Margaret Mliwa: Profile of Kenyan Appointed as Ford Foundation Regional Director

American Non-Governmental Organization (NGO), Ford Foundation, has appointed Margaret Mliwa as the next regional director of its East Africa office.

The announcement was made in a press release on May 8, 2025, by the Vice President for International Programs at the Ford Foundation Martín Abregu. 

“We are thrilled to recognise and celebrate Margaret Mliwa’s leadership as the regional director for the Ford Foundation’s East Africa office,” said Abregu.

“Margaret’s range of skills—from adept storytelling, mentorship, and relationship-building across the sector—will only strengthen our work in East Africa.”

Mliwa will now oversee the Ford Foundation’s East Africa office, which is based in Nairobi. The office is a nonpolitical organisation committed to advancing social justice, equity, and the public good across Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania and supporting open civic space, civil society, and public dialogue with the governments across the region.

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Profile of Margaret Mliwa

The new regional director joined the foundation in 2017 and has held roles as a program officer, senior program officer, and acting regional director.

During her tenure, Mliwa developed a diverse grants portfolio that encompassed community organizing, national advocacy, independent media, and leadership strengthening within civil society and public service, with an emphasis on defending basic freedoms and civil society voices in East Africa.

Mliwa has more than 20 years of public sector experience, working with government, civil society, and philanthropy to advocate for and implement policies that champion community-driven programs. 

Before joining Ford, she was the country director of Restless Development Tanzania, a global youth-led development agency.

Previously, Mliwa served as the head of the Youth Social Mobilization Unit of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports of the government of Kenya and as lead consultant in the development of the National Youth Service framework for the Sierra Leonean government.

The new Ford Foundation Regional Director is a recipient of a Commonwealth Scholarship and holds a bachelor’s degree in education from Kenyatta University and Master of Applied Philosophy and Ethics in progress from Strathmore University.

Ford Foundation is an American NGO which runs civic education and government programs around the globe including Kenya, under the East Africa program.

Headquartered in New York, USA, the foundation is an independent organization led by a distinguished board of trustees whose 16 members hail from four continents and bring leadership and expertise in a wide range of disciplines.

Ford Foundation in Kenya

The Foundation’s roots dates to back 1936 when it was established by Edsel Ford—son of Henry Ford, the founder of the Ford Motor Company— with an initial gift of $25,000.

Its Nairobi office opened in 1963, against the backdrop of independence in the East African region.

According to the Foundation’s website, its main aim is to support civic space and society in the region, which it describes as one of the fastest-growing regions in the world, with a large youth population.

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The Foundation maintains that it has supported courageous leaders on the frontlines of social change in Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania.

Ford Foundation also boasts of having helped establish the University of Nairobi (UoN) in 1963.

From 2001-2013, the Foundation ran the International Fellows Program, which enabled over 380 Kenyans, Tanzanians, and Ugandans to pursue graduate studies and build a cohort of moral leaders.

Currently, the organization focuses on supporting and sustaining vibrant civic spaces in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania and weaving the resilience of civil society, including to protect social justice activists.

Accusations

President William Ruto in 2024 accused the foundation of funding anti-government protests in the country.

However, the foundation denied the allegations with Permanent Secretary (PS) for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs Dr. Korir Sing’oei later in 2024 hosting its delegation with a view of addressing issues raised in his letter to the President of the Foundation, Darren Walker.

PS Korir had in the letter sent on July demanded for accountability in the grants disbursed to 16 NGOs in Kenya by the Foundation, following accusations that the American NGO was financing anti-government protests in the country.

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