Kenya's Willie Oeba, Ashura Michael among 26 members picked for Ford Global Fellowship

The American-based organisation made the announcement on Thursday saying the members would have the opportunity to receive a ‘no-strings-attached’ $25,000 (about Ksh.3.3 million) stipend in the period.

Being the only Kenyans on the list, Oeba and Ashura will now add to the already existing 72-member team picked from across Africa, Asia, the Americas, and the Middle East by the American organization.

The other members from the African continent selected in this year’s cohort include Nigeria’s Chioma Agwuegbo, Farai Morobane and Dr. Okito Wedi (South Africa), Musa Kika and Namatai Kwekweza from Zimbabwe and Sylvia Arthur from Ghana.

The new members who will now be termed as ‘Ford Global Fellows’ will have the opportunity to connect and support the next generation of leaders from around the world in advancing the Foundation’s goal of ending inequality. 

Since its luncheon in 2020, the foundation has aimed to build a commendable team of 240 fellows through its investment period of 10 years.

With an investment of $50 million (over Ksh.6.6 billion), the fellowship provides emerging leaders with the tools, networks, and solidarity they need to effectively advance social justice.

This is achieved by fellowship focusing on shared learning across issue areas, and building and strengthening connections across borders in a bid to ensure fellows accelerate the impact of their work, individually and collectively. 

Known for his stunts as a spoken word activist, Oeba has risen to become one of Kenya’s top poets, with popular hit songs like ‘Wajinga Nyingi’ that featured King Kaka.

The 29-year-old is also the founder of ISM Academy, which empowers young people to fight inequality and foster social justice through the spoken word.

In 2021, he clinched the Upcoming Human Rights Defender award from the Defenders Coalition, a national human rights organization in Kenya and also won the East Africa Spoken Word Battle in 2018.

Just like Oeba, Ashura is a deaf human rights, gender, inclusion, and public policy advocate dedicated to empowering girls and creating a more equal society for people with disabilities.

Being the Free a Girl’s World Network (FGW-N) founder and CEO, Ashura has championed gender equality as a force for positive social change and spearheaded initiatives to ensure accessibility and inclusion for people with disabilities.

She has also worked on youth empowerment and mentorship projects and also served as speaker of the East African Youth Legislative Assembly, and co-chaired the Youth Council of UNICEF’s Global Partnership on Children with Disabilities.

She is currently a member of the advisory board for Kenya’s National Youth Council and has chaired the Kenya chapter of the African Charter on Democracy, Election, and Governance.