Alice Wairimu Nderitu

Early life and education Nderitū was born in Nairobi, Kenya. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Literature and Philosophy (1990) and a Master's degree in Armed Conflict and Peace Studies (2013) from the University of Nairobi, and an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Keene State College.

Career 1992–2009 Kenya Prisons Service From 1992 to 1999, Nderitū was Researcher and Administrator of the Kenya Prisons Service within the Kenya Ministry of Home Affairs.

Kenya National Commission on Human Rights From 1999 to 2007, she headed the human rights education department (the Human Rights Education and Capacity-Building Programme) of the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (earlier, known as the Kenya Standing Committee on Human Rights). She was one of three mediators (the other two were men) of the Nakuru Accord, between ten ethnic communities to prevent a repeat of the country’s 2007-08 election violence that had included an estimated 1,500 deaths, 3,000 rapes, and 650,000 displaced residents. For 16 months in her role as Commissioner she was a founder and first Co-Chair of Uwiano Platform for Peace, a conflict-prevention agency founded in 2010 that uses mobile technology to encourage citizens to report indicators of violence, linking early warning to early response. She also served as Summer Course faculty member at SIT Graduate Institute, Vermont, Brattleboro, USA, and lecturer of the Socio-Economic Rights course at Pretoria University’s Centre for Human Rights, South Africa. She has also served as facilitator of the Senior Mission Leaders Course at the International Peace Support Training Center, Kenya and the Rwanda Military Academy, Rwanda.

Commissioner of Kenyan Presidential Commission of Inquiry Nderitū served as a Commissioner of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry into the dissolution of the Makueni County government in Kenya.

Mediations She has contributed in defining the role of women mediators, as a signatory and mediator to peace agreements in armed conflicts. Committed to communities and linking the local with the global, Nderitū has also been an advocate of women inclusion in various international forums.

Nderitū led the mediation process that led to the 2012 peace agreement signed by 10 ethnic communities in Nakuru, Kenya. In a February 2025 interview Nderitū said her contract was not renewed because of her refusal to label Israel’s conduct in Gaza as genocide.

Organizations

Nderitū has served as a member of the African Union's Network of African Women in Conflict Prevention and Mediation (Fem-Wise), the Women Waging Peace Network, the Concerned Citizens for Peace (a group of Elders facilitating peace between African leaders), and the Global Alliance of Women Mediators. She is also the founder of the Community Voices for Peace and Pluralism, a network of African women professionals preventing and transforming conflicts worldwide. 2012 – Woman Peace Maker Of the Year, awarded by the Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice, University of San Diego, US 2015 – Aspen Leadership scholarship 2018 – Jack P. Blaney Award, awarded by the Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue, Simon Fraser University for using dialogue to support conflict resolution including but not limited to roles in Kenya and Nigeria 2019 – Diversity and Inclusion Peace and Cohesion Champion Award, Kenya National Diversity Inclusion Award (DIAR awards) 2022 – Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters Degree, Keene State College Anass Bendrif, Sahira al Karaguly, Mohammadi Laghzaoui, Esmah Lahlah, Maeve Moynihan, Alice Nderitũ, Joelle Rizk, and Maytham Al Zubaidi (2009). An introduction to human rights in the Middle East and North Africa- a guide for NGOs. Alice Nderitũ and Jacqueline O'Neill (2013). "7 myths standing in the way of women's inclusion". Inclusive Security. Alice Wairimũ Nderitũ (2014). The Nakuru County peace accord (2010-2012). Alice Wairimũ Nderitũ (2016). African Peace Building: Civil Society Roles in Conflict. In Pamela Aall and Chester A. Crocker (eds). Minding the Gap: African Conflict Management in a Time of Change (2016). Alice Wairimũ Nderitũ (2016). Catherine Ndereba: The Authorised Biography of a Marathon World Record holder Alice Wairimũ Nderitũ (2018). Beyond Ethnicism: Exploring Ethnic and Racial Diversity for Educators. Mdahalo Bridging Divides Limited. Alice Wairimũ Nderitũ (2018). Kenya: Bridging Ethnic Divides, A Commissioner’s Experience on Cohesion and Integration. Mdahalo Bridging Divides Limited. Swanee Hunt and Alice Wairimũ Nderitũ. (2018). WPS as a political movement. In Sara E. Davies & Jacqui True (Eds). The Oxford Handbook of Women, Peace, and Security. New York: Oxford University Press. Alice Wairimu Nderitu. Conflict Transformation and Human Rights: A Mutual Stalemate ?

In addition, Nderitu is a columnist with The EastAfrican newspaper.