Elimu Fanaka Initiative

We are applying for this challenge because I believe we have a viable solution that needs elevation from partners like yourselves and others. Elimu Fanaka works with rural marginalized communities in Kenya. Our goal is to solve the challenges around education equity and quality.

Education is significant in the growth and development of any community. We are applying for this challenge with faith that the support would enable the growth and impact the communities serve.

An adage says you can go faster if you walk alone but further if you include others. Elimu Fanaka's model has been from the start an inclusive one encouraging community participation. We seek support for resources from external stakeholders but solutions from internal stakeholders who are our partner schools, teachers, parents, and learners. 

We use a human-centered organization approach seeking locally available solutions with support from partners.

Should we win, Elimu Fanaka will utilize the funds to increase the program's work in the existing schools we are currently working in. We believe funding will catalyze some of the solutions we envision for the challenges that these communities face. 

I am living proof of what education can do. I started Elimu Fanaka to support rural marginalized communities to break out of the cycle of poverty. We have worked with 8 schools so far, and the impact is what makes me wake up every morning and do this work. 

I grew up in Voi, a small town south of Kenya. At 12 years, completing my primary school, I knew quickly that I would not go to high school due to financial challenges.

I had to help at home, and so we started working at a very young age. After 7 years, through well-wishers, I went back to high school. After high school, I was lucky to get support to go to college and later got a job as a Credit Officer supporting women in the slums in Nairobi. I accumulated some savings and continued to pay for my education. I didn't stop there - I went back to my community to support many children who, like myself, would not be able to acquire an education. 

Elimu Fanaka's goal is to improve access to quality education for rural communities and create a generation of leaders who would solve their communities' challenges.

Elimu Fanaka is a non-profit organization working with marginalized communities in rural Kenya, providing opportunities for learners in public primary schools to access quality education.

We leverage education as a tool for community transformation and view schools as centers for finding community solutions. Through our work, we engage learners, parents, teachers, and community members working together to find practical community-led solutions to create a sustainable and conducive environment for learners to thrive.

In 2019, 10.1 million learners were estimated to be enrolled in primary schooling in Kenya. However, with the increase in enrolment, access to quality education has become a challenge. Out of 31,218 public primary schools in Kenya, about 75% of them are in rural areas. These schools are the most affected as they have limited resources from few classes, a low-teacher learner ratio, a lack of proper sanitation facilities, to inadequate learning materials to cater to the increased population of learners each year.

To facilitate access to quality education for each child, Elimu Fanaka has engaged 8 rural public schools with a population of 2,395 learners through our core focus areas listed below;

• Technology (computer literacy) and Designing Functional Libraries

• Mentorship and Capacity Building

• Arts and Culture

Founded by a local leader who grew up in communities similar to those we serve and has lived their experiences, Elimu Fanaka is solving local issues using local solutions. 

We also engage parents, teachers, learners, and the communities on all key decisions, and most of the time, they are the drivers of major discussions around improving the schools we work with. By equipping learners in marginalized communities to access quality education, they will become effective agents for change in their community. 

With a team from these communities, it is easy to work with these communities and find solutions as opposed to outsiders coming into the community with preconceived ideas of what they need. Elimu Fanaka believes in the power of collaboration; from the inception of the organization, we ensured that we seek the advice of the community members on how to implement various projects in our partner schools.

1/3 of our learners come from child-led homes - most of them are orphaned or have been left by their parents who are overwhelmed by the economic stress. 

Elimu Fanaka focuses on rural marginalized public schools. Most of these schools have been left for only the very poor in the community. 

Aligned with the SDGs, we ensured that our work addresses some of the pressing challenges local communities face. Elimu Fanaka’s work alleviates poverty by providing children access to quality education, giving them skills and knowledge that will help them complete their education and opens up opportunities in the future. We are working to equip learners in rural communities with the skills needed to excel in school and successfully navigate through life.

Elimu Fanaka exists to bring quality education for all to unlock opportunities, self-development and reduce the impact of global poverty. We believe that through access to quality education facilitated with our programs, learners will be empowered and be able to find solutions to the challenges facing their community.

Our goal is to nurture students to be leaders who will act as change agents from grassroots to the national/global level.