Our Journey
Where It Began
Nyanam International started in 2012 as Konyango Community-Based Organization, empowering rural communities adversely affected by illiteracy, poverty and HIV/AIDS in the Lake Victoria region of Kenya. At this time, Nyanam's founder Jackie Odhiambo was studying in the United States on a scholarship, and she wanted to find a way to give back to her community.
The community had recognized the need for a school in Jackie's home village of Konyango, and she was interested in helping. After establishing Mboto Sunrise Primary School, which has since become a government school serving over 300 students, the community noticed that students and community members were traveling long distances to collect water at the lake, a task that was sometimes even life-threatening.
This inspired Jackie to pursue partnership with another local non-profit organization to drill boreholes for the Kakakoka-Mboto Water Project, a community-owned water project that currently serves 3,000 households.
The Turning Point
During this work, Jackie noticed how widows were left behind in community projects, their voices unheard and often treated with neglect and disrespect. When one widow took the initiative to request personal support from Jackie, our founder met with over 80 widows to discuss their personal challenges and needs.
From this meeting, Jackie understood that many of the community's widows required similar support, and that there needed to be actions taken to specifically target their needs. In 2017, Jackie founded Nyanam and supported widows in starting Leadership Circles, which were the first step in creating spiritual, economic, and social empowerment for the widows.
In 2019, Nyanam International officially registered as a restorative justice organization, cementing the commitment to scale and systematize support for Kenya's most vulnerable widows.
Expanded Hope
Today, Nyanam International serves 3,300 widows and 2,000 widows' children across integrated programs in leadership, health, livelihoods, justice, and youth education. What began as Leadership Circles has grown into a comprehensive model addressing the full spectrum of widow and orphan challenges.
We work at the intersection of spiritual transformation, economic independence, health security, legal protection, and youth empowerment. Every program, every activity, every interaction flows from listening to the voices of the widows and children we serve.
Our vision is a world in which widows and orphans thrive in safety and security. We continue to grow our impact, breaking cycles of poverty and injustice, one family and one community at a time.