Our Leadership Team

Fiston Ndayishimiye

CEO & Founder

Fiston Ndayishimiye is the visionary founder of Importance Leadership. With a passion for empowering youth, he provides strategic leadership and drives the organization's mission to mobilize, inspire, and empower young individuals to become change-makers.

Under his leadership, Importance Leadership has achieved significant milestones, including financial sustainability, stakeholder engagement, and operational excellence across all departments. Fiston's dedication to innovation and growth continues to inspire the next generation of leaders.

Bonkey Muhumure

HR Manager

Bonkey Muhumure, a youth currently residing in Kenya as an urban refugee. My journey began in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo), where I was born. However, my childhood was abruptly disrupted by conflicts and wars, forcing my family to flee our home. We sought refuge in Bujumbura, Burundi, where we lived for over eight years.

In 2015, a new wave of unrest broke out in Burundi due to political tensions surrounding President Pierre Nkurunziza's bid for a third term in office. This turmoil compelled my family and me to flee once again, leading us to seek safety in Kenya.

Life as a refugee has been fraught with countless challenges, including discrimination, poverty, unemployment, inequality, lack of representation, and limited access to education. I vividly remember the struggle to secure even one meal a day and the immense difficulties in acquiring formal education. To pay my school fees, I had to engage in child labor, all while enduring rampant discrimination wherever I found myself.

Despite these adversities, I made a personal vow to overcome the odds and achieve my dream: to work with international organizations as a humanitarian, serving vulnerable populations such as refugees, minorities, internally displaced persons, and people with disabilities. I held onto the belief that "hard work pays," and my journey has proven the truth of this adage.

Through perseverance and determination, I successfully completed my education, progressing from primary school to university here in Kenya. Along the way, I was fortunate to receive various scholarships that eased my path. These included high school and university scholarships. Currently, I am pursuing a second Bachelor's Degree in Development Studies at Mount Kenya University under another scholarship awarded for my academic excellence.

My hard work has also opened doors to meaningful opportunities. I have had the privilege of working with various organizations and embassies in different capacities:

• Protection Officer at the Refugee Consortium of Kenya (RCK)
• Consultant at HIAS Kenya
• Interpreter at Resettlement Support Center Africa
• Regional Youth Development Manager at Importance Leadership

My journey has not been easy, but it has shaped me into a resilient individual dedicated to serving others. My experiences fuel my passion for humanitarian work, and I remain committed to making a difference in the lives of vulnerable communities.

Uwase Joyeuse

Secretariat

Uwase is responsible for handling official documentation, correspondence, and ensuring seamless communication within the organization. She plays a crucial role in scheduling meetings, preparing reports, and maintaining organized records for smooth administrative operations.

With exceptional organizational skills and attention to detail, Uwase ensures that all administrative processes run efficiently, supporting the entire team in achieving their goals.

Mike

Marketing Director

Mike is responsible for developing marketing strategies that enhance the organization's public image and outreach efforts. With expertise in digital marketing and brand communication, Mike ensures that promotional campaigns align with the organization's mission and engage the right audience effectively.

His creative approach to marketing has significantly increased the organization's visibility and impact, reaching wider audiences and creating meaningful connections.

Shema Manasseh

IT Lead

Shema leads the IT infrastructure, ensuring seamless operations of all technical systems. With a background in software engineering, he develops, manages, and optimizes applications while keeping the organization at the forefront of technological advancements.

His innovative solutions have streamlined operations and enhanced the organization's digital presence, making technology an enabler of the mission.

Pacific Muhumure

Operations Lead

Pacific Muhumure is a dedicated professional with both Associate and Bachelor's degrees in Healthcare Management (specializing in Global Perspective) from Southern New Hampshire University. Currently, Pacific is pursuing his Master's program at the University of Manitoba based in Canada. He also holds a degree in Exercising Leadership from Harvard University, complemented by certifications from Boston University, and the United Nations.

Passionate about community empowerment, Pacific has collaborated with different NGOs, RLOs, Government Agencies, and the Ministry of Education to serve the underserved communities through education and advocacy initiatives.

With diverse experience as an Academic Advisor at Southern New Hampshire University, Alumni Representative at Global Education Movement, Monitoring and Evaluation Officer at Teach For Kenya & Project Manager for different RLOs, Pacific brings wealth of expertise project management, education, community engagement and advocacy. Additionally, he has served as a High School Chemistry/Biology Teacher, Digital Facilitator and Refugee Youth Leader.

Pacific is passionate about community empowerment through education & advocacy and he believes that every youth should have access to quality education regardless of their socio-economic background to enable them unlock their full potential.

Fabiola Baraka

Finance Manager

Personal Profile

Fabiola Baraka is a finance officer at Importance Leadership, Kenya, who deals with financial planning and analysis.

She is motivated by seeing young, forcibly displaced people in the communities having a voice and using it to lead change through their leadership.

Fabiola graduated with an Associate of Arts degree in Business Administration and a Bachelor of Arts in Healthcare Management, both from Southern New Hampshire University, and a certificate in Refugee and Forced Migration Studies from the University of Oxford. She then went on to work with RefugePoint International as a community navigator and is currently working with Jesuit Refugee Service as an academic coach.

During that period, she developed strong leadership skills and achieved several professional accomplishments.

Her experience in the humanitarian sector, specifically dealing with refugees and vulnerable host communities, makes her adept for this responsibility.

Ingabire Grace

Research Lead

Ingabire Grace, The youth empowerment specialist in Importance Leadership is a passionate young lady with a keen interest in female and youth empowerment particularly in her community. She was born in the Eastern DRC and fleed to kenya in 2014 due to the unending wars. She finished her primary school and proceeded to highschool on a scholarship for good performance.

While in highschool, She was motivated by the negative view of the girl child in her community and thus co founded an initiative called Her Dignity Girls Organization. It aims to empower girls in her community to step up and reach for their goals, while embracing education instead of opting for the much glorified early marriages.

Ingabire is currently pursuing a law degree (LLB) in Kenya and She hopes to use the knowledge to seek justice for her people and women in the society.