Kenya, like other developing countries, has witnessed an unprecedented increase in urban population over the past years.
This has posed a great threat to urban economies which have been unable to cope with the increasing demand for essential services such as water, housing, health and education.
As a result, many urban dwellers in Kenya live in abject poverty and reside in overcrowded slums that lack basic amenities to sustain a minimum level of living.
Dr Aggrey Willis Otieno today is a living testimony to many that, despite the fact he was born and raised in an area surrounded by poor infrastructure, frequent lack of clean water supply, few resources, insecurity and overcrowding, he still managed to beat all the odds.
Today, he is a lecture at Utah State University in the US and among few lucky Kenyans teaching in diaspora to be given “tenure track” - a position where one becomes a permanent professor until retirement.
Otieno still vividly recalls when his mother once mistakenly admitted him to a rehab school where he was forced to learn and share a classroom with street children sniffing glue, something which affected his class work.
“The learning environment really shocked me. Most of the kids were sniffing glue and that really affected my class performance. I am sure my mum was unable to differentiate between the rehab and normal public schools since there were few schools around the slum,” Otieno recalls.
Later in the mid 1980s, Otieno was transferred from the rehab school and admitted to the newly built Korogocho Primary School where it took him a couple of years to catch up with the rest of children.
While in Standard 3, Otieno surprised his peers and teachers when he took position one until Standard 8 and was overall best in Huruma Zone KPCE exams. He proceeded to Jamhuri High School.
BREWING CHANG'AA
Born in Gitathuru, a village within Korogocho slum in Nairobi's sprawling Eastlands, Otieno would wake up as early as 4am to brew chang’aa, before trekking for almost 12 kilometers to school.
Life was unbearable for the family after the demise of his father and two of his siblings, forcing Otieno's mother to start selling illicit brews within the slum educate them.
“There was nothing I could do but trek to school. I knew that education was the only cure to remove us from poverty and I would assist her in making the illicit brew at night without complaining. My mother was faced with financial problems when my dad passed on while I was still few months old and selling local brew was our only source of income,” he explains.
Otieno still remembers occasions when he would trek to school without taking breakfast and sometimes he would beg for a lift from motorists to drop him at school.
“I happened to meet motorists who were very kind to me and some would drop me to school. Though it was risky, I had no alternative means to school. It was really hard for me during the rainy season,” he recalls.
Often, thugs would break into their house at night and demand all the cash their mother had collected from selling the illicit brew.
“There was nothing we could do. The thugs were armed and dangerous. I would still wake up early to prepare more chang’aa to recover the lost cash taken by the criminals,” he confesses.
Immediately he finished his bachelor's degree at Moi University, Otieno secured a scholarship from Ford Foundation and went to Ohio University for his master’s degree in Communication and Development and a diploma in African Community Health.
His luck did not stop there. Otieno was again lucky to receive the Bill Clinton Global Initiative University Award, which targets university students across the globe for making a positive impact in society.
“Most of my community initiatives got international recognition, and that is why Bill Clinton Foundation gave me the award and the scholarship for my PhD in the US,” he added.
Currently, Dr Aggrey Willis Otieno is an adjunct professor at the school of Media Arts at Ohio University and head of Communication and Journalism Department at Utah State University.
“So many people in Korogocho slum look up to me. In fact, I think I am the most educated person in that informal settlement. I am sure in future I will give back to the community in a big way,” he says.
The 44-year-old father of four says poverty forced many children to drop out of school, and since most of the youth were unemployed and had little hope of getting any job or what awaits them in future, they resorted to drugs and crime.
“I was raised in a slum where majority of the youth were either pick pockets, drug peddlers or muggers. I think, if I did not get proper education, I could be that dangerous guy,” he adds.
He admits that most youth living in the slums suffer from breakdown in family values, child-headed families, prostitution and alcohol abuse leading to the high rates of death due to HIV/AIDS, hence increasing number of orphans in the area.
“Most of the street children come from the slums. There is no one to mentor them and give them hope. It is very painful to see children suffering as a result of wrong parenting," he says.
Otieno says crime and drug abuse robbed him many of his peers he grew up with in the slum. Others were trapped in drug addiction, some jailed or even killed by cops and mob justice as a result of their crime-related activities in Nairobi and its environs.
“Some of my friends were killed by cops because of crime-related activities, although a few of them reformed. It was not their choice to live in a slum. Poverty is real and can force someone to steal,” he explains.
MEETING CLINTON
Otieno still remembers 2013 when he first met former US President Bill Clinton in San Diego, California, during the Clinton Global University Award where he was among the awardees.
“It was really an honour when the former US President called my name. I received a standing ovation for a few minutes, and I was given a chance to talk. It was a big day for me,” he recalls.
And later in 2013, again he was invited by the former US President to attend Clinton Global Initiative gathering of presidents, former presidents, Nobel laureates and big world philanthropists like Bill Gates.
Dignitaries from Kenya included President Uhuru Kenyatta, Equity CEO Dr James Mwangi and Kennedy Odede of Shofco.
“It was a member-only event and I was honoured to share the same platform with world leaders. I remember talking to a few African presidents and other world leaders. The event really inspired me,” he adds.
Following his community initiatives in Korogocho slums, Otieno again was recognized by Rolex 2012 where he became the first Rolex laureate in East Africa for empowering impoverished Nairobi slum dwellers through a telemedicine centre.
Today, the scholar is proud to have resettled her mother in a decent three- bedroom house and still supports his younger siblings and other needy students in the slums.
“My mother stood with us and despite her illiteracy, she would still inspire us to work hard at school and ensure we all have the necessary learning materials. I believe my mother played a big role in my life,” he says.
Otieno urges youth across the country,and especially those living in informal settlements, to take education seriously since it is the only solution to tackle poverty in Africa.
“I know there are real challenges facing many children living in slums, education, indeed, can positively transform a community. We should ensure we reduce the number of children dropping out of school,” he says.
Edited by Henry Makori
