Mercy Odondo is building bold platforms where women confront injustice, reclaim power, and lead transformative change.
Mercy Odondo is a Kenyan human rights defender whose work is reshaping the national conversation on women’s rights, gender equality, and safe spaces for advocacy. As the founder and director of The Kenya Annual Human Rights Debate and Gender Dialogues, she has spent the last decade creating platforms that give women, girls, and marginalised communities the tools to speak and push for change.
Meet Mercy Odondo
Inspired by the late Wangari Maathai, a renowned Kenyan activist, Odondo’s advocacy is rooted in personal experience. Her exposure to gender-based violence and period stigma in Kenyan communities drove her to create spaces where these issues could be addressed openly. Her background in the arts became a powerful advocacy tool, and her participation in networks like YALI and Equitas helped mould her leadership style to one that values dialogue, collaboration, and youth empowerment.
Her work started in 2012 when she launched The Kenya Annual Human Rights Debate, an initiative that invites university and college students to critically engage with human rights issues. By 2018, the platform had reached over 8,000 students from 22 universities across Kenya. It goes beyond standard debates and integrates spoken word, poetry, art, and cultural performances alongside policy-focused discussions.
Past debate themes have tackled weighty topics like police brutality, education privatisation, torture, and refugee rights. The debates end with “Jamnesty,” a youth-led concert that combines activism and culture. Mercy’s goal has always been to connect young people to advocacy in a way that feels relevant and participatory.
Alongside that, she founded Gender Dialogues, a community-driven initiative that addresses sensitive but urgent issues like sexual and gender-based violence, reproductive health, land rights, and gender parity in politics. These dialogues are held across rural and urban communities, with a focus on inclusion, survivor-centred storytelling, and mentorship for adolescent girls. They’ve also intersected with regional policy efforts like the 2025 IGAD-hosted dialogue in Nairobi, where female lawmakers and experts gathered to strategise on land governance and climate resilience.
Impact that speaks volumes
Odondo’s impact is especially visible at the grassroots. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, her programs have directly supported over 2,000 adolescent girls and young women with access to dignity kits, health information, legal aid, and safe spaces. She has played a key role in documenting GBV cases and linking survivors in Kisumu and beyond to institutional support. She also trains volunteers, partners with legal professionals who offer pro bono services, and uses community journalism and theatre to amplify marginalised voices and challenge taboos.
Her work has earned her several national and continental recognitions. In 2024, she received the Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti Human Rights Award for her leadership in advancing women’s rights. In 2018, she was named Safe Space Champion of the Year by the Kisumu Youth Awards, and in 2019, she received the Golden Women Award for her continued commitment to empowering women and girls in Kenya.
Today, Mercy Odondo continues to lead with a people-first approach, ensuring that no woman or girl is silenced again.
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