I first qualified in Kenya as an Advocate and later requalified in England and Wales as a solicitor. I did my undergraduate at Kenyatta University School of Law followed by a Post-graduate Diploma in Law at the Kenya School of Law.
Whilst at the Kenya School of Law, in a team of three students, we won the Africa Rounds of the World Trade Organisation Moot Court Competition and on this basis, we were awarded scholarships by the University of Barcelona and the Kenya School of Law to pursue Master of Law (LLM) degrees in International Economic Law at the University of Barcelona.
This marked the beginning of a rollercoaster professional journey straddling Kenya, continental Europe and finally the UK. I began the LLM program immediately after finishing pupillage (the practical training program for lawyers) at one of the best law firms in Nairobi.
This firm was special by local standards as the partners were quite supportive and I (gladly) re-joined the firm after the LLM studies settling in to practise commercial law. About 3 months into practice, I received an internship offer (of course after competitive interviews) to join the Legal Affairs Division of the World Trade Organisation in Geneva, Switzerland in January 2019.
The experience there was great! Towards the end of the internship, I got a role as an international trade lawyer at a Brussels-based law firm in January 2020 which i did take up. I was however keen to build a career in a country with a legal system compatible with the Kenyan legal system, so the UK was a no-brainer choice.
I tried several legal roles and secured one at the Government Legal Department and was posted to the Department for International Trade (the precursor to the current Department for Business and Trade) which I joined in January 2021 until now.
Nancy Masila (Jasiri Network founder) is a close friend so definitely I knew about Jasiri Network since its inception. It is a great platform for young professionals to connect and nurture professional relationships. I have met many ambitious and friendly Kenyans/Africans at Jasiri Network events and have created some great connections. It's refreshing to listen to the diversity of ideas and experiences at Jasiri Network events. I always recommend the Jasiri Network Community to any young African professional I meet.
Hobbies and Interests
Football, hiking and swimming (I am a terrible swimmer though)! You will find me at the "Kenyans Explore" hiking exclusions. I am also a regular at cinemas and theatres in Central London (the cheap ones!). Also I am always hunting for cheap tickets to watch football games live! My success rate at bagging these tickets is awful! I once sweet talked security at the Camp Nou Stadium in Barcelona to watch a game Messi was playing at!
If you could go back in time and talk to your younger self at 18 - 25, what would you say?
I wish I learnt more about money and how to manage it (saving, investing) better in those years. I should ideally have bought Bitcoin really instead of that Huawei Ideos phone in campus - I would be a dollar millionaire now and thinking about retiring!
