Saturday July 8, 2023
Yusuf Ali Abdi teaching in the computer school where he also studied in Dadaab refugee camps/Bashir Gahnug/Ergo
Yusuf Ali Abdi, a refugee in Dadaab camps in northern Kenya, has been teaching computer lessons in Global Computer School for about a year. He is happy to be earning 10,000 Kenya shillings ($74) a month to support his family.
Yusuf himself studied at the same computer school after being awarded tuition support.
His impoverished family have been struggling with life in the refugee camps, where aid is minimal and employment opportunities are few.
“Life was very difficult before, but now life seems to be changing for the better, because there is a difference between when a person is working and when he is not working, my family now depend on me,” Yusuf said.
Yusuf lives with his mother and nine siblings. They were eating only once a day but with his support life has improved.
He was among 32 students given free tuition at the school as their parents could not pay the fees and is very grateful for the opportunity.
“It is extraordinary to be able to learn for free and teach at the same school afterwards! This earns you a good reputation and respect in society, this has made me happy and motivated me to continue studying computers to a higher level,” he added.
His family joined Hagardera camp in Dadaab in 1992 after fleeing Badhadhe area in Lower Juba, following conflict.
Awil Abdi Bile also successfully completed a course at Global Computer School, which landed him a job in February with Lutheran World Federation managing the refugee database, earning 11,400 Kenya shillings.
He is the only one out of his two parents and two siblings with a job.
“A man with a job and one without a job are not the same. I was staying at home but now I am working with an organisation and I have got responsibilities,” he said.
Awil, 32, was born in the refugee camp. Their family fled conflict in Lower Juba region and have been living in Dadaab since 1991 when the Somali civil war broke out.
The founder of Global Computer School, Salah Muse Mahdi, is happy to have created avenues for youth to learn marketable skills. Since he opened the school as a business, 120 students have graduated, including 32 who were studying for free.
Salah, who has seven children, said he himself received computer training in 2016 through a free programme funded by Lutheran World Federation.
“The students who get free education are mostly those who come to our school or whose parents come to tell us about their financial situation. We assess them and see if they have previous education to be able to take the computer course. Our lives are connected to computers these days,” he said.
Salah, 39, joined Dadaab refugee camp in 2006 when he was displaced from Jowhar, Middle Shabelle region.