Cindy Amaiza is a formidable voice for youth-led healthcare access and HIV justice in Kenya. A microbiologist by training and an activist by calling, she stands as a leader building a system where young people living with HIV are heard.
“I was inspired to do this work because young people are always left behind in the HIV space. Growing up, I saw people dying from preventable causes simply because they didn’t have access to treatment or felt too stigmatised to ask for it.”
Her journey did not start in a boardroom; it began in schoolyards and clinics, where she shared HIV information with her peers and helped to map out youth-friendly HIV service centres. “They found me knowledgeable, and I realised I could fit into this space quite naturally.”
As the fund manager of Her Voice Fund, Cindy supports community organisations across Africa that champion the health rights of adolescent girls and young women. She also founded Y+ Kenya, a youth-led movement that developed the first national HIV treatment and diagnostics toolkit created by and for young people.
"I was inspired to act because young people are often left behind in the HIV space, and I grew up seeing preventable deaths caused by lack of access or stigma."
“It’s a basic document, but it breaks down HIV in a language young people understand, and it has also been adopted by the National Aids & STI Control Programme.”
One of her proudest moments came when her advocacy helped remove barriers for young women to access HIV drugs during pregnancy. She insists that it was not just about the treatment but about the dignity and choice. “I want to be a living example that you can still be a leader, a professional, and a global force, no matter your diagnosis.”
She decries a shift in how Kenya approaches healthcare. “We focus so much on survival, but what about living? We’re losing young people to non-communicable diseases because we’re not integrating healthcare services; HIV is not what is killing them. That has to change.”
She enjoys reading and sampling perfumes, “a cherished hobby”.
-Marion Sitawa