The community ICT centre in Makueni County, Kenya, is a little different from many of the school digital learning centres Camara sets up. Established as part of our partnership with Dell Technologies, it offers its facilities to students from several schools in the surrounding area but also welcomes other community groups, including young people who are not in the education system but want to improve their life chances.
One of the trainees is Titus Nguma, who says ‘I would like to be an electrician and I joined the training in order to be able to gain more skills and apply the knowledge in my future technical course. One of the biggest benefits of this training is the positive impact you can have on the world through computers.’
Jackline Mutheu is another benefitting from vocational training. ‘I completed my Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education in 2023 and joined the Ukia Hub in February 2024. The hub is almost 17 Kilometres from my home in Kilala. I decided to join the hub since it’s a government educational centre, and I wanted to gain skills on how to operate a computer and matters concerning technology. Since I joined the hub, I have learned how to share information through email, communicate through social media, use Microsoft apps and increased my digital literacy. My main goal is to gain hands-on experience and develop a strong foundation for my future career in business information technology. I also plan to start an online job with the skills I’ve gained.’
Linet Minoo has similar aspirations. ‘I completed my Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education in 2023 and joined Ukia ICT Hub in 2024 to gain computer skills. In secondary school I had no opportunity to use computers, so the technology will help us understand how we can use computers to enrich ourselves through online business as youths. Here at the Hub I have learnt a lot about computers and am still coming for more lessons. For now, I can run a computer without assistance, do research on education materials, and also look for digital content and entertainment. I am going to do ICT as my university course after finishing the training here at the Hub.’
For Nzioki Benedict Kioko, the hub may be a literal lifesaver. He explains: ‘I joined the Ukia hub so as to stay away from drug and substance abuse, HIV and AIDS, and to get to learn the use of technology and how to enhance my skills in this digital world. I can now explore and use the computer on my own without any assistance. I am inspired to do Computer Science as I am interested in technology.’
