Nelly Cheboi the founder of TechLit Africa who won the CNN hero of the year 2022 has revealed how Azimio la Umoja party leader Raila Odinga helped her travel abroad to further her studies.
Cheboi says in an interview with Success Afrika, that she was stranded after securing a scholarship at an American university after she scored a clean A in the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE). Cheboi was given a full scholarship to Augustana College in Illinois in 2012 despite growing up in poverty in Mogotio, a rural township in Kenya.
The 29 year old computer scientist says she got a Visa through their area MP and later randomly met the former Prime Minister and after sharing her story, Raila gave her Ksh. 300,000 for her plane ticket.
On the morning when she was declared CNN Hero of the year, Cheboi made her way to President William Ruto’s official speech during the December 12th Jamhuri Day celebrations. “We also congratulate 29-year-old, Nelly Cheboi, the founder of Techlit Africa who this morning was declared the CNN hero of the year, for her work in creating computer labs for Kenyan children to access opportunities in the digital world,” the President said.
Cheboi’s NGO TechLit Africa focuses on giving thousands of students in rural Kenya access to refurbished computers and the opportunity for a better future.
As CNN Hero of the Year, Cheboi will receive $100,000 (Ksh 12.3 million) to expand her work. She and the other top 10 CNN Heroes honoured at Sunday’s gala all receive a $10,000 (Ksh1.2 million) cash award and, for the first time, additional grants, organizational training and support from the Elevate Prize Foundation through a new collaboration with CNN Heroes. Cheboi will also receive the Elevate Prize, which entitles her to a grant of $300,000 (Ksh37 million) and additional assistance for her nonprofit organization worth $200,000 (Ksh24.7 million).
