Deepening our Commitment to Co-Leadership: Welcoming Beatrice Wanjiku Jane!
Pictured: Our Co-Executive Directors, Beatrice Wanjiku Jane (Kenya) and Alison Nakamura Netter (US).
We are thrilled to welcome Beatrice Wanjiku Jane as ZanaAfrica’s Executive Director (Kenya)—a pivotal step in our commitment to proximate leadership and shared decision-making. Her appointment marks a powerful milestone toward deepening our impact and ensuring sustainable, locally rooted growth.
Based in Nairobi, Beatrice leads our Kenya-based programs team and drives the scale and implementation of ZanaAfrica’s health and education initiatives nationwide. She is spearheading the national rollout of our reproductive health and life skills teacher training program in public schools, in partnership with the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD)—the government body overseeing all curricula in Kenyan schools. Beatrice also leads the expansion of Nia Healthlink, our tech-enabled platform delivering real-time health education and referrals to girls and women, complementing our ongoing community-based efforts, including sanitary pad distribution and health education for both girls and boys, reaching over 40,000 adolescents annually.
With 19 years of experience across government and non-governmental sectors, Beatrice brings operational excellence, strategic clarity, and an unwavering commitment to equity and justice. Her leadership reflects a core value we hold deeply: those closest to the work must be central to shaping it.
Beatrice works hand in hand with Alison Nakamura Netter, ZanaAfrica’s Executive Director (US), who spearheads the organization’s global strategy for fundraising, partnerships, and communications. Over the past decade, she has been instrumental in scaling ZanaAfrica’s impact and reach, securing essential resources, strengthening our Board of Directors, and amplifying our presence on the global stage.
Together, as Co-ED’s, Beatrice and Alison work in close collaboration with other members of the global leadership team including Roopal Thaker, who previously served as Executive Director of ZanaAfrica Programs, and now serves as Director of Strategy and Implementation, anchoring our long-term planning and operational growth. Megan Mukuria, ZanaAfrica’s Founder, continues to provide invaluable vision and insight from Nairobi, guiding our long-term strategy and broader mission to support the health, agency, and dignity of adolescents and women globally.
Together, their collective efforts embody co-leadership rooted in local-global collaboration, with shared goals developed and driven jointly.
This expansive leadership model reflects a deepened commitment to the values that guide us: community-driven solutions, collective decision-making, and mutual accountability. At a time when global movements are calling for more equitable, grounded leadership, ZanaAfrica is proud to model what this looks like in practice—centering proximate leaders and sharing power as essential to sustainable, transformative change.
We are proud to have Beatrice at the helm of our Kenya-based programs and excited for what lies ahead. This milestone reflects the power of partnership to drive lasting impact. Please join us in celebrating as we chart the next chapter of ZanaAfrica’s journey, advancing transformative health and education programs across Kenya and beyond.