Persistent Appoints Kenyan Lawyer Wairimu Karanja as Chief Legal Officer
Today Persistent is proud to announce that Wairimu Karanja will become its Chief Legal Officer as of October 1, 2021. Wairimu will succeed Chris Aidun, assuming responsibility for all of Persistent’s legal and compliance matters.
Wairimu Karanja is a licensed Kenyan lawyer with over 12 years of experience in energy, natural resources, infrastructure, private equity, and corporate and transactional work. She has an LLM in Energy Law and Policy from the University of Dundee’s Centre for Energy, Petroleum and Mineral Law and Policy, a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) from the University of Nairobi, and a Post-Graduate Diploma in Law from Kenya School of Law. Wairimu has worked in several distinguished law firms, prior to establishing her own legal practice, W&Co. in 2018.
She will operate in Persistent’s Nairobi hub and will be phasing out of her practice during the rest of 2021, assuming her role full-time at Persistent on January 1, 2022.
Chris Aidun, Co-Founder of Persistent and CLO to date, will remain actively engaged as a Persistent Partner and continue to serve on the Persistent Management and Investment Committees. He will also continue as a Director on Persistent’s Board.
“We are thrilled to have successfully recruited such a talented person as Wairimu to succeed me as Chief Legal Officer,” said Chris Aidun. “Wairimu’s skill, commitment to climate work and collegiality make her an excellent fit for the organization. In only a few months consulting with us, she already feels like a full member of the team.”
“I am delighted to be joining Persistent,” said Wairimu. “It is a great institution with a clear focus on impact in its climate venture building model in Africa. I am fortunate to have found a great team of brilliant and passionate individuals. Persistent’s impact mission in Africa is fully in line with my vision when setting up my own practice. Its work is especially relevant considering the Climate commitments at the UN General Assembly and those expected under COP26. This feels like home and I am excited about the adventure ahead.”
“It has been a great pleasure working with Wairimu over the last few months and we are very happy to have her on board full time with us”, said Mia von Koschitzky-Kimani, Chief Venture Builder and Partner in Nairobi. “We are always on the lookout for outstanding talent on the continent and Wairimu has more than exceeded our expectations in a short time. It is also a further step on our commitment to building a diverse team, with more than half of our full-time staff being female and two-thirds based across several African locations.”