Mercy Zoe Wanjiru one of Kenya’s brilliant women outdoor organisers and adventurers has been left disappointed being denied a U.S. visa.
Wanjiru had landed a summit scholarship program in the United States.
The Summit Scholarship Foundation is a US-based organization that funds and supports women for mountaineering and backpacking expeditions.
It aims to break down barriers, especially in marginalized societies where women are very few in the outdoors due to many challenges that hold them back.
Every year, the foundation sends out a call for applications and selects a few outstanding outdoor women to venture out into the wild.
In 2024, the foundation received over 700 applications and after reviewing them, only 13 women were selected for the various programs in different parts of the World.
Out of the 13, only 2 were Africans. Mercy Zoe Wanjiru, the only Kenyan, was invited for a 5-day expedition to the Grand Canyon.
The expedition is from 22-26th September but this dream was shattered by a two-time Visa denial at the US Embassy in Nairobi.
According to the embassy, she was denied because she lacks a strong travel history outside Africa.
Wanjiru can therefore not proceed with her expedition plans at this moment shattering the dreams of representing African women.
She now cannot break one of the barriers African women face which is the liberty to travel and explore.
The trip is funded and there are expedition gear sponsors like LOWA waiting to support Mercy’s trip but she needs a visa to attend the trip.
“Is the US Embassy in Nairobi ready to join hands in breaking barriers for women in the outdoors? Is the US Embassy committed to supporting gender equity programs in Africa?” Wanjiru is asking.
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