Habiba has risen to head the commercial and business development department at Mombasa Water Supply and Sanitation Company at a young age.
However, it did not come easy. She had to surmount a lot of hurdles on her way to the top.
Now a general manager, the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa alumnus says she has had to prove herself in a male-dominated space.
Her mother is her role model drawing from her unwavering commitment to see the family succeed despite adversities.
"Despite the proverbial phrase that ‘when life gives you lemons, you should make lemonade’, she argues that not everybody has an equal share of lemons to make lemonade."
She arrived in the water sector through her passion to serve humanity and the quest to close the gap between the ‘have’ and the ‘have not’. Habiba reckons that while water is essential for livelihoods, the commodity is hardly available to the marginalised communities.
Despite the proverbial phrase that ‘when life gives you lemons, you should make lemonade’, she argues that not everybody has an equal share of lemons to make lemonade.
“I aim to provide the essential services for the communities while adapting to and finding solutions to issues such as the impacts of climate change, aging infrastructure and the global water crisis,” she says.
Collins Omullo