CELEBRATING MY TEACHERS.

Teachers affect destiny, so the saying goes. It is not just an old adage. The impact of a good teacher on her apprentices is without measure. I have been lucky to have met some very remarkable teachers in life and I choose to celebrate them on this platform.

Start with the childhood. I don’t remember exactly when I met Mrs. Ngotho for the first time. I should have marked that moment. She was to remain my class teacher for the next eight years. A really amazing teacher who powerfully influenced those of us who were placed in her keen watch. For other kids at Gatiiguru Primary School, we were considered unfortunate for having fallen into the hands of such a demanding disciplinarian. It was not for nothing that madam got the soubriquet “lion of Judah”.

I really didn’t need to fear her unrelenting cane. I was most of the times in her good books. Credit to my dad who worked hard to ensure that I and my siblings grew up properly trimmed. It doesn’t mean that madam was  impartial in the implementation of discipline. I also got a few incidences when my hands got ‘hot’ from the thrashing of her rod. But that was not all about her. She was my teacher of English for most of my years in primary school. At some point she also taught me Mathematics. Her dedication to the service left an indelible impression in my life. I remember visiting her at a school where she was the head when I faced some difficulties in my undergrad. Without elaborating too much, I must say that I got a mentor and a friend in that honorable lady.

The late Mr. Maina J.E. was the principal of Githumu high school starting from 1991.I joined the school at a time when the discipline and the academic performance of the school was quite wanting. I remember the taunts of some neighboring schools that used to say that ours was a ‘sleeping giant’.

I and my colleagues kind of conspired to cooperate with the principal. Saying that Mr. Maina was hard working would at best be an understatement. Many were the days when we would find him late in the night hunting after truants. The efforts of the bespectacled deft man were rewarded when my cohort sat for the KCSE to achieve quite outstanding results.

Two teachers at Moi University easily became my favourites. Mr. Jack Lumallas taught me History of Education. I have a soft spot for history and the teacher was quick to notice my passion. I should mention here that Lumallas was so much resembled Kenya’s first president, Jomo Kenyatta that he was popularly known as ‘Kenyatta’ among the students. He used to adorn bangles and necklaces made of African beads which all the more exaggerated that resemblance to the ‘burning spear.’ Seeing my passion for history, Jack once lent me his unpublished manuscript of a history of education book to use during revision for the end of semester exams. Needless to say, my interaction with ‘Kenyatta’ made my stay at Moi much more fruitful.

The late Mr. Mugondo was a teacher of philosophy of education. In class, my classmates must remember how Mr.Mugondo would poke fun on his own physique. I got to interact with the ‘sage’ as I undertook the teaching practice at Sirikwa Secondary School in Eldoret. After the session, we would meet to evaluate my performance near his car at the parking bay. It was his turn to make fun on me and we both enjoyed the banter. I became a better teacher following his sustained counsel.

A narration of my stay at Sirikwa Secondary School would be incomplete without a mention of a certain Mr.Elijah. He was a long serving Chemistry teacher in the school and I learnt a lot of adroitness in the trade from him. For that I am forever grateful.

In the course of my practice I was privileged to have met another extraordinary teacher. I met the late Mr.Nderitu, formerly the director of Pink Roses academy in teachers’ in-service training seminars popularly known as SMASSE.

Many teachers have a very negative attitude towards the seminars. I did not allow the negativity to dampen my enthusiasm. While I don’t agree with all that is taught at SMASSE or even the way it is implemented, I still find it beneficial to participate in the training. Mr.Nderitu was a trainer with many years of experience in teaching Chemistry. He portrayed a rare blend of subject mastery and people skills.      We together conducted a number of experiments very much to my own benefit.

Professor G.Nagendrappa is the professor of Inorganic Chemistry at the University Of Mysore, India. He was the serving Chairman of the Department of Chemistry in the University from 2008-2011. (The Chairmanship of the department rotates among the professors in the department on a 3 year term.)When I call the benign professor ‘appa’, Kannadda for ‘father’ it is not an exaggeration. Professor GN is not only highly knowledgeable in his area but also very willing to share the knowledge with his apprentices. He has an intelligent way of incorporating contemporary issues into his teaching which makes his class all the more interesting. He supervised my thesis project and in the process passed on to me his knowledge, passion and compassion. I also got lots of insight from smt. Sheila and smt. Alumello, both of whom were PhD scholars under the professor.

All these teachers and many others made important contributions to what I am and to what I intend to become. Some of these teachers even influenced me into the choice of teaching as a career. I consider myself lucky to have met not only humane but also highly competent teachers. 

I have been a teacher for more than a decade now. I am not yet contented with the results that I have posted in the years. I must however say that I have tried to go that extra mile in terms of creativity and delivery for the sake of my students. The wisdom gleaned from my teachers has been useful in making me not only a better teacher but also a better person.

I have done my small part to impact the lives of my students during my teaching career. I however am aware that I have a wide room for improvement. I will appreciate your suggestions and comments on this platform.

CALLING THE CLERGY TO PROBITY

Asking whether Kenya is corrupt is like asking whether the pope is catholic. We are corrupt to the core. Our markets are corrupt. Our politics stink to high heavens. I even doubt whether the state house would pass the test of probity. (Memories of Magaryan brothers are still a bother to the Kenyan conscience. How much gets swept under the red carpet is only a subject of speculation.)

A word about the judiciary. In 2003, the newly elected NARC government attempted to clean up the judiciary. Judges suspected of corruption were subjected to an independent tribunal.The much hyped activity didn’t yield the break that the country was yearning for. The real break for the country may have come with the promulgation of the new constitution and the appointment of Judge Willy Mutunga as the Chief Justice. While graft still thrives in the corridors of justice in this country, we can safely assume that the worst is behind us now.

My worry now is the clergy especially those of the Christian hue. Civil society is incomplete without the active representation of the people of the cloth. When a section of the clergy caves in to decadence and moral famine, we must get worried as a nation.

The history of this nation is richer with the sacrifices of the true servants of God who really moved the nation to circumspection. Think of the late Fr. John A. Kaiser of the catholic diocese of Kilgoris. This humble servant of God stood against the excesses of the provincial administration and paid the ultimate price for the courage. He died in suspicious circumstances as he fought for justice for his flock.

(I will write more about bishop Gitaari after I have read his book ‘Let the bishop speak’)

The blood of Reverend Kipsang Muge still cries for justice for the poor of this country. The voices of Bishops Ndingi Mwana a’ Nzeki and Henry Okullu cried into the ears of autocracy until the ground moved. Reverend Njoya is probably the latest of a clergy that stood courageously against official oppression of the state.

What of today? Gone are the days when the house of God was a refuge for the weak. The tag ‘conscience of the nation’ no longer refers to our pastors, priests, bishops and imams. The largest portion of the clergy in Kenya has taken to heart the capitalist creed; ‘greed is good.’ It is now official; church is big business. Heartless, shameless, reckless and embarrassing. It is no longer about plundering hell of souls; it is the economy stupid!

A rider here may be in order. While I will restrict my views to Christian leaders, it doesn’t mean that the muslim and hindu practitioners of ‘the call’ are any cleaner from the blame.I just choose to narrow my scope for the purpose of this article only. If I were to write about the muslim and hindu clergy in Kenya, I don’t think that I would need to change my adjectives to describe them.

I recently witnessed a church break up in rural Gatanga constituency. The pastor used to work in Nairobi and would only come home for the weekend. The church ‘elders’ were largely idle. Trouble started when the church hosted a missionary couple from America. I am sure Isaac and Emma, for those were their names, know better than dishing money in the name of service to God.

I noticed the ‘elders’ start holding meetings in the weekdays when the pastor was not in. I suspected something was amiss. A few weeks later, the truth came out. Behind the back of the pastor, the church ‘elders’ with the financial support of the missionaries purchased a plot and registered a new church. A temporary structure came up within a week in the name of the church building. They then hired goons to steal chairs and even the toilet! from our church and transport them to the new ‘place of worship’. Voila! A new church had been born. It only took a week or so to convince the members to move to the new church.

With church leaders like these, Kenya surely can do without the devil. What happened in Gatanga happens across this country quite frequently.

You heard of the Bishop who used to take millions for offering prayers to the city fathers? Now it is public knowledge that the Nairobi city council is one of the most corrupt institutions anywhere in the world. Asking Bishop Njoka to raise a voice against the rot in city hall would be akin to asking him to bite the finger that feeds him.

The import of what I am saying is that church leaders should not only be above reproach. They should be seen to be so. Preaching water while imbibing choice wines only leads the flock further and further from God. And we have a more dangerous nation.

Ask Kenyans to draw the image of a man of God today. You will not get the picture of a wise shepherd holding the shepherd’s staff in a watchful gaze. A suitable image would be that of a vicious viper with fangs exposed to devour the sheep of the flock. Any wonder why congregations are dwindling?

In 2007, many church leaders colluded with politicians to fleece money from the general public by creating the now infamous ‘pyramid schemes’. When the pseudo-financial institutions came falling like packs of cards, the media crafted the word “gullible.” The church leaders prayed that we get a strong dose of amnesia and the government went mum just as expected.

Ethnic discord is the fodder that feeds our politics. Churches have done little to address this evil. It got worse in 2007 when even mainstream church leaders threw all care to the winds in support of their kinsmen in the political race of the day.

Whatever that happened to the National Council of Churches of Kenya under Rev. Canon Karanja! In his watch, the NCCK has become a non-entity in the socio-political affairs of this country. It should be remembered that the NCCK under the Rev. Mutava Musyimi in 1997 led the then president Moi and the opposition to sign the famous IPPG agreement. That agreement allowed the opposition parties to nominate their representatives to the electoral commission of Kenya. That agreement raised the standards of admissibility of Kenya’s electoral conduct. When history repeated itself in 2007, the NCCK stuck its head in the sand. The country went for elections with an electoral team that lacked public confidence. And sure to the script; the country erupted in the worst violence since independence following disputed results.

The Kiambaa tragedy should have awakened the church. Children and women were burnt to death in an Eldoret church. That is the epitome of the heinousness of the Kenyan society. But the worse bit is that we did not learn any lesson from that season of madness. Kenya may still implode again. (I digress; if not for anything else, that Kiambaa issue will surely cause the ICC to confirm cases against some Kenyans. Call me later in 2012.) After such a dereliction of national duty, the best that the NCCK under Rev. Karanja could do was to “repent” of the sins of “omission and commission.”Shame!

 The 10^th parliament had a large number of members of the clergy. Whether we got better or worse representation from these notables is not mine to tell. All what I can tell is that the voice of reason that should have spoken to save Kenyans from the dictatorship of the legislature didn’t come from any of the honorable members.

“Defend the cause of the weak and the fatherless;

Maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed.

Rescue the weak and needy;

Deliver them from the hand of the wicked.”(Psalm 82:3-4, NIV)

This is the highest call of the Christian religious leaders. Any slight deviation from that standard is inexcusable.

There have been reports of sexual impropriety among church leaders in Kenya. Some leaders have also been known to result to dubious tricks to win members to their congregation. I know of a case from across the border in Uganda. (See The East African Magazine, July 16-22, 2007)A top Kampala Pentecostal preacher was returning home with a package that was passed as a “toy”. The customs official insisted on having a look. Inside the package was a gadget with a battery powered mechanism. The gadget is concealed in the clothes of the wearer. When activated, it produces an electric shock. The wearer of the gadget only receives a portion of the shock but the person he touches receives a stronger one. The recipient of the shock may fall down and shiver but the shock is not strong enough to kill. Miracle workers in Uganda had been using these gadgets to cause their followers that they were receiving the power of the “holy spirit”.

While I am not aware of Kenyan pastors going that ‘hi-tech’, I am aware of some local preachers who are employing some quite ungodly powers to aid their trade.

In this age when we are merchandising miracles and anointing oil, are we supposed to accept anything that comes? Kenyans beware.

(Written on 11^th December 2011)

'OPERATION LINDA NCHI' COULD BE KENYA'S GREATEST DIPLOMATIC CONQUEST .

I start by sending apologies for having taken this long before posting on this forum.Alot has happened in the period of my hibernation.I completed my masters in chemistry from the university of mysore in india.I am now in Kenya and I am now pursuing a masters in international studies at the university of nairobi in kenya..I hope that that suffices to explain my silence...

In the foregoing, Kenya has taken the bold step of supporting Somalia's TFG government in war against the Alshabaab.by so doing, Kenya has reminded the world that it is irresponsible of the international community to leave Somalia to perish in her own dirt.Kenya is reminding the world what we should have learnt years ago....we are all one.We canot ignore even the weakest among us.

I hope that 'operation linda nchi' ends in victory.Kenya has given to the world the best opportunity in 23 years to restore law and order in the horn of Africa nation.

It is time for the US and NATO to lend a hand in the incursion.This time the terrorists must reckon like Kenyan musicians would put it 'Raundi hii si mchezo'.Al shabaab and other allies must be wiped away once and for all.

Najivunia kuwa Mkenya!

TOO YOUNG TO FALL IN LOVE.

A Karnataka court has declared that girls are not mature enough for Love before 21.

HC feels 18 too early for girls to fall in love

A division bench of the High Court was of the view that girls should not be allowed to choose their partners on their own till they turn 21

The age of marriage for girls may be 18 but they are not mature enough for love before 21! The Karnataka High Court has proposed that the law be amended to allow arranged marriage for girls at 18 and love marriage only at 21. A division bench of the High Court was of the view that girls should not be allowed to choose their partners on their own till they turn 21.

“ In our opinion, the girls below the age of 21 years are not capable of forming a rational judgment as to the suitability of the boy, with whom they are in love. It is relevant to mention that those girls, who are suffering from hormonal imbalance easily fall prey to the boys and fall in love, marry and repent at leisure,” the judges said in an order last month.

Justice K Bhakthavatsala and Justice K Govindarajulu stressed that the Parliament had not taken into account love marriages when the Bill was introduced. “ Since the Hindu Marriage Act does not deal with love marriages, in our view, it is high time that the Parliament take note of the sufferings of such girls and their parents and amend the law suitably,” the judges said.

They suggested that run- away marriages of girls under 21 be declared void or voidable.

(YAHOO INDIA 8TH JUNE 2011)

THE INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF CHEMISTRY.

International Year of Chemistry Logo

The resolution in favor of the proclamation of 2011 as the International year  of Chemistry was submitted by Ethiopia to  The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) in 2007. At its General Assembly in Turin, Italy in August 2007, IUPAC unanimously approved the resolution.

Less than a year later, the UNESCO Executive Board recommended the adoption of such a resolution,which subsequently led to the declaration in December 2008 by the UN General Assembly of 2011 as the International Year of Chemistry.

The International Year of Chemistry 2011 (IYC 2011) commemorates the achievements of chemistry, and its contributions to humankind.The year 2011 also marks the one-hundredth anniversary of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry awarded to Marie Sklodowska Curie, recognizing her discovery of the elements radium and polonium. Dr. Curie’s achievements continue to inspire students, especially women, to pursue careers in chemistry.  The year 2011 also marks the one-hundredth anniversary of the founding in Paris of the International Association of Chemical Societies to address the need for international cooperation among chemists and international standardization of nomenclature, atomic weights, physical constants, and 

scientific communication.  

Events for the year are being coordinated by IUPAC, the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry, and by UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization.

The theme of IYC2011 is "Chemistry–our life, our future," and focuses on the “achievements of chemistry and its contributions to the well-being of humankind.”. It aims to raise awareness of chemistry among the general public and to attract young people into the field, as well as to highlight the role of chemistry in solving global problems.

As a Chemist,I intend to share in the celebration of  International Year of Chemistry 2011 by sharing articles illustrating some of the most significant Chemistry innovations.I will also look at the lives of notable Chemists both in the past and current.I will finally look at the future trends and try to prospect at what contributions Chemistry may make in the next 100 years.

Hereunder is the first of such articles.I hope you will find these pieces informative. 

Through the Looking Glass

By James Voelkel

Among the defining characteristics of the scientific revolution of the 16th and 17th centuries were the invention and development of new scientific instruments. The thermometer and barometer enabled experimenters to quantify heat and air pressure. The vacuum pump made it possible to manipulate the physical environment. And then there was the creation of the telescope and the microscope, which expanded the range of human senses.

After the publication of Galileo’s spectacular telescopic observations in 1610, the race was on to apply the magnification technology to the mundane world. But microscopes were more difficult to make and observations depended a great deal on the skill of the observer wielding what was essentially a glass bead functioning as a really powerful magnifying glass.

Easily the most skillful user of the single-lens microscope was Antoni van Leeuwenhoek (1632–1723). Although he did not have a university education, nor mastery of Latin—the language of science—van Leeuwenhoek was nonetheless a devoted student of nature and a talented microscope maker. He was responsible for the discovery of blood cells, spermatozoa, protozoa, and bacteria, among other things. Despite his modest background, the scientific world beat a path to his door in Delft, Holland, and he was elected a fellow of the Royal Society of London in 1680.

At the time, the Royal Society was home to another of the world’s foremost microscopists, Robert Hooke (1635–1703). Although also from a modest background, Hooke landed in the center of English science, making important contributions in the theory and practice of a number of different disciplines. His most notable book is Micrographia, Or Some Physiological Descriptions of Minute Bodies Made by Magnifying Glasses with Observations and Inquiries Thereupon (London, 1665).

Hooke had constructed a serviceable compound microscope, complete with focused light source, which did not give him as much magnification as van Leeuwenhoek’s, but was far easier to use. He published a series of observations he conducted as curator of experiments for the Royal Society, mostly of natural objects. (Hooke coined the word cell in its biological sense.) Hooke’s research was a showpiece for the young Royal Society, and his work was published in Micrographia, in a large folio with magnificent foldout engravings that remains a much sought-after landmark of scientific printing.

COURAGEOUS KENYAN LADY.

Nuru Bwanakombo on her graduation from the University of Nairobi.

She was 18, when she was married off to a man 17 years older than her.

Nuru Bwanakombo had just completed her O levels at Mama Ngina Girls Secondary School in Mombasa, and had scored B+, making her the best student in the school.

She had always been a bright student, and had lofty dreams, dreams of becoming an engineer, an unlikely career for a girl, who had grown up in a traditional setting which valued marriage more than career.

Nuru traces her interest in engineering to a childhood curiosity about the workings of gadgets such as television sets, radios and bulbs.

While still a very young girl, she remembers agonising about what went into the construction of the imposing Nyali Bridge, the one that links Mombasa Island with the North Coast.

“I was fascinated with complex things. I wanted to know how they worked, and my fingers would itch to take them apart, so that I could satisfy my curiosity,” she explains, her eyes lighting up at the memory.

Nuru knew that by getting married, she would flush her dreams down drain. Unfortunately, she had no choice.

Culture demanded that she yield to her parents expectations, and so she moved into her new husband’s home, and immersed herself into the duties of a wife.

The only distant light, in a world that had suddenly gone dim, is when her mother asked her new husband to allow her to go back to school, should her university application be accepted.

“He initially agreed to the request, though I would later learn that he did that with the hope that I wouldn’t get a place,” Nuru explains.

When the admission letter from the University of Nairobi arrived, offering her a chance to study civil engineering, her husband flatly told her that she could not go back to school.

“He told me that my place as a woman was in the kitchen, furthermore, he could afford to give me everything I wanted, so why go back to school?” Nuru recalls.

By then however, she had nursed dreams of going to university for so long, she knew that nothing would stand between her and her childhood dream, not even marriage.

Difficult decision

With a distant look in her eyes, she talks about the day she walked out of her marriage.

It was a daring step to take, some might say ill-advised, considering that her child was only six months old, and she had been married for only a year and a half.

Fortunately, her parents were supportive, since they knew how much she had wanted to join university and get herself a career.

Nuru’s determination shocked many, and had tongues wagging for a while, but this is what propelled her to venture into what can only be described as a trailblazing undertaking.

She left her daughter in the care of her parents, and with the support of her elder sister and only brother, left Mombasa with a heavy heart for Nairobi, a place she had never been to before.

On arrival at the university, she was greeted with disbelief whenever people learnt that she was studying civil engineering.

They could not believe that a “Muslim” girl from the Coast Province would want to pursue such a “tough” course.

The first few months at the university, were difficult for Nuru. As much as she was determined to pursue her dream, her heart was torn right down the middle; a piece in school, another one at home with a daughter she hadn’t quite bonded with.

However, as much as she was tempted to take the next bus home, she knew that one way of ensuring a secure future for her daughter was to graduate from university.

Nuru says that throughout her four years at university, she had to work, to earn her pocket money, and also to send some home for her daughter’s upkeep.

Her parents, back home in Kisauni were volunteer Madrassa (religious school) teachers, and were therefore not in a position to assist her financially.

Luckily, she was lucky to get a part time job for an engineering firm, as well as with the Electoral Commission.

She also took up odd jobs during her first and second year at the university to make extra money. She also did a bit of “decent” modeling on the side.

When she was just beginning to adapt to her new life, Nuru realised that she was pregnant.

She says that she was so shaken; she was in denial for quite some time, especially since she had no idea that she had conceived, when leaving her husband.

“It was the last thing I expected, but after the shock wore off, I decided to be positive about it, after all, children are God-given, and pregnancy would not prevent me from going on with my education,” Nuru says.

A few months later, in 1995, she gave birth to a baby boy, only for her former husband’s family to forcefully take him away from her when he was just 20 days old.

Though she finally managed to get him back many months later, Nuru is reluctant to dwell on that “dark” period, which saw her fight with everything she had to get her son back.

“I have him, and that’s all that matters,” she says of the incident.

Nuru, a popular student, went on to head various associations at the university. Besides heading the Muslim Students Association, sisters wing, for four years, 1995 to 1999, she was also elected student leader in 1998.

The following year, she graduated with honors. Her graduation, she says, still counts as one of her happiest day.

Soon afterwards, she took up a job with Otieno, Odongo & Partners, a consulting engineer’s firm in Nairobi, where she had previously interned.

She worked with them for three years, during which she gained valuable experience on crucial aspects of her career.

The most important learning experience, she says, came when she was put in charge of the dualling of Langata Road, and the rehabilitation of the Mtito Andei-Voi-Bachuma road.

In 2002, she decided to go back to Mombasa, so that she could spend more time with her children and parents. She applied for a job at the Kenya Ports Authority in June 2002, and was accepted.

Even though she had been apprehensive of how she would be received in what had been considered a man’s turf for many years, Nuru says that she was treated as an equal from the beginning.

Furthermore, she was immediately appointed to supervise the setting up of a one stop centre to make the process of clearing and forwarding documents as short, and as smooth as possible.

She was also put in charge of KPA’s outreach programmes and so far, she has designed and built a primary school in Msambweni, a dispensary in Taita, and an administration block for Faza secondary school.

“I am now looking forward to building a secondary school for girls in Faza Island, who have to make the long journey to Lamu to go to school. It is either that, or stay at home and wait to get married,” says Nuru, a passionate advocate of girl-child education.

In 2003, Nuru was the only woman amongst eight Kenyans selected to study at the UNESCO-IHE (Institute of Hydraulic Engineering) where she was named the best overall student in the academic year 2003 -2004.

Her job at KPA has been a blessing. Besides being sponsored to do her Masters degree in Coastal Engineering and Port Development in the Netherlands, this is also where she met her new husband, Engineer Ibrahim Ali. 

Nuru is also part of the team that is involved in mapping out the port’s plan for the next 25years.

Amongst the projects she is involved in include the rehabilitation of the berths, rehabilitation of Kipevu bridge, dredging of the port, as well as the construction of the second container terminal funded by Japan.

She also assists with the feasibility study of the proposed second port in Lamu.

To her husband, Nuru is like a bar of gold, which he values highly. Her toughness, he says, is what drew him to her in the first place.

“I wanted a tough, intelligent woman, and getting one wasn’t easy. Also, I preferred to marry someone in my line of work, someone who could understand the demands of my job, someone I could have fruitful conversations with,” he says, and adds that being in the same career has enriched their marriage .

I am a wife first

It’s on a Saturday, and we’re doing this interview at their home in Kizingo, Mombasa.

Nuru, who considers herself a mother of five children having adopted three others from her husband’s first marriage, is serving her husband his lunch.

“I know my place as a wife, and as a Muslim woman, I recognise my husband as the head of the family, so there is no power struggle between us,” she explains.

She adds that her successful career has not gotten into her head, and points out that it’s important for women to be good role models for their children, especially their daughters.

Referring to the challenges she has gone through, Nuru encourages women who find themselves in tough situations to look on the bright side of life, and above all, to stay positive.

“I am a career woman, a wife, a mother, a leader, a sister, and an aunt to many, but I manage to do all of it well. This means that you too can do it,” she points out.

Nuru is grateful to her mother, father and siblings, and other relatives, who she says stood by her side when she was struggling to make sense of her life.

“I am especially grateful to my mother, who encouraged me to fight for dreams,” she says.

To young girls, a call of persistence, strong will and determination are her words of wisdom to them.

She insists that to meet one’s goals and succeed in life, one not only needs to do well in school, but also needs to stay focused on their goal.

 “If you are focused, the doors of success will open up for you. Give your best in everything you do, be it a vegetable stall, a hair salon or a shoe shine business - just give it your best shot, and the rest will fall into place.”

(As Reported by Amina Kibirige,Nation Newspapers,Kenya.)