Skip to main content

New School Rises in Mathare: French Embassy Celebrates Groundbreaking Education Initiative.

 H.E Ambassador Arnaud Suquet, the French Ambassador to Kenya.

NAIROBI, Kenya, July 3, 2025.

In the heart of Mathare, one of Nairobi's largest informal settlements, hope is being cemented into foundations. The French Embassy last night celebrated the transformative partnership behind Roots Institute Centre's new permanent school building at a cocktail reception at the Residence of France.

On Thursday evening, July 3,  diplomats, partners, and community leaders gathered at the French Ambassador's residence (Peponi Gardens, Peponi Road) to mark a milestone for Mathare's vulnerable youth. The event spotlighted the groundbreaking construction of Roots Institute's permanent facility, a grassroots initiative providing free education to over 450 children daily in one of Nairobi's most underserved communities.

"This project embodies our shared commitment to dignity, opportunity, and lasting impact," said a H.E Ambassador Arnaud Suquet, the French Ambassador to Kenya, at the reception, which highlighted the Kenyan-French partnership driving the initiative. Attendees learned about the Centre's decade-long journey operating in makeshift iron-sheet classrooms that lack ventilation, electricity, and reliable water access.
Henk Jan Bakker, ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Kenya

For years, Roots Institute has been a lifeline for children from Mathare's overcrowded shelters, under 10m² with no sanitation. "Without Roots, these children wouldn't attend school," explained the Centre's director. The new multi-storey concrete building will replace temporary structures and feature, well-equipped classrooms for 600 students, adequate sanitation and ventilation, secure recreational areas and reliable electricity and water systems

The Centre's comprehensive programs include: free early childhood-primary education for 450 children, secondary scholarships for 105 students, life skills training (health, rights, hygiene) and extracurricular activities (dance, art, acrobatics)

"Yesterday wasn't just about a building," emphasized a Roots representative. "It celebrated investing in dignity and breaking poverty cycles for generations." The project has united French and Kenyan partners under a shared vision of education as the foundation for equitable development.

With construction now underway, the new Roots Institute Centre promises a future where Mathare's children learn without compromising safety, comfort, or dignity, turning yesterday's celebration into tomorrow's transformed lives.

Comments

Post a Comment

good

Popular posts from this blog

Kenya Dental Association Condemns KMPDC Over Alleged Misregulation of Dentistry.

The Kenya Dental Association (KDA ) has strongly condemned the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Council (KMPDC) over what it terms as misregulation and illegal handling of the dental profession. In a press release dated April 10, 2025, the KDA expressed deep outrage and disappointment following the publication of a new Scope of Practice for Dentistry by KMPDC, which the association claims is unlawful and dangerously undermines the quality of oral healthcare in the country. According to the KDA, the scope in question allows unqualified para-professionals to engage in dental procedures without appropriate curriculum-based training or the necessary competencies. The association accuses the KMPDC, under the leadership of its chairperson Prof. Stanley Khainga , of ignoring its mandate to ensure that Kenyans access the highest attainable standard of healthcare. KDA warns that this misstep poses a serious threat to patient safety and public health, potentially leading to ...
Post a Comment
Read more

STATE DEPARTMENT OF GENDER AND AFFIRMATIVE ACTION SEEKS TO INCORPORATE WOMEN RISE INITIATIVE FINDINGS INTO THE KENYA NATIONAL CARE POLICY.

From left, State Department for Gender and Affirmative Action Secretary Gender Dr. Josephine Obonyo,   African Population and Health Research Centre Executive Director Dr. Catherine Kyobutungi,   Aga Khan University Graduate School of Media and Communication, Dean Prof. Nancy Booker,    Development Research Centre Global Health Director Montasser Kamal, d uring the Women RISE end- of- project meeting aimed at understanding the intersection between women’s health and their paid or unpaid work within COVID-19 contexts The State Department of Gender and Affirmative Action has sought to incorporate the findings of the Women RISE initiative to the Kenya National Care Policy which seeks to address the longstanding issue of unpaid domestic and care work predominantly performed by women and girls. The Women RISE initiative has over the last three years fostered action-oriented, gender-transformative research to explore the link between women’s health and their paid or u...
Post a Comment
Read more

Records Digitization Failures Risk Digital Kenya; Urges ICT-Records Unity.

Ms. Mary Kerema, OGW, Secretary ICT e-government and Digital Economy. Nairobi, Kenya - July 16, 2025.   Ms. Mary Kerema, OGW, delivering remarks on behalf of Eng. John Tanui, MBS, the Principal Secretary for ICT and the Digital Economy , issued a blunt assessment today, government efforts to digitize critical records are failing, risking the paralysis of Kenya's broader digital transformation agenda. Speaking to ICT Directors and various stakeholders at a breakfast meeting hosted by the Kenya Association of Records Managers and Archivists (KARMA) at the Serena Hotel, Kerema conveyed the PS's deep concern over the " significantly low" progress made since the Ministry directed State Corporations to adopt paperless systems in March 2023. She emphasized that the core problem identified by the PS is not funding, but a critical deficit in expertise, infrastructure, and a widespread underestimation of the domain's complexity, a complexity interwoven with leg...
Post a Comment
Read more