Kitui Governor Charity Ngilu aptly deserves the title Iron Lady of Kenyan politics.
On the political front, she has fearlessly brought down seasoned and influential politicians to be among the first women governors.
She did it when the political odds were overwhelmingly stacked against her political party.
On the development front, she is a shining example that if, approached with efficacy and clear vision, devolution of power is Kenya's safest bet for a sound economic turnaround.
At the just-concluded Devolution Conference in Makueni, Ngilu, who is among the indefatigable Kenyan women who put up a spirited onslaught against the authoritarian Kanu regime, received an outpouring of accolades from Kenyans for showcasing products by her government.
This was a classic case of a public relations exercise taken a notch higher, but the truth is KICOTEC, a textile factory in Kitui and Ngilu's brainchild, is now a household name.
It has made uniforms for Kenya Wildlife personnel and was among the first notable factories to make facemasks during the advent of coronavirus.
Such initiatives create job opportunities for hundreds of Kenyans with skills and ideas but lacking spheres to showcase their mettle, a departure from the rural-urban migration concept of job search.
We have counties endowed with natural resources and untapped human talent but retrogressive politics and deep-seated corruption means the masses must wallow in poverty.
When party politics meets corruption, it's the masses that lose as politicians retreat to their leafy suburbs.
This country requires a policy shift from the existing over-reliance on foreign skills and manpower to homegrown solutions, solutions which dozens have Kenyans have proven countless times that they have.
We cannot be importers of skills that are locally and abundantly available.
We must forgo the exportation of goods that can be used to develop products locally.
Let us export locally-made products to earn foreign exchange instead.
Ngilu is proof that the reforms Kenyans bitterly fought for, with some even losing their lives, were not in vain.
At the same time, she is bringing out the great potential in Kenyan women which has for far too long been overlooked during elections.
Freelance journalist and writer
Edited by Kiilu Damaris