Lucy is one of the pioneers of AFRIKA KOMMT!: she participated in the first intake in 2008 and was attached to Continental AG. Her career trajectory, that has since continued to be impressive, serves as a source of inspiration to many participants.
An Engineer and an Entrepreneur at heart, Lucy already had plans to start her own company before coming to Germany. However, it was while sited in a park in the city of her partner company, Hannover, that she found the inspiration she needed to get her started – a fountain whose source of life and consistent vibrance, as she found out, was recycled wastewater.
Having this seed planted in her heart, she went ahead to use her stay in Germany to increase her knowledge in wastewater management by attending trade fairs and exhibitions that equipped her with the information she needed. She then returned to Kenya and explored various possibilities of turning her dream into reality eventually establishing EcoCycle Ltd, a wastewater management company that works in collaboration with a German company.
As is the reality for any Entrepreneur, the journey was not a straight line. She faced various challenges such as lack of capital and qualified human resources to handle the new technology, to name but a few. She however was able to tap into her own power of endurance and her training in Germany to overcome these obstacles.
Through her company, Lucy has not only passed on her knowledge and experience to employees but to hundreds of stakeholders who have been involved in the over 120 projects she has implemented across the country. Through Eco Cycle, she is at the forefront advocating for sustainable wastewater management in a country that faces challenges related to the disposal of wastewater. She is passionate about increasing awareness of better environmental management and now also has her eyes set on setting up an assembly to be able to offer local and affordable wastewater management systems.
Her stamina, brilliance and consequent success also led her to be nominated by Business Daily Magazine in Kenya as one of the “Top 40 under 40 Influential Women in Kenya” as well as win the Award for the Top Green Companies in Kenya in the “National Diversity and Inclusion Awards & Recognition”. In addition, she was also recently elected as the Vice President of the institution of Engineers of Kenya.
We eagerly anticipate and look forward to the unfolding of the rest of Lucy’s journey of social and economic impact. She is an excellent example of what AFRIKA KOMMT! is all about – sustainable inclusive partnership between Germany and Africa.