2006-2007 at Regional Institute of Business Management.

Career

Gedi's career journey began in 2008, where she served as a team leader for a study on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) at the Population Council Organization. Her passion for helping communities continued, as she joined the Save the Children International Organization in 2009 to 2010, serving as a child protection and community mobilizing officer. Gedi's desire to make a difference led her to become a program officer at the Somali Aid Foundation from 2010 to 2012. It was during this time that Gedi's interest in politics began to grow, and in 2013, she decided to pursue it further. In January 2014 to March 2016, Gedi served as the Chairperson of the women's league, where she trained trainers on gender and leadership for the United Republican Party (URP). Since 2015 to date, Gedi has been a consultant on gender issues for the Centre for Multiparty Democracy Organization, where she continues to make an impact in promoting gender equality in politics. She has also served as a consultant on women's participation in leadership for the National Democratic Institute (NDI), further cementing her reputation as an advocate for women's rights and equality. It was in 2017 August, Kenya general election that Gedi became a Women representative for Wajir County through Party for development and reform (PDR). She served one term as the Member of the National Assembly of Kenya. She was endorsed by the Wajir elders for the second term as a Women representative for her county though she lost the seat to Fatuma Abdi Jehow, a member of

(ODM). In the North Eastern part of Kenya, the elders pick the leaders, those not favored by the elders, accept the decision though others defy. The North Eastern part of Kenya is mostly inhabited by the

Somalis The Somalis ( so, Soomaalida 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒆𐒖, ar, صوماليون) are an ethnic group native to the Horn of Africa who share a common ancestry, culture and history. The Lowland East Cushitic Somali language is the shared ...

who are bound by strong cultural and ethnically practices. Politics is projected as a mostly men field, leaving women in the shadows.

Personal Life

Gedi was allegedly assaulted by Rashid Kassim, the Wajir East Member of Parliament on 22^nd October 2019. Witnesses narrate that Mr. Rashid Kassim assaulted Gedi over allocation of money to his constituency. The event caused uproar allover the nation and in the Parliament, the female Members of the National Assembly walked out in solidarity as an act to condemn the assault. Gedi gained national attention after an alleged sex tape involving her was leaked in 2019. She said her pressing issue on the leaked tape is her children viewing the distorted tape.

References

21st-century Kenyan women politicians 21st-century Kenyan politicians Members of the National Assembly (Kenya) People from Wajir County {{Kenya-politician-stub