Eric Badi’s Story

Eric Badi joined the program in 2007 and is sponsored by Keith and Kathleen Kale. Since a young age, Eric has been a focused, dedicated student and has wanted to make his family proud. However, to get to where he is today hasn’t been easy.

Eric was raised by his mother. His father died when he was young. To make ends meet, Eric’s mother found occasional work near the slums such as working in a salon and making beadwork. With the work, Eric’s mother was able to rent a small two-roomed home in the slums. The home’s walls were made of iron sheets and had no electricity or running water. Eric’s mother was not able to provide many material goods for her family, but she instilled a powerful appreciation of education in her children. Eric knew from a young age that his involvement in the Ngong Road Children’s Foundation, through which he gained access to education, was his vehicle to a transformed life for himself and his family too.

Eric attended G.S.U Primary School, one of our past partner primary schools, St. Joseph’s High School, and just a few months ago graduated from Kenyatta University with a Degree.

Throughout his post-secondary career, Eric was a standout employee at Digital Divide Data, a company Friends of Ngong Road has partnered within Nairobi to provide supplemental income and employment experience to some of our students. Eric’s role at Digital Divide Data was to transcribe handwritten articles to an electronic format for clients such as museums and libraries. In return, Digital Divide Data helped pay for some of Eric’s university tuition.

Upon graduation, Eric was promoted again at Digital Divide Data and is now a full-time Project Manager managing a team of people and interacting with clients. He is looking for a new apartment out of the slums. He has made it into the Kenyan middle class.