Sporting chance for slum kids

China-sponsored school provides opportunity to Kenyan students

NAIROBI - Stacy Awuor developed a love for soccer at a tender age while growing up in Nairobi's Mathare slums, where poverty and other social problems have always conspired to deny youngsters a chance to realize their dreams.

But the 16-year-old student at Mcedo Beijing School, whose construction was financed by Chinese companies, has defied cultural stereotypes and financial hardships to develop her sporting prowess and impress her peers.

Awuor says that she looks forward to becoming a soccer star and, hopefully, getting recruited by an elite club in Europe or Asia.

"I'm currently a decorated midfielder in our school's soccer club and hope that one day the elite clubs overseas will recognize my talent and recruit me," says Awuor. She was born in the Mathare slums and was among the pioneer students at Mcedo Beijing school, which has provided disadvantaged children with an opportunity to nurture their academic and sporting talents.

Awuor has seen the school evolve from a makeshift structure located in the middle of a shanty village to a gleaming modern school, thanks to the benevolence of Chinese enterprises in Kenya.

"When I enrolled in this school several years ago, its classrooms - made of iron sheets - were a nightmare when extreme weather hit town. The classes were dark, humid and unhygienic on many occasions," says Awuor.

She hailed the contribution of Chinese companies to the modernization of a learning facility that has provided her with a platform to accomplish significant academic and sporting feats.

"The new classrooms, constructed by Chinese donors, have inspired us to study harder. The Chinese have also donated books and sports equipment that have transformed our lives," says Awuor.

More than 2,000 children from poor families in the Mathare slums have passed through Mcedo Beijing school, where they have acquired lifelong skills.

The Chinese embassy as well as enterprises based in Kenya have in the past decade donated money, learning materials and sports equipment to help upgrade Mcedo Beijing school.

Irene Mwende, a 12-year-old pupil who is an admired striker on Mcedo Beijing School's all girls soccer team, says the learning facility has motivated her to study hard while developing her sporting talent on the side.

Xinhua

(China Daily Africa Weekly 11/24/2017 page3)