Education is the most powerful engine for progress
Mary Mugo is a teacher by profession, one of the factors that influences her long-running interest in education.
Mary Mugo, 54, has worked in various capacities for various organisations such as World Vision, Office of the President and Teachers Service Commission. Currently, she is the Country Director, Edukans, a Dutch NGO founded in 2002 with headquarters in the Netherlands and country offices in Kenya, Uganda, Malawi and Ethiopia.
Mary, a teacher by profession, studied Education at the University of Nairobi in 1988-1991, then did a Master of Arts (Counselling Psychology) at Kenyatta University and later pursued other courses in transformative leadership, Peace building and Education management.
Please introduce yourself
My career life began in 1991 at Tala High School where I was posted by the Teachers Service Commission, TSC, to teach Business Studies and Economics. I taught here for four years and then applied for a job at the Ministry of Education Headquarters as an Education Officer in 1995. I served in various capacities, key among them Education Policy Development, Partnerships, and Project Management.
In 2006, I was appointed Chief Government Counsellor at the Office of the President to address public service staff issues affecting work performance and individual well-being from a counselling perspective. Shortly after, following the post-election violence in 2007, I was posted to the Ministry of Education to coordinate Peace Education programs and psychosocial support for learners and teachers, and in 2010, I was promoted to work with the TSC to address psychosocial issues affecting teachers.
While here, I developed an urge to join the humanitarian sector, specifically dealing with challenges affecting children and youths at the grassroots. The drive to translate policies to practice is what led me to World Vision Kenya in 2012 where I was appointed national education coordinator. In 2014, I was promoted to an Associate Director Education, Child Protection, Gender, and Disability. I then joined Edukans in 2017 September where I am serving to date as the Country Director.
What does Edukans do?
It is an education expert organisation with over 15 years of promoting quality basic education, youth development and employability programmes. We are unleashing the Power of Education through collaboration and partnerships as we contribute towards attainment of Sustainable Development Goals (4 and 5 on quality education and decent work and economic growth)
We have four programmes: Skills for Life and Work, Teaching with Impact, Education in Emergencies, and Exchange Programmes. Additionally, we incorporate cross cutting themes, namely: Climate Change; Digitalisation; Gender and Inclusion; System Strengthening and Scaling Up.
We believe education is the most powerful engine for progress which can enable young people flourish as they discover and develop their talents, resulting in a healthier and more successful life. Education has the power to change societies from within.
What are some of your roles at Edukans?
Strategy development and providing leadership in the implementation of education and skills development programs in Kenya, managing international and regional linkages with other Edukans offices to promote borderless organisation – I am a member of Edukans international management team.
Managing donor relations and sourcing funding opportunities, representing Edukans Kenya in national and international fora.
How many beneficiaries have benefited from your organisation?
Until 2022, over 97,203 pupils (48,769 boys and 48,434 girls) have benefited from initiatives for promoting quality education - we worked with 1,863 teachers in 97 schools.
In which ways does your organisation help the community?
We collaboratively work with communities to ensure our projects are demand driven and aligned with the Edukans thematic priority areas mentioned earlier. In basic education, we facilitate teachers to acquire active teaching and learning pedagogical skills that facilitate effective delivery of curriculum, enabling pupils excel in their learning. I am so delighted to mention that after introducing Active Teaching and Learning way back in 2018, it resonates well with the Competency Based Curriculum (CBC) and teachers under our programmes have attested to having a much easier time implementing CBC.
Children undergo social emotional learning, which helps them acquire self-awareness and interactive skills that support attainment of better learning outcomes. Within the ‘Skills for Life and Work’ programme, we offer youth development and employability skills where young people acquire job fit skills. This is where we bridge the gap between training institutes and businesses or workplace by offering young people market relevant skills and mentorship to pursue jobs that are in line with labour market demands and improve their livelihoods. We also create links with the private sector to enable youths to access apprenticeship opportunities.
Communities are therefore supported with the capacity to identify needs and become part of the solution by participating in the process of project design and implementation. About 75 percent of the youths that undergo our programme enter the job market or are self-employed.
What are some of the challenges you have experienced in the various positions you have held over the years?
Remaining focused yet responsive to diverse community needs in a very fast-changing environment has been a challenge. What I mean is the fact that one cannot be blind to realities on the ground such as drought, as much as the education programmes are centred on improvement teaching and learning. Shrinking funding opportunities for education programmes has been challenging, however, I am thankful that in all the positions held, I was able to engage the teams to come up with strategies for remaining afloat.
The effects of Covid-19 on education cannot be overlooked. As an organisation, we successfully adopted a work-from-home approach for almost two years, unfortunately, we could not continue with programme implementation as planned since schools were closed. Unfortunately, some children and teachers still struggle with mental health and psychosocial needs from experiences of Covid-19, a challenge to our programmes. In addition, loss of employment was experienced among many young people, a drawback to youth development and employment initiatives. Inflation in the recent past has greatly affected the programme work and also staff wellbeing.
What advice would you give young women eyeing positions such as the ones you have held?
We are in a society where opportunities at apex level are dwindling, so one cannot assume that being a woman will automatically guarantee placements or retention of her position, hence the need for continued self -development and seeking relevant skills. Continuously seek knowledge and gain understanding by reading books and socialising with thought provoking mentors and other leaders. Again, having confidence and boldness is paramount in enabling women to take up opportunities knowing that time and chance happen to all. Whenever opportunities arise, one need not hesitate to step out for whatever reason, as long as they have capacity and a strong will.
Over time, I have embraced the benefit of collaborations and networks. It’s important to discern valuable relationships and retain clear boundaries to eliminate distraction from too opinionated or other controlling personalities. Women in leadership positions need to acquire skills to manage other relationships and have confidants who connect with them as constituents and congregants.
What are your future plans?
At Edukans Kenya, we are working towards scale up of our education and training projects to impact the life of more children and youths. We are also keen on self-sustenance as a country office with the possibility of realising a high percentage of locally raised resources.
We are also working towards contributing more to system strengthening as a strategy for broader and comprehensive long-term impact. Building strong strategic partnerships is in our continuing and future plan.
