writer, thinker and poet. She is passionate about the empowerment of youth and women across Africa.
Personal life
Sambili is from
Mogotio Constituency Mogotio Constituency is an electoral constituency in Baringo County, Kenya. It is one of six constituencies in the county and was one of two constituencies of the former Koibatek District 'KoibatekBaringo County in
Kenya
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, national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
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Edward S. Mason
Edward Sagendorph Mason (February 22, 1899 – February 29, 1992) was an American economist and professor at Harvard University. He was the Dean of the Graduate School of Public Administration, now known as the John F. Kennedy School of Governmen ...
Fellow. While studying at
Harvard
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
, Sambili continuously sought opportunities to promote the voice and agency of women. She established the Harvard Africa Women's Network (HAWN) for her Organizing People, Power and Change class with Professor Marshall Ganz. HAWN is a peer support network that facilitates skills training in public speaking, media and campaign management and policy analysis. HAWN's membership consists of a diverse group of 50 women who continue to support each other's growth and ideas through the mentorship program as well as the public speaking series which was launched in April 2016.
Sambili, who believes in the power of voice to generate agency among vulnerable groups, used the public speaking skills she gained from Professor Steve Jarding as a panelist and speaker at the 7th African Development Conference at Harvard.
Career
Before attending Harvard, Sambili served as the founding Head of Secretariat for the National Council on the Administration of Justice (NCAJ). NCAJ is Kenya's foremost justice sector coordinating mechanism. It formulates policies, reviews strategies and mobilizes resources for the administration of justice. NCAJ works with 30 State and Non-State Agencies including the
Judiciary of Kenya
The Judiciary of Kenya is the system of courts that interprets and applies the law in Kenya. After the promulgation of the constitution of Kenya in 2010, the general public, through parliament, sought to reform the judiciary. Parliament passed the ...
, the
Kenya National Police Service
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, the Kenya Prisons Services, the
Office of the Attorney General
In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general.
In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...
, and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, as well as a host of Government Ministries, National Commissions, and NGOs focusing on Human Rights, Gender Equality and Land Reform. She also worked with various funds and programs of the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
including
UN Women
The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, also known as UN Women, is a United Nations entity working for gender equality and the empowerment of women. UN Women advocates for the rights of women and girls, and focu ...
UNICEF
UNICEF (), originally called the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children's Fund, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing Humanitarianism, humanitarian and Devel ...
and the
United Nations Millennium Campaign
The United Nations Millennium Campaign (UNMC) was a UN campaign unit that was set up in response to the Millennium Declaration signed by 189 member states. Established in October, 2002, the UNMC aimed to increase support to achieve the Millenniu ...
. She is currently a research and communications consultant with the United Nations headquarters in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
.
Poetry
In April 2011, while attending Bishop TD Jakes' inaugural Pastors and Leadership Conference in Orlando, Florida, Ms. Sambili learnt the importance of a leadership that listens. It was at this conference that she was greatly motivated to listen to the unspoken needs of her people and inspired to continue to write poetry for the overlooked and the downtrodden. A particular poem, "I am strong" was of growing importance to her family and friends who drew courage and encouragement from it.
Sports With A Goal Africa
In October 2010, Sambili launched Sports With A Goal Africa (SWAGA). She rolled out "Our Talent for Our Targets" and "Amani-Nyumbani" programmes for youth. This initiative drew its ideology from the harnessing power of sports to unify communities embroiled in conflict. Sports played an important role in unifying the members of warring communities in Kenya following the devastating violence that erupted after the disputed Kenya Presidential Election results in 2007. This was most exemplified by the patriotic reception of Kenyan athletes and champions of the
2008 Beijing Olympic Games
The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nati ...