Dida came from humble beginnings and the thought of receiving a university education felt unachievable. Through a scholarship his life changed, and he is now a teacher. A transformational journey of a young man (Nkor Dida) who was born and brought up in a semi-arid land region in Kenya, affirms that with reduced educational inequalities, young men and women from financially challenged families can be solution-givers to their society. Despite coming from a region well-known for cattle rustling, poverty and child malnutrition that are exacerbated by drought and illiteracy, Dida has turned out to be a blessing to his community and a role model to other youths in the Country.

Dida’s journey to success is anchored in Kibera’s Got Talent Project that commenced in 2019. Through this project, the Brothers of the Christian Schools partnered with Misean Cara and made available 40 tuition scholarships for needy young men and women to pursue university education. Dida was one of them. Dida says, “Through this project, I got an opportunity to join university, and my tuition fee burden was taken away. This changed my life. My excitement was short-lived. Reality hit me when I started school in January 2020. A partial orphan from a drought-stricken region needed to cater for his upkeep and rent cost. Everything was a struggle, and I opted to go back home and find work to do, at least to save some money to sustain my stay in school. This was during the COVID-19 pandemic period. While at home, I received a call from the Institute asking me to report back for classes after face-face classes resumed. I shared my challenges with the Institute and to my surprise, I was put on USD 50 monthly stipend sponsorship that saw me through university. This raised my grades and self-esteem which gave me the confidence to venture into other programs. While a student, my course facilitator, who was impressed by my involvement in community sensitization during the COVID-19 pandemic, introduced me to an international organization that responds to water sanitation and hygiene emergencies to save lives.

 The organization took me in as a volunteer (field consultant and coordinator) and two months later, my team was already carrying out bleach-making training and health education sessions in Samburu County. In 2021, I participated in a limitless program challenge by the International Federation of the Red Cross Solferino Academy. The challenge required young people from across the world to ideate and come up with innovative ways of helping their communities recover from the effects of COVID-19. I submitted two ideas. One was focusing on teenage pregnancy and menstrual hygiene and the second one was on sanitation which entailed training communities and giving them bleach- makers that generate industrial bleach from salt, water and 12V power supply. With my ideas, I was ranked among the top sixty innovators in the world. 

 This gave me a seeding funding 2500 CHF (Swiss Franc) from the academy which enabled my team to ship bleach-makers from the USA. The project was successfully concluded by the end of 2022. In reference to the Kenya Red Cross Society 2022 annual volunteer awards, my contribution to the humanitarian world was recognized. I was awarded the Kenya Red Cross Society Youth Volunteer of the Year 2022, an award that recognizes volunteer who has overcome diversity and made great contribution to humanity and shown great devotion to help others. This was inspiring to me and many others.

 In February 2023, out of a pool of 476 applicants, I was selected to be one of the two Kenya Red Cross Youth Delegates to Denmark for a leadership academy that took place in May 2023. Further, the International Organization invited me to their Headquarters in USA where I addressed an annual luncheon in the city of Louisville, KY, and met other stakeholders. I go back to society as a fully changed, empowered and networked person. The Brothers of the Christian Schools gave me and my friends “breath to live again”. Personally, my Heart has been Touched, my Mind Taught and my Life Transformed. I am changing the story of my family and society at large. In a few years, I will be enrolling for a Master’s Program. As a dreamer, I foresee myself starting an NGO back at home that will empower the pastoral communities through providing them with access to quality education; a tool that I strongly believe is instrumental in transforming a society from a local action to a global reach. All this could not have happened if not for a successful partnership between Misean Cara and the Brothers of the Christian Schools. I will be forever indebted to them.”

 The Brothers of the Christian Schools have a bigger dream of producing thousands of the likes of Dida. This has yielded to La Salle College of Education, Science & Technology in Nairobi Kenya. You can be part of this dream! Let us partner and make it happen!