Paukwa? Pakawa!
Paukwa is a place dedicated to positive stories about Kenya. Our story house is named for the Swahili word that is an invitation to a story – Paukwa. It’s an age- old term, well known across East Africa. Paukwa invites one to remember the joy of stories from their childhood days and to get lost in new, familiar or unknown ideas about the daily things that surround us.
Each day ordinary Kenyans are pushing our nation forward. As volunteers, as SME owners, as creatives, teachers, farmers, counsellors, techwizards and more. There is a bigger story as they build our nation each day through their tenacity, hard work, positive attitude, search for excellence, and sheer hustle.
Through their efforts we all grow.
At Paukwa, we shine a spotlight on the everyday builders of our nation and the history we almost forgot.
This digital storybank celebrates memory, culture, modernity, but most of all, the positive. Dive in and discover a story of Kenya you didn’t know you never knew!
#AKenyanOnceSaid
Kenyans have been known to give voice to wisdom and inspiration that transcends time. In this collection, we will celebrate the remarkable ability of words to shape lives, inspire change, and unite hearts. This collection, #AKenyanOnceSaid, is a curated journey through the eloquent expressions of Kenyans who have spoken words that resonate with themes such as determination, resilience, culture, unity, and environmentalism. Here, you will find the essence of
Paukwa? Pakawa!
Paukwa is a place dedicated to positive stories about Kenya. Our story house is named for the Swahili word that is an invitation to a story – Paukwa. It’s an age- old term, well known across East Africa. Paukwa invites one to remember the joy of stories from their childhood days and to get lost in new, familiar or unknown ideas about the daily things that surround us.
Each day ordinary Kenyans are pushing our nation forward. As volunteers, as SME owners, as creatives, teachers, farmers, counsellors, techwizards and more. There is a bigger story as they build our nation each day through their tenacity, hard work, positive attitude, search for excellence, and sheer hustle.
Through their efforts we all grow.
At Paukwa, we shine a spotlight on the everyday builders of our nation and the history we almost forgot.
This digital storybank celebrates memory, culture, modernity, but most of all, the positive. Dive in and discover a story of Kenya you didn’t know you never knew!
#KeStamps
If we turn back time by a few centuries, one of the first things that stands out is how different communication was from what it is today. Information was sent over long distances using smoke signals, drumbeats, and even town criers. It could take days or weeks for a message to reach the receiver. In contrast to present-day, emails, text messages, and multiple online platforms have made this process
Remember the story of...
Tharaka Nithi
In 1992, the old Meru district was split into four and a new district was born with the name Tharaka and Nithi. Nithi was for the area previously known as Meru South. County 13 is one of four Kenyan counties with a suave double barrel name! Sandwiched between many larger counties Tharaka Nithi still holds its own. Mountaineers hoping to scale Mount Kenya on the eastern side of the mountain...
Our audio stories
A note from our team
ON GRATITUDE
Allow us to take a moment of reflection. We are grateful for the journey of time, for the learnings we have experienced about our country as we have spent time in archives, in interviews, on bumpy roads crisscrossing the nation, in online rabbit holes in our quest to build stories of Kenya. We are incredibly grateful for the community of readers we have and all the feedback, thumbs up, questions and exclamations that you have shared. We have enjoyed spending time in new spaces bringing our story collections alive in forums, on panels, in festivals and in virtual settings. Through each of these endeavours we are continually sharpened by others, we have found our tribe of individuals and collectives as curious as we are about our history, and we are comforted and emboldened by the reminders that we are not alone on our quest and indeed – this work of narrative shaping, of history building, of spotlight shining is important. With reflection comes gratitude, introspection, and hope and so we thank you for being part of our Paukwa journey.
TEAM PAUKWA
A note from our team
DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION
Just like our fingerprints, we are all unique and different. Our backgrounds, experiences, values, belief systems, ideas and points of view vary. Yet amidst these differences, all our voices have places they belong to in the community. At Paukwa, we’re keen on telling the stories of the authentic Kenyan experience, and that can only be possible with the acknowledgement of our varying cultures, socio-economic backgrounds, generations, and abilities. For this, we are joining the world in championing for inclusivity in our magical way by sharing stories of Kenyans in #DisabilityNotInability who in their work and everyday lives strive to create room for others to belong.
TEAM PAUKWA
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