Kenya’s Kennedy Odede awarded 2025 Nelson Mandela Prize by UN Chief » Capital News

NEW YORK, USA, Jul 19 — Dr. Kennedy Odede, founder of Shining Hope for Communities (SHOFCO), has been awarded the 2025 United Nations Nelson Mandela Prize, becoming the first Kenyan to receive the recognition.

UN Secretary General António Guterres presented the award during a ceremony marking Nelson Mandela International Day at the UN General Assembly Hall.

The Mandela Prize, awarded once every five years, honors two individuals—one male, one female—whose work embodies Mandela’s values of dignity, reconciliation, and community leadership.

Odede shares the 2025 award with Brenda Reynolds of Canada.

“Odede grew up in the slums of Kenya. He is a long-time community activist,” Guterres said. “The organization he founded now reaches more than two million people each year with essential services from education to water.”

Born and raised in Kibera, Odede spent part of his childhood as a street boy. In 2004, with only twenty shillings and a soccer ball, he began organizing local youth—laying the groundwork for what would later become SHOFCO. The organization now operates in 35 counties, delivering services in education, health, water, sanitation, gender justice, and livelihoods.

“SHOFCO, now two decades later, has grown to 90 places across Kenya, each driven and led by the community themselves,” Odede said during his acceptance. “Four million people have been directly impacted.”

While the UN recognition placed a spotlight on SHOFCO’s scale and reach, Odede emphasized the deeper principle guiding his work: community-led development. He has long criticized foreign-led, top-down interventions as ineffective, instead advocating for localized leadership and funding.

“We are not waiting for permission to belong to the future we are building,” he said. “We are demonstrating that transformative leadership can—and does—emerge from the places the world often overlooks.”

Kenya’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Amb. Ekitela Lokaale, noted the award recognizes SHOFCO’s contribution to social justice and dignity. “This is a moment of pride not just for Kenya, but for grassroots movements that are building change from the ground up,” he said.

Beyond SHOFCO, Odede holds roles on several international platforms, including the Obama Foundation, World Economic Forum, and USAID Advisory Committee, where he champions the rights and priorities of informal settlement communities.

The prize adds to a growing list of accolades for Odede, who was named one of TIME’s 100 Most Influential People in 2024.

His journey—from working in a factory for less than a dollar a day to shaping global development conversations—offers a powerful narrative of resilience and community-driven change, echoing Mandela’s lifelong message.

The award ceremony took place at the UN Headquarters on July 18, aligning with Mandela Day.

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