Success story: Paul & Steven

Paul and Steven are brothers. Born and raised in Kibera slum, life has always been tough for these siblings, but it was made a whole lot harder when they became orphans when Paul was 14 and Steven, just 12 years old. Along with 3 other siblings, the boys had to face the harsh reality of being the eldest and therefore the surrogate parents of their younger sisters.

Paul decided to immediately stop his education and find work so he could provide food and shelter for his brother and sisters. Life was incredibly hard. He had started his education and had big dreams of breaking out of the slum and creating a future for himself in employment. But he didn’t hesitate to step up and sacrifice his dreams and plans for a better life, to help raise his siblings.

Kibera, Paul & Steven’s home

Steven was a good scholar. He achieved well and had great potential. When he sat his high school entry exam, he scored the highest in the county and was immediately offered a place at one of Nairobi’s best schools. But education is not free and Paul had to provide the money for education, uniforms, books and shoes. Once again, Paul had to step up and find more work to raise the money to support his brother. Paul did not hesitate for a second. He knew that he had to find ways to get more income, despite already struggling to find enough work to feed them all.

The struggles were real; but Paul took hope and comfort from seeing Steven continuously achieve academic success. He was a good scholar and worked hard every single night to study harder than his peers and to be the very best he could be. Each night after 8 hours at school, Stephen would go to KIMMTA, our ECD in the centre of Kibera, and study in the safety and light offered by the centre. At home, it was impossible to study in the dark early nights as they did not have money for kerosene lamps, so Steven would work until 9pm each night using the valuable electricity that KIMMTA offered, to continue to study and achieve success.

Steven, visiting KIMMTA to tell us his story in 2022

Steven thrived throughout his secondary school education. His tenacity and determination saw him earn enough points to go to University and study to become a teacher. He took work and continued to study longer and harder than his peers but his work ethic paid off.

Today, Steven is a proud teacher at Mangu High School, one of the leading schools in the county. And his brother Paul could not be more proud of his younger sibling. We had the privilege of meeting both Paul and Steven at KIMMTA, Kibera, to hear their story first hand. We saw the pride on Paul’s face, the joy on Steven’s. We saw brothers united in their initial grief but also in their determination. We saw that their lives had progressed in such different ways.

Paul’s home, where he lives with his wife and three children

Whilst Paul would make the same sacrifice again in a heartbeat, his life has remained hugely challenging. Today, he remains living and working in Kibera slum. He has a wife and 3 children, who live in a room 8ft x 8ft and this room houses just one bed for them all to sleep in. His life remains tough. He is a proud man; proud of his brother’s success and proud of his own sacrifices for Steven.

 There a hundreds more stories like Paul and Steven’s in Kibera, and KIMMTA offers a platform to create real change not only for individuals, but for the whole community. If you’d like to be part of the change, please click here to donate.

Paul, his wife and three children (in the foreground)