When they were growing up in Nairobi’s Kibera slum, which is considered one of the filthiest places in sub-Sahara Africa, it was a football made of polythene bags that kept them busy.

Goalposts didn’t have to be full-length and neither was the muddy pitch, especially due to the congestion in the slum. But there came a time when the boys had to do more than play games to better their lives.

This was the life of Kennedy Odede, an internationally acclaimed Kenyan social entrepreneur, and his playmates. They only had the power of numbers and a growing network in the slum to rely on to make something of themselves in life.

“That kicked off everything that have we have achieved,” recalls Odede who has built an organisation that currently takes care of the needs of thousands of slum dwellers of Kibera, from health to education and basic needs such as clean water.

Well aware that they had to work a little harder compared with their peers who grew up in more privileged neighbourhoods of Nairobi, and also compelled by a burning desire to change their fortunes and those of their community, Odede and other youths brainstormed regularly.

It was in 2004 that Odede and his mates formed a football club-cum- movement for social justice. They came came up with business ideas such as car wash businesses, barber shops, shoe polishing and other small-scale trade. The group of over 400 youths soon attracted the attention of those around them and more young people joined their activities.

“We were looking for hope,” said Odede, and a few years later they have a lot to show for their determination to succeed.

Background

Odede was born in Bondo, Siaya county on May 9, 1984 and raised in Kibera. He attended an informal primary school in Kibera but dropped out when he was about 11 years old. He eventually taught himself how to read.

It was during the course of advancing the social reorganisation of their community that Odede met Jessica Posner in 2007. Posner admired Odede and his group of fellow youths and what they were doing to improve their lot. Odede and Posner later married and became partners in the Kibera project.

In 2009 Odede received a modest grant and set up Shining Hope for Communities or Shofco.

In 2008, Odede travelled to the US where he attended the Wesleyan University (in Middletown, Connecticut), reading sociology and graduating in 2012 with honours.

All the time he was still involved in the Kibera project and it was through the networks created over time in both Kibera and the US that he realised his dream through Shofco.

Odede credits the power of a strategic network when it comes to building an enterprise. He is on the Forbes Top 30 Under 30 class of 2014 for his social enterprise. This is the prestigious list of the world’s most promising talent, and an indication that the best is yet to be realised.

The same year, he was also among Business Daily’s 40 under 40 and the People’s Choice Award for outstanding social entrepreneur that celebrates African leadership that demonstrates outstanding business acumen with serious social impact.

And his efforts to better Kibera continue. When The EastAfrican visited, it was a hot mid-morning. From a distance, we got a bearing on the Shofco compound from a water tank towering above the roofs with the words “Shofco” emblazoned on it.

This is just one of the many sites spread across Kibera’s 13 villages and Mathare slum under Odede and his team. Mathare is the second largest informal settlement in Nairobi.

The Shofco compound is a welcome surprise, and clearly an island of sorts in the midst of the slum. It has well-manicured grass at one end and a school, health clinic, a social and economic empowerment centre and the water provision service at the other end. This is rare in a slum best known for its rough and overcrowded streets and raw sewage flowing through open drains.

But there is hope for slums like Kibera. Recently, the national government embarked on installing security lighting, and road and drainage building to improve security, transport and sanitation in the slum and the general situation in the impacted areas has improved compared with five years ago. But a lot remains to be done.

At the time of our visit, Shofco, which seems to be well known as we easily got directions from the public, was hosting dozens of women seeking medical attention. Since the compound also houses a school, cheerful children in uniform were milling around on lunch break.

Evenings are more action-packed at the Shofco compound. The organisation provides free or highly subsidised library and other social services. The flat roof of the main building functions as a sports deck where children and even the more youthful of this slum come to play various games.

What Shofco is about

Shofco is a social enterprise that aims to improve the lives of slum dwellers. The organisation runs a well-stocked library with a membership of 15,000.

The library has textbooks for pupils and students who come here to read or do homework; books for a general readership, and sitting space for about 80 people at a time.

The medical facility offers free treatment for the community; the water points offer highly subsidised water for domestic use and also have bathrooms.

Shofco also runs several economic empowerment programmes. One of these is economic skills development, where courses such as tailoring are offered. Those who attend are also taught marketing skills to sell their products.

For those already running businesses in the slum, there is a savings programme. It is a group saving and lending scheme similar to the table banking concept (or merry-go-round), where members put their money in a basket on a regular basis then use the collective sum as collateral for individual borrowing for those who need loans.

To make it work, Shofco facilitators recruit community members into self-selecting groups. Training follows alongside constitution-making and election of officials to ensure the groups run independently.

Members decide how much and how regularly they want to save, how to get a loan and all the other issues to facilitate smooth running of the table banking group.

“We also help them register the groups with the Social District Officer to make the groups legal entities. The surplus after members’ savings and borrowing is done, is kept in a bank account that we assist them to open under specific group names,” says Liz Mahiri, Odede’s executive assistant.

Financial literacy and entrepreneurship courses offer members building blocks for their enterprises.

When a member requires more capital than the group’s capacity, Shofco links the member to KivaZip, a crowd funding international non-governmental organisation that provides loans to endorsed base-of-pyramid individuals at zero per cent interest.

At an agreed time, members liquidate the fund every December and share the proceeds of the interest earned from loans and fines imposed on members for various reasons. So far, the saving groups have a total membership of 2,219 drawn from across the 13 villages of Kibera slum.

Last year, the groups raised Ksh3,264,636 ($34,364). In the past four months, the members running various businesses in the slum collected Ksh3,264,636, ($34,364) some eight months before the end of the year, which shows a great leap.

“Our future plan, to deepen impact, is to transform into an institution licensed to take in deposits and also become a lender with customised products for our members because we understand them best. Then the groups will be functional all year round and members will be able to access higher and cheaper amounts,” adds Ms Mahiri.

Shofco runs a newsroom for the Ghetto Mirror, a monthly publication, within its computer training centre. The centre is operated in collaboration with a youthful tech organisation, Nairobits.

Inside the Ghetto Mirror newsroom, copies of the latest publication are on display. The newspaper is published once a month. At the time of our visit, the team was planning the next edition.

“Ghetto Mirror is produced by slum youth about slum issues,” said Ms Mahiri. The team meets for planning and assigning three days a week for two hours. There is also training throughout the month. 

All programmes run by Shofco are also used to bring together youth in the slum to discuss their issues on a regular basis, whether around sexuality or self-empowerment. The organisation is also keen on theatre, sports and other arts that gave birth to the Shofco concept, with several graduates to show from its programmes.

New feather
With his work in Kibera seemingly running smoothly and at the same time slowly spreading to other areas in Nairobi, Odede seems to have attracted the right attention.

Most recently, he was featured in the Forum for Young Global Leaders. This is an organisation whose members are recognised as exceptional leaders under the age of 40, and who are committed to making the world a better place. It is part of the World Economic Forum and includes Chelsea Clinton and also the founder of Wikipedia.