By Janet Chin Shuk Henn (2009 MBA, Malaysia)

Adelide Kamanthe Mutinda (2010, MPP/ED Kenya) or “Adi,” as she is more commonly known, is a veteran when it comes to life as a foreign student in Korea. She first set foot on Korean soil in year 2006 upon receiving a full scholarship from Ewha Womans University to pursue a bachelor’s degree in international studies. What would usually take four years to complete only took Adi three. The following three months, she worked as an intern in the C40 division of the Seoul Metropolitan Government, after which she returned to Kenya to work as a guest relations officer at Safari Park Hotel which is operated by the Paradise Group, a private Korean owned company. She found herself back in Korea again six months later, on a Global Ambassador Fellowship from the KDI School. For the past two semesters, Adi has done extremely well for herself; she has been working as a reporter for the KDI School Globe newsletter as an administrative assistant in the External Relations and Development Division of the School. On top of that, she has been on the dean’s list of distinction. Recently, she was also placed runner up in the economic essay contest by The Korea Times with her article titled “Seoul Should Represent Both G20 and Non-G20 Countries.”

As of August this year, she has donned another hat as a part of radio show panel in a segment called “Africa Now” on Transport Broadcasting Station (TBS). Acting as a radio ambassador for Africa, this segment gives a voice to Africans as Adi discusses topics related to current affairs in Africa, some of which include Naomi Campbell and the blood diamonds, workers on strike in South Africa, and Africa’s growth prospect in the new century. Adi said she not only enjoys what she is doing, her understanding of the African continent has dramatically increased. When asked how she can manage all these responsibilities and still maintain excellent academic results, she said “It’s a matter of finding the right balance. Sometimes I feel like I’m taking on too much, but since I’m still young, I want to achieve as much as I can.”