ACT
Jesus and jobs. That’s what we believe that people need. This is true in Kenya, where the unemployment rate is consistently 40%. In the slums, the unemployment rate can be closer to 80%. At the same time, the potential for business growth is tremendous. The business opportunities are endless and often only lack start-up capital. Social entrepreneurship is a fast-growing trend in today’s globalized society – people have realized that business can fulfill two roles: (1) to make a profit, and (2) to benefit society. We believe that Kenya is ripe for social entrepreneurship, where new enterprises can not only make a profit (which, for us, is a great potential for ministry), but also employ people who formerly didn’t have jobs, which benefits society as a whole. The last thing we want is to end up with a group of well-educated Ndoto students who can’t find jobs, and so we dream of creating a second, for-profit organization that will start businesses.
One of our executive director’s dreams is to start a trash company. Only some parts of Nairobi, the capital, have an organized trash collection system. Most of the country simply manages their garbage by burning or dumping. Kisumu has long suffered from no centralized trash collection system, and as a result, the city has trash all over the streets and the parks. Recently, groups of boys have shown initiative by collecting garbage from homes for a small fee and have begun dumping it in a large plot of land that is now covered in enormous heaps of rotting garbage. We believe that there is great potential for a business that collects trash from homes and businesses and processes it in a safe way, creating landfills and practicing recycling at the same time.
Another dream for a business capitalizes on the growing popularity and availability of the Internet in Kenya. Recently, a high-speed fiber optic underwater cable was completed, providing East Africa with the capability for higher-speed internet. Internet cafés are sprouting up all over the cities, but many college campuses have poor computer labs and Internet facilities. College students need the opportunity to learn on computers with the latest technology in order for them to compete in the globalizing world, thus creating the potential for a company to place high-quality computer labs throughout the country. Another dream of our executive director has been to build sustainable housing in the slums. Most people live in low-quality mud structures that they rent. However, these structures leak and flood when it rains and offer little security. In Obunga, the houses are also sinking into the ground due to the very moist ground that the slum sits on.
Jesus and jobs. That’s what we believe that people need. This is true in Kenya, where the unemployment rate is consistently 40%. In the slums, the unemployment rate can be closer to 80%. At the same time, the potential for business growth is tremendous. The business opportunities are endless and often only lack start-up capital. Social entrepreneurship is a fast-growing trend in today’s globalized society – people have realized that business can fulfill two roles: (1) to make a profit, and (2) to benefit society. We believe that Kenya is ripe for social entrepreneurship, where new enterprises can not only make a profit (which, for us, is a great potential for ministry), but also employ people who formerly didn’t have jobs, which benefits society as a whole. The last thing we want is to end up with a group of well-educated Ndoto students who can’t find jobs, and so we dream of creating a second, for-profit organization that will start businesses.
One of our executive director’s dreams is to start a trash company. Only some parts of Nairobi, the capital, have an organized trash collection system. Most of the country simply manages their garbage by burning or dumping. Kisumu has long suffered from no centralized trash collection system, and as a result, the city has trash all over the streets and the parks. Recently, groups of boys have shown initiative by collecting garbage from homes for a small fee and have begun dumping it in a large plot of land that is now covered in enormous heaps of rotting garbage. We believe that there is great potential for a business that collects trash from homes and businesses and processes it in a safe way, creating landfills and practicing recycling at the same time.
Another dream for a business capitalizes on the growing popularity and availability of the Internet in Kenya. Recently, a high-speed fiber optic underwater cable was completed, providing East Africa with the capability for higher-speed internet. Internet cafés are sprouting up all over the cities, but many college campuses have poor computer labs and Internet facilities. College students need the opportunity to learn on computers with the latest technology in order for them to compete in the globalizing world, thus creating the potential for a company to place high-quality computer labs throughout the country. Another dream of our executive director has been to build sustainable housing in the slums. Most people live in low-quality mud structures that they rent. However, these structures leak and flood when it rains and offer little security. In Obunga, the houses are also sinking into the ground due to the very moist ground that the slum sits on.