Blogs & Articles

It has been a while since I had been to the coast. The weather was extraordinarily hot you would think the sun had sworn to burn everything beneath it.  I thought I was safe from the heat while in the vehicle because of the air conditioner until I alighted. Toolkit…

What is the value of speaking English in an environment where the local language is adored? Why are white missionaries embracing our language as they preach but while at school I’m forced to speak in English? In retrospect, these are questions that I have asked myself over the years. Imagine…

Francis Kisio, a Narok Vocational Training Centre (VTC) alumnus graduated in Motor Vehicle Mechanics in the year 2002. His motivation to start a medium-sized workshop in Narok town arose from the skills he acquired during various internship opportunities. Years later, his establishment has expanded to a renowned auto spare and…

On this  Thursday afternoon, the sun was fierce and relentless. There was no wind to sooth the sun’s attack. Perspiration beaded my forehead and made streams down my face and back. I was bathed in sweat. I checked my phone again, ‘Tana Delta – 350 celcius’ and sighed. It was …

The Day of the African Child is celebrated on June 16th. This day has been commemorated annually since 1991 to honor children who participated in a 1976 Soweto uprising protesting poor quality of their education. The day is meant to raise awareness on need to improve education provided to African…

The first task was to have her read a simple Grade 2 level paragraph. She held the piece of paper in a hand, with a slight tremble. She formed her lips but no sound came out. “She must be nervous”, I thought to myself. I lifted my eyes from the…

Despite COVID-19, the year 2021 has brought many blessings our way. Nearly two million children have completed primary and secondary school, after going through a really trying period of closing and opening. Many of them have passed well, while many others did not get the grades of their expectation. A…

There is goodwill from the government of Kenya on matters of education financing. It may not be sufficient, but the effort to fund education is notable. The free primary and subsidized day secondary education, the ongoing curriculum reforms as well as teacher training to enhance their capacity to deliver have…

Mr. Otieno, an elderly man in Nyatike village in Migori county, is leaning on his shovel, with a sack on his back carrying his tools and his work clothes. He is wearing a hat that reveals his wrinkles, a testimony of the struggles he has faced. Otieno is one of…

My village sounds like… Motorbikes beeping fast and loud, People talking happily, Bird songs all day, Children singing Kipsigis songs, Tea Collection Lorries beeping all afternoon, At night, the dogs bark and scare us. My village feels… Like a golden tea harvest, Beautiful like a sunset, Friendly like the ants…

When the word parent is uttered in any setting, what clicks in our minds is ‘provider’ who strives to pay school fees, rent and offer pocket money on request. In our context, precisely the African, parents consider themselves having ‘done’ their role by paying school fees and providing necessary non-financial…

I was grateful for the rains but with it came traffic. Traffic had become so bad that one fateful Saturday night, a distance that I would have spent an hour took us twelve hours. We ended up sleeping on Mombasa road. Traffic had become terrible I was now spending at…