An accomplished journalist and editor from Kenya, Jemimah Mwakisha has in the past decade been a spokesperson for disadvantaged people like the poor, homeless, commercial sex workers, children, young people, and women. Working as a feature writer for Kenya's largest media house, Nation Media Group, she has had an opportunity to capture and portray the lives and odds of many personalities, groups, and communities through trying economic and political times and across cultural and ethnic diversities. Five years ago, she initiated a regular column for the Daily Nation on parenting. She is at the same time the editor in charge of Young Nation and Buzz, which are children and youth oriented magazines.

She has a great interest in research work and has been part of various research projects, working with women, especially those in rural areas. She holds a master's degree in policy studies from Southern African Regional Institute for Policy Studies (Zimbabwe), a post-graduate diploma in mass communication, a bachelor of education from University of Nairobi, as well as a diploma in advanced journalism from the International Institute for Journalism in Berlin, Germany.

Her year with the Humphrey Fellowship program will be a time to reflect on her career and to explore how information technology, especially website management, can be used to communicate more effectively and interactively among groups like young people, parents, and communities. She will also earn some experience and knowledge on project management, TV programming for children, and psychology.