My name is Alice Akinyi. I was born in Kibera but later moved to Racecourse. I have six siblings, and I grew up without a father, as he woke up one day, left, and never came back. I went to live with my grandmother, who loved us dearly. When we came back, life became very difficult. My second brother and I had to work to provide for our family. Later, my mother got another partner who took us and dumped us in Kitale, never caring about how we lived or whether we were okay.
When my mother became sick, I had to work for our neighbour from 6 p.m. to 12 a.m., earning Ksh 130 (about a dollar) to meet our daily needs. I even worked in a local hotel to earn money for my mother’s medicine and to make my siblings more comfortable.
Before I joined the Mentorship and Empowerment Program at Swahiba Networks, I had already chosen a career path, working as a housemaid to save money to open a shoe shop for myself and my family. But when I joined MEP, I decided to choose another career path that would help me achieve my first goal. I chose to open a beauty shop since I was taught about beauty skills. I want to open a beauty shop to earn money to care for my siblings and my mother.
My plan after finishing MEP is to start by selling soap to raise money to open the beauty shop, as it requires a lot of capital. I might also bake cakes and sell them to earn money. If these two don’t work, I will look for a job, save for a while, and then open both my beauty shop and shoe shop.
In the future, I want to live a comfortable life — not like my mother’s life or a life of poverty. Thank you to the Mentorship and Empowerment Program for this opportunity. I have learned new skills that will help me become self-reliant and also support my family.
Be the Spark That Changes a Life
Girls like Alice are rising above their circumstances, empowered with skills and ambition. But they can’t do it alone.
> Mentor a young entrepreneur
> Open doors through internship opportunities
> Fund her first steps with seed capital
> Hire her, and let her earn and save towards her dreams
With your help, Alice can build the beauty and shoe shop she dreams of and inspire many more to follow.
#MentorshipMatters#MentorshipandEmpowermentProgram#MEP#mentorship#seedfunding#EmpowerGirls
127 Worldwide info@swahiba.org www.swahiba.org
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