From Kibera to the World

Perspectives in Global Development: Fall 2022 Seminar Series

My name is Jackline Oyugi. I was born and raised up in Kibera, the largest slum in Kenya, East Africa. I went to school through the help of sponsors who paid for my primary and secondary school fees. I joined the HNP in 2011.

Human Needs Project (HNP) is a Kenyan NGO and U.S. nonprofit that is pioneering anew model for providing integrated services in informal settlements by collaborating with academic, industry and local leaders to address the lack of basic services common in slums by educating and training the local population, and in turn creating useful job skills.

HNP-KTC serves as a single platform that enables individuals living in slums to break out of survival mode and thrive.

About the speaker

Born and raised in Kibera,Nairobi Kenya.

Jacky has 8 years’ experience working as a training Manager for Human Needs Project, an organization that provides basic services and empowerment services to slums around the world through the creation of replicable, self sustaining Town Centres. Currently, one project they are working on is distributing water to communities at large through proper pipeline systems. In her work, Jacky is responsible for overseeing and managing ICT programs at Kibera Town Centre. One challenge she faces is the lack of skills training and formal employment in the community. Ultimately Jacky aspires to bring the women and youth in her community to financial and computer literacy and empower them through her work. She hopes to address the low economic empowerment that is present in her community.

Jacky is also a wellness fitness instructor mostly working with women and youth to boost their confidence and love who they are in the bodies they are in. She serves as a mentor to many youths who have undergone her programs and they see her as a role model because she comes from the same community and is part of the leaders bringing change.

About the seminar series

The Perspectives in Global Development seminars are held Wednesdays from 12:25 – 1:15 p.m. eastern time during the semester. The series will be presented in a hybrid format with some speakers on campus and others appearing via Zoom. All seminars are shown in Warren 151. Students, faculty and the general public are welcome to attend. The series is co-sponsored by the Department of Global Development, the Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, and the School of Integrative Plant Science as part of courses GDEV 4961, AEM 4961, NTRES 4961, GDEV 6960, AEM 6960, and NTRES 6960.