Showing posts with label Kenya. Show all posts
"She Has Definitely Touched Many Kenyan Lives," Vice President Musyoka States About Serena Williams
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
American Serena Williams in Kenya to set up second school.(Photos by Getty Images)
MAKUENI, Kenya - Just over a year after visiting Kenya to open the Serena Williams Secondary School in Matooni, Kenya, Serena Williams returned to the country to follow up on her humanitarian efforts. Williams arrived on February 22 for a three day charity mission where she will inaugurate the Wee Secondary School in Makueni, Eastern Province, Kenya.The new school lies roughly 50 kilometers from the first one. While in the country, Williams will follow up on the progress of the Matooni school and will hold a tennis teaching session with the students at both schools.
Williams has partnered with technology giant Hewlett Packard and the Build African Schools initiative. She is a global ambassador for the firm and has also worked with the Starfishgreatheart Charity for orphans in South Africa.
Hewlett Packard will equip the school with computers, printers and internet connectivity, while facilitating the training of the local teachers and students.
Ken Mbwaya, Hewlett Packard's managing director for East Africa, said: "As our ambassador, Serena was touched by the plight of children from these areas. This has made many keen to learn, even with daily challenges and limitations. Education is the best platform to invest in as it empowers whole communities."Sixty-two percent of Kenyans live in absolute poverty, which means that some very bright children are hindered from achieving their potential. This is an actual impediment to the realization of Vision 2030 and we need to tackle this before we seek IT penetration into rural Kenya. Education is the best platform to invest in as it empowers whole communities."
While in Kenya Serena visited Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka who lauded Serena's efforts in setting up Kenyan Schools.Musyoka said her partnership with leading Computer manufacturer Hewlett-Packard (HP) and Charitable organization - Build African Schools, is set to transform rural communities by equipping them with school facilities as well as helping them attain computer literacy.
He made the remarks in his Jogoo house when the tennis superstar paid him a courtesy call.
The Vice President, who invited her to also partner with his Kalonzo Musyoka Foundation to provide scholarships to needy students, proposed that Ms Williams would be a worthy beneficiary of the proposed dual citizenship under the new constitution."She has definitely touched many Kenyan lives and is therefore worthy of such recognition if she so wishes,'' he said.
Ms Williams said she will continue to not only open and support schools in Kenya but also build and provide computers to other countries, in Africa.
She added that she was committed to contribute towards "putting a smile" on the faces of many unfortunate members of the society.
With a light touch, the champion welcomed the dual citizenship proposal, adding that her only problem would be the confusion at the International Airports on whether to fill her forms as Kenyan or American.
Ms Williams opened Wee Secondary School in Matiliku Location in Makueni district on Tuesday.
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Serena Busy As She Wraps Up Visit To Africa
Monday, November 17, 2008
Activity came to a stop in the sleepy village of Matooni on the foothills of Manooni hills as Serena Wiliams, the world number two ranked tennis player, opened a secondary school named after her in the area on Friday.
Williams, who was accompanied by the Minister for Education, Professor Sam Ongeri, and the area MP, Peter Kiilu, could not hide her joy for being involved in the project.
“I would like to contribute more to education projects in Africa, and I really want to thank the Hewlett Packard Company for choosing to partner with me in this noble project,” Williams told the ecstatic crowd.
The school, which has been named after the player, was built in record one month, and is fully equipped with a computer laboratory and Internet facilities for the students.
Ongeri lauded the tennis star for her efforts, and requested more people to contribute in making Kenya’s free secondary education a success, noting that secondary school enrolment had gone up in the country over the past three years.
Spends Saturday At The Sadili Oval Tennis Academy in Nairobi
Serena Williams, the world number two ranked tennis player, was quite at home on the court as she took children through the paces at Sadili Oval Tennis Academy in Nairobi on Saturday.Serena who was accompanied by Sports Minister Hellen Sambili to the venue in Langata, first watched the young players go through their practise session as she stood by to give them a few tips.
She then took to the court and gave instructions to a select group of girls and boys, after which they played a round of tennis doubles.
Serena, who played for the better part of the morning with children who range from the age of eight to 18 years, expressed her satisfaction at the reception that she has so far received in Kenya.
“Kenya has beautiful people and I plan to come back here to be a part of projects such as tennis coaching. The spirit of Kenyans is second to none,” she said.
The children who had the opportunity to play tennis with Serena only had praises for the sports star who took time to show them basic moves in the game.
“My dream has come true today. I always dreamt of playing with her on the same court, and possibly hit the ball down on her,” said 16-year-old Terry Odera, who had the rare chance to share the court with Serena.
“I will now focus on more serious training in order to make it in the sport like her. But I have also learnt that being a celebrity means living your life in the public life, which is not at all easy. That’s the part I did not quite enjoy.”
On her part, 17-year-old Sakina Nshirimana learnt plenty of skills during her half hour on the court with the fashion and tennis queen.
“I have learnt how to control the ball and make more rallies without making as many mistakes. My dream to see her has come more than true and now my focus is to be like her. I think it can come true too,” an elated Nshirimana said.
Serena enjoyed every moment on the court as she clapped and gestured happily to encourage the youngsters.
“She (Serena) makes the game look so easy to play,” commented one of the boys who train at the academy.
“She has proved to Kenyan youth that a person can succeed both academically and in sports with self discipline and trust in God,” said Sambili.
The Serena entourage leaves the country on Sunday for Senegal, where she will initiate the building of more schools. One school that she has built, and is named after her, is already up and running in Makueni District.
Source - The Daily Nation
Photos By Mohammed Amin
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Photos By Mohammed Amin
Serena Williams Builds School In Kenya
Monday, November 10, 2008
Tennis icon and super star Serena Williams will officially visit Kenya for three days this week to officially inaugurate a school built using her funds.
Ms Williams will officially open the Serena Williams Secondary School in Matooni, Makueni constituency in Eastern province, on Friday, November 14.
The school was built through partnership between the Build African Schools initiative - an American non profit making organization - and Hewlett Packard, the world's largest technology firm.
Hewlett Packard, as part of its commitment to support education in developing countries, will install in each school a computer laboratory and classroom, laptop, printers, the World Wide Web, and facilitate training for the teachers and students.
It is the first time for Ms Williams, who is ranked number three in the world, to visit Kenya.
She will be accompanied by among others, her mother.
Mr. Patrick O'Sullivan, Founder and CEO of Build African Schools, said the objective of the Non-Profit Organisation to build primary and secondary schools in marginalized areas to give chance to students to access secondary school education in a bid to empower them.
"We are indeed honored to have Ms Williams visit Kenya at this momentous time in American history when we have a new President elect who has roots in Kenya," said Mr Dickson Mutaiti, the Director of Projects Build African Schools in Kenya.
"During her visit, Ms Williams will officially open a secondary school put up in her name, to give chance to needy primary school students who want to pursue secondary school education," Mr Mutaiti said.
Serena Williams's secondary school is located in Mutyamboa location, Makueni Constituency, near Sultan Hamud Township along the Nairobi Mombasa Road.
The school will give chance to hundreds of primary school pupils in the location to pursue secondary school education.
The area is semi arid, with schools far in and between.
The area suffers from high school drop out rate, and most students are orphans due to the high HIV /Aids prevalence rate in the area.
Build African Schools and HP have joined together since 2004 to help children in Africa have access to education.
The partnership will result in new schools constructed by Build African Schools which will then be fully equipped by Hewlett Packard with their state of the art computers and printers. Solar Power and the internet will also be installed at each school.
By building schools and equipping them with electricity, computers and other teaching aids, Build African Schools and Hewlett Packard offers children educational opportunities and choices that will ultimately empower them to determine their own future.
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