WanaData
Female journalists changing the media landscape with data-driven and digital storytelling one story at a time.ABOUT
WanaData is a Pan-African network of female journalists, data scientists and techies working on changing the digital media landscape by producing and promoting data-driven news while applying digital technologies in their storytelling. It is an initiative of the pan-African federation Code for Africa which is an impact accelerator, and a collaborative pan-African federation of civic data and civic technology organizations.
We use technology and data to build digital democracies, and to empower citizens with actionable information. We have a strong journalism focus, believing that media is a powerful information and mobilization agent. Our projects range from building big technology platforms and citizen-focused tools, to producing and funding tech and data driven investigations.
TEAM
Stellar Murumba
Stellar Murumba is Code for Kenya’s project manager. She is in charge of WanaData-KE and a number of other local data and investigative journalism initiatives.She is an award-winning investigative health journalist who most recently wrote for the Business Daily at the Nation Media Group in Nairobi. Stellar won an impactAFRICA fellowship in 2017 to pioneer ‘test-tube journalism’ in the region by working with medical laboratories to tackle counterfeit and fake medicines. The project prompted the recall of a major malaria medicine. Other recent work includes unearthing a multi-billion Shilling scam at the Kenya Ministry of Health, exposing how funds meant for free maternity and HIV programmes were diverted in a major procurement scandal. Stellar isn’t however just a muckraker: she is also keen on solutions journalism, using data and on-the-ground reportage to help spotlight innovative solutions to societal challenges. Stellar trained at the University of Nairobi’s School of Journalism, and later honed her financial reporting skills as a Bloomberg Media Initiative Africa Fellow. She is also a Transparency International – Action4Transparency – grantee 2018 for another ‘test-tube journalism’ project on ascertaining the safety of bottled water in Nairobi.
Lynet Igadwah
Lynet Igadwah is a reporter with the Business Daily based in Nairobi, mainly covering Parliament. She also writes news and feature articles on health, lifestyle and business.
Annie Njanja
Annie Njanja is an ICFJ Fellow; Global Editors Network-Data Journalism Winner 2017; currently working for the Business Daily newspaper (Nation Media Group), Nairobi.
Nancy Agutu
Nancy Agutu has worked as a senior digital reporter at the Star newspaper since 2014. She won the Best Digital Reporter award in 2015 for championing digital storytelling within the newsroom at Radio Africa Group.
Kajuju Murori
Kajuju Murori is a Kenyan journalist currently in Cyprus. She specializes in writing stories that inspire change. She writes on start-ups, technology, entrepreneurship, art, fintech, and women, among others.
Elizabeth Merab
Elizabeth Merab is an award-winning health and science reporter at the Daily Nation newspaper in Nairobi, with experience spanning over four years’ in development, science and health journalism. She is experienced in data and digital journalism and enthusiastic about telling stories that positively impact Kenyan lives.
Kizito Makoye
Innovation Fellow
Jamii Forum’s new Data Editor designate, tasked with setting up a digital first newsroom for Tanzania’s largest online audience for news and actuality content. Makoye boasts 10 years experience as a journalist, and has written for publications including the German broadcaster Deutsche Welle, Thomson Reuters Foundation and the Norwegian newspaper Bistandsaktuelt.
Diana Kendi
Diana Kendi Makale is an award-winning freelance journalist with 6 years of professional experience. She is currently an advocate for women and girls’ rights.
Fardosa Hussein
Fardosa is an upcoming data journalist focusing on Health and social injustice-related stories. She has a degree in Broadcast Journalism from Daystar University.
Esther Wandia
Esther Wandia is a data journalist and web editor at The Star Newspaper. She is passionate about data mining and journalism.
Elizabeth Merab
Elizabeth Merab is an award-winning health, development and science reporter at the Daily Nation newspaper in Nairobi, with over four years of experience.
Angela Oketch
Angela Oketch is an award-winning health, gender and art and culture reporter at the Daily Nation newspaper based in Kisumu with four years of professional experience. She also does feature articles on lifestyle.
Christine Sayo
Christine Sayo is a youth and women rights activist. She is currently the Country Leader for ‘Let’s Do It Kenya’ movement that seeks to use technology for data-driven waste management across the country.
Sarah Ooko
Sarah Ooko is an award-winning journalist writing for The Business Daily. She is a fellow of the International Centre for Journalists, Thomson Reuters Foundation and the United Nations Foundation.
Nduta Waweru
Nduta Waweru is an experienced freelance journalist focusing on health, gender and art and culture. Nduta is currently working on a tool to make county governments accountable. She is a YALI fellow
Soila Kenya
Soila Kenya is an upcoming data journalist working at Code for Africa. She writes about entrepreneurship, and millenials and has articles in Inspire Afrika, She Leads Africa, Involvement Newspaper and PesaCheck.
Doreen Wainainah
Doreen Wainainah is a writer with a bias for human interest stories at the Business Daily and has been with the Nation Media Group for the past seven years. She is a ‘Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism’ fellow.
Naima Mungai
Naima Mungai has worked in the film industry for 10 years on projects like ‘Tusker Project Fame 2’ and ‘Coke Studio Africa’ and has also taught film. She is now getting into data journalism with an interest in visuals.
Dianarose Odhiambo
Dianarose Odhiambo is a freelance multimedia journalist with an interest in gender and health. She has worked with KBC Radio Taifa and QTV. She won the KEMEP FGM journalist of the year award in 2015.
Eunice Kilonzo
Eunice Kilonzo is an award-winning, multimedia Global Health storyteller and trainer. She is a freelance health contributor for the Nation Media Group and a Communications Officer at the African Population and Health Research Center.
Juliet Atellah
Juliet Atellah is an upcoming data journalist working at The Elephant, a platform for dialogue, the pursuit of Truth and a willingness to re-imagine state and society. She focuses on stories related to Health, Governance and Human Rights.
Rhoda Odhiambo
Rhoda Odhiambo is a multimedia journalist at Radio Africa Group with an interest in health and human rights stories. She is also a Heinz Kuhn Stiftung 2017 fellow.
Nasibo Kabale
Nasibo Kabale is a Health Journalist with the Business Daily. She has previously worked at The Standard Media Group and is passionate about human interest stories.
Gloria Milimu
Gloria Milimu is a health and science journalist at K24 TV and an upcoming data journalist. She is interested in finding the link between health, science and the human development indicators that inform national policies.
Jochebed Emali
Jochebed Emali is an experienced journalist and has worked with Standard Newspaper and Top Farmer Magazine. She is currently the Chief Operations Officer at a communications consulting company, Nakshi Associates.
Lilian Kaivilu
Lilian Kaivilu is an award-winning multimedia journalist and has worked at Mediamax and the Global Press Journal. She is currently a writing consultant with the World Bank Group and the founder of Impacthub Media.
Jill Namatsi
Jill Namatsi is a Senior Digital Sub-Editor at The Star, Radio Africa with an interest in human interest features and mental health stories. She is a member of Kenya’s Media Freedom Committee.
Nimo Nyambura
Nimo Nyambura is an award-winning multimedia journalist and has worked for Interpress News Service. She has an interest in stories on women, children and disability.
Eunice Omollo
Eunice Omollo is a science and health multimedia reporter at Nation Media Group. She has a key interest in new innovations in health and is also keen on data journalism.