Behind the wall-to-wall sliding doors of a well-heeled condo in a leafy Kitisuru, Nairobi, a vicious cold bites. The uninviting swimming pool behind these glass doors looks like a sad wet dog that will not be let back in the house. On contrast, inside the house is a tastefully done living room and cozy. Seated before a charming fireplace, cracking with young tongues of flames, Carole Wainaina, the chief operating officer of Africa50, warms up the room with stories about her life, a day after the third Africa50 forum. You probably know what Africa50 does. It is owned by 25 African countries, two central banks and the African Development Bank. In the forum, President Uhuru Kenyatta announced that Kenya will double its contribution to the fund to Sh10.07 billion. But in all sincerity, who wants to hear about infrastructure development on a cold Saturday? Or even talk about it. Thankfully not Carole.
So she talks to JACKSON BIKO about her meteoric career—13 years at Coca-Cola (as chief of staff, group human resources director, and president of Coca-Cola Foundation), two-decade stints in senior positions in multinational corporations in Turkey, the US, the UK, the Netherlands and finally assistant secretary-general for human resources of the UN. She talks about how that has balanced out her life as a wife and a mother.
