Ramla Aluoch Ariro

8th Grade Graduates of 2017 (Rodi)

Ramla(14)  is very interested in everything and likes to be helpful to her classmates.

Her home is about 10 miles away where she lived with her two younger sisters and her uncle, who cares for them “ because both my parents died from illness.  We live in a grass-thatched hut with a family of six.  We don’t have much money but live in harmony and have enough for our daily needs.”  She had gone to school at Kuoyo Kaura Primary, but was eventually sent home because she couldn’t pay school fees.

(Kenya public primary schools are supposedly tuition free but they charge fees for books, for exams, often for “enrollment”, and other incidentals that prevent attendance by the extremely poor.  They are then often forced to stay home which typically means there is no way to advance the economic status of the family)

She says the best day of her life was the day she came to Achungo two years ago in early 2016.  “Achungo was different because we are taught daily and taken care of.  We eat a balanced diet, get good medical care and are taught daily with so much care and love.”  She says coming to Achungo has provided her with the opportunity to gain knowledge and have a better future.  She is happy that she can be at a school that will help her pass her KCPE (exit exam) so that she can attend a good high school.

Ramla loves Science, Math, and Reading, and loves all her teachers at Achungo.    And she loves living on campus.  On weekends she enjoys going to Achungo Salvation Church (on-campus services) with her school friends where they “show off their talents” by singing and dancing.

“My goal is to work hard and achieve my dream to become an actress to entertain people and make them happy and become a famous actress in Africa.”

Ramla attends Nyakach Girls Secondary School.