October 26, 2024

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From a village girl to a diplomat – meet Amb. Diana Kiambuthi

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Women are working tirelessly to structure their thoughts and superpowers as they struggle to make ends meet and aggressively create history in their own world.

Diana Kiambuthi, Ambassador of Kenya in Stockholm with accreditation to the Kingdom of Norway, Kingdom of Denmark, Republic of Finland, and the Republic of Iceland, is among the few women superpowers who have against all odds managed to be successful.

She was appointed as Sweden’s ambassador in 2019.

Kiambuthi, who was born in Kikuyu, first landed in government 27 years ago where she was first posted in London to the Kenya High Commission office.

According to balozi, her peer diplomats helped her rise in the diplomatic core.

“To move up in my career has been a long journey. At some point I stagnated for years considering the structure of the government before I was promoted but I enjoyed what I was doing in foreign affairs,” she said.

Kiambuthi terms herself as a self-driven, highly motivated, born organiser and problem solver.

“I am the firstborn in a family of ten. Despite the notion of African parents at the time my father ensured I went to school and I enjoyed myself, my two options at campus were being a journalist or political science, but I automatically settled for political science,” she said.

She stated that out of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) four (Education) and five (Gender equality) are quite important and thus highlighting that Kenya has so far adopted various policies and legal frameworks that have been in place for decades.

she noted that education is right for every Kenyan, thus a plus for economic development.

Diplomacy has traditionally and formally been a domain reserved for men only.

Starting decades ago states and international organisations have gradually and often hesitantly begun to open up their institutions for women to partake in various diplomatic functions, Kiambuthi notes that there has been changing over time as information sharing has helped.

“Women have begun to stand out in diplomacy, the world is changing and becoming more accommodative to women with education,” she stated.

Besides work and balancing family life, she enjoys reading, dancing, singing, and walking.

“As an attempt to balance work and family, it is important to establish a routine and prioritise what is important in life,” she stated.

Kiambuthi has advice to young women: ”I would like to say the future is bright for women, we have already seen in Kenya how the government has ensured things are changing, we have an opportunity for women to participate and join politics take advantage, channel your proposals, energy and look for network within the villages,” she said.