The fifth Leadership and Accountability Conference for Women Kicks off In Mombasa

The fifth Ladies’ Leadership and Accountability Conference has kicked off in Mombasa at Sarova Whitesands Beach Resort and Spa. The event is organized by the Association of Women Accountants of Kenya (AWAK).

Themed Women Blazing Trails: Exploring an enabled world, the conference brings together more than three hundred women from various fields around the world to deliberate on social, corporate and professional issues.

The three-day event has been graced by the chief guest, nominated senator, Haji Farhiya Ali of Wajir County, Prof. Margaret Muthui, Dr Margaret Nyakango, the controller of budget, ICT champion Prof. Bitange Ndemo, the former controller of budget Agnes Odhiambo, CEO, Wanjiru Waithaka of FunKidz, Caren Wakoli, founder and executive director, Emerging Leaders Foundation and Rose Mwaura, chair, ICPAK among others.

The event comes at a time the world is preparing to celebrate World Women’s Day which falls on March 8, 2020, with calls to have women included in more active roles in top leadership positions.

In the past four years, the Association of Women Accountants of Kenya (AWAK) has been holding a series of events anchored on the auspice of the International Women Week to underpin the role of women in leadership and prepare them across board to take up leadership challenges even as they champion for accountability in both the public, private and society at large.

The year 2020 marks the 25th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action which is recognized as the most progressive roadmap for the empowerment of women and girls.

“We are glad to join the rest of the world in commemorating this important week that is geared towards celebrating and deliberating the gains and challenges in the attainment of equality and realizing women’s rights,” said Georgina Malombe, the Chairperson of AWAK.

The conference also includes the youth who are the backbone of not only Kenya’s future but the world at large.  Going by the 2019 census results, about 75 percent of Kenya’s population is made up of the youth.

2019 saw a major influx of workers from generation Z (individuals born in the late 1990s and early 2000s). At the same time, many organizations have also employed baby boomers and members of generation X.

As millennials increasingly populate the job market, global workplaces are changing dramatically. It’s not just about how millennials spend their time—attached to their cellphones, checking friends’ Instagram photos, and chatting about what they have seen on YouTube. It’s also about their mindset; they tend to have specific expectations, attitudes and behavioural styles that are different from those of baby boomers and Generation X.

These characteristics can be advantageous for efficiency but could equally pose challenges and opportunities for older supervisors.

Women are considered to    have strong nurturing skills. They are good leaders at the workplace, the generation gap notwithstanding. This conference, hence, seeks to delve deeper into these subject matters and explore solutions towards enhanced women participation in the global affairs in line with the global campaign theme  –  an equal world is an enabled world.