Written by Program Assisant, Laura Wasserman
Edited by Global Grants Manager, Melysa Sperber

Joyce Njeri Waithaka, a young Kenyan entrepreneur, singularly showcases the principle of paying it forward in both her professional and personal life. At age 20, she invested in her own bakery – Super Cakes. To support her business’ growth and to offer opportunity to young women in her community, she recruited and trained two women as bakers. After learning that one of her new employees, an orphan named Elizabeth, lacked adequate housing, Joyce opened up her home and invited Elizabeth to stay, indefinitely. In business and in life, what impresses people most is that Joyce’s ambitions extend far beyond herself.

Chosen for her entrepreneurial acumen and humanitarian spirit, Joyce participated in the Rising Voices: Young Kenyan Women’s Leadership and Communications training in Nairobi in early December 2008. Joyce has a glowing face and a contagious smile. Her voice is soft, but when she speaks, she is powerful. “So many people have helped me get to where I am, so I have to now help others,” she explained with passion and clarity.

According to Joyce, she comes from “the middle.” After she and her brother moved out of their home, Joyce’s parents separated and subsequently divorced. Eventually, Joyce moved back in with her mother Gedion Kimani. She witnessed her single parent struggle to pay for Joyce’s secondary education. Determined and passionate, Joyce excelled in school and easily made friends.

While in secondary school, Joyce joined Technoserve’s Young Women in Enterprise (YWE) initiative, a program managed by Vital Voices Alumna Pauline Mwangi and funded by the Nike Foundation. Technoserve’s comprehensive 7-step program begins by teaching young women about financial planning and culminates with the young women starting businesses or seeking employment. University business students and women business leaders in the community mentor participants, and Technoserve enrolls the young women in technical classes on topics of interest like juicemaking, or baking.

Technoserve students put their new skills to the test by writing business plans. At age 18, Joyce won the YWE’s business plan competition and she invested her award to start a kiosk. As she diligently worked to develop her business, Joyce continued with the YWE program and began taking baking classes. Upon the completion of her baking classes, Joyce received notice that authorities intended to close her kiosk because it stood on government property. With her new skills in hand, Joyce sold her kiosk and used the money to rent a new business space and buy baking supplies.

Three months after opening Super Cakes, Joyce hired two employees: Shiro and Elizabeth, her friend and adopted sister. “I am just one person, but I have already employed two other people and that makes a big difference in their lives,” Joyce explained, emphasizing the big impact her business generates for the entire community. According to Joyce, micro-enterprise initiatives like the YWE program have a ripple effect, “There is nobody to help the people at the bottom rise up. I think they are talented. They just need training and support”.

Although Joyce has big plans for her little bakery - she envisions a larger bakery at the Village Market shopping mall in Nairobi - she also realizes that she is vulnerable. Her first month of business was difficult. She had to pay all of her expenses and demonstrate to her customers that her treats were tastier than her competitors’. Business has improved, but challenges recur. Joyce’s business is plagued by insecurity. In December, thieves broke into Super Cakes and stole baked goods and cooking equipment. No authorities responded, no culprits were apprehended. Determined to overcome the incident, Joyce and her employees worked tirelessly to recoup the losses. Joyce focuses on the promise of her business. She points to an empty lot across the street from her shop. Developers have plans to build a large indoor market. Although no tangible progress has been made, Joyce hopes that the market’s opening will increase foot traffic and attract new customers to her bakery.

At the end of the Rising Voices training program Joyce and the nine other participants spoke with US Ambassador to Kenya Michael Ranneberger, PEPFAR Kenya Country Coordinator Warren Buckingham III, and Partnership for an HIV-Free Generation Executive Director Ian Kirumba Ndungu about youth and HIV in Kenya. Joyce is not HIV positive, neither is anyone in her family. Still, she notices the detrimental effect of HIV/AIDS in her community. In particular, she sees a negative impact on her ability to run a successful business. “If more people in my community are sick, they can’t buy goods from me and it makes it harder for me to employ people,” Joyce commented. Prevention is the best way to fight HIV/AIDS according to Joyce. “Through teaching people small skills, they won’t participate in behaviors that endanger themselves.” Recognizing the disparity HIV/AIDS creates in her community, Joyce pointed out, “It is very important to start from down there”.

Impressively, Joyce’s personal and professional aspirations focus on community development rather than individual gain. Joyce feels compelled to ‘pay it forward’ by discovering entrepreneurial ways to advance the interests of her business, its employees, and its operating environment. “I am not that high up”, she motions with her arms, “but if I can help just a few people who are below me rise up, then that makes a big difference.”