Nairobi: Youths in the country who fall under the Gen-Z category have been called upon to become the catalyst for the change they desire by using technology and innovation to come up with solutions for the challenges they face like unemployment. Mr Lesego Kotane, a strategy and culture expert, described Gen-Z not as disruptive troublemakers, but as catalysts for transformation.
According to Kenya News Agency, speaking on Thursday during a thought leadership forum dubbed ‘Solving for Chaos’, Kotane said that the recent youth-led protests in Kenya are not an uprising or unrest but about a generation asserting their identity. “This is not a group without a voice. It’s a generation that wants to be heard. They want a seat at the table,” he said. “They are connected, expressive, and demanding. They are not afraid to use social platforms to hold brands accountable. If we are not listening, we are missing out on the most culturally aware consumer generation,” Kotane added.
He called on the youth to use creative ways to get their voices heard as they seek to have a seat at the table. “Chaos is intimidating and, in these moments, businesses are tempted to retreat and play it safe. But I believe chaos is where opportunity sits,” Kotane said. He challenged leaders to see chaos not as a threat, but as fertile ground for innovation and encouraged leaders to rethink their strategies through the lens of culture, a term he admitted often feels heavy and ambiguous.
Mary Wamae, a seasoned lawyer and former Executive Director at Equity Group, said that stability in leadership does not come from external calm but from deep internal roots. Quoting an African proverb, “When the roots are deep, there is no reason to fear the wind,” Wamae maintained that the ability to face chaotic and challenging situations is what distinguishes successful leaders.
Drawing from her tenure at Equity Bank, she recounted how the organization turned around from near collapse. “At one point, our shareholder funds were minus 33 million shillings. We were on the verge of closure. But someone chose to see not poverty, but opportunity in the 95 percent of Kenyans who were unbanked. This axle was not driven by technology, but by a fundamental understanding of the market. Innovation was not in Silicon Valley. It was in a goat-eating ceremony where villagers learned financial literacy,” she explained.
Wamae emphasized that meaningful transformation comes from seeing the world differently and asked, “What lenses do you wear? Are you looking at the same village and seeing poverty, or are you seeing possibility?” According to her, banking the unbanked was not about throwing money at the problem, but designing a model that respected the dignity of people at the base of the pyramid. She urged leaders to adapt to customer realities, rather than forcing the market to adjust to them.
“A customer with Sh200 doesn’t need a two-kilo tin of cooking fat. They need a sachet they can afford today,” she noted to illustrate how businesses must break down their offerings into practical, accessible solutions if they hope to thrive amid chaos. Furthermore, she explained that organizations must choose to either be eagles or ostriches. “The eagle retreats, breaks its beak, and grows a new one. It has to undergo this painful process for renewal. The ostrich buries its head in the sand and pretends nothing is happening. Choose wisely,” she expressed.