When Latifa, 20, arrived in Nairobi, Kenya, in 2009 with her grandmother and siblings, the family struggled to survive. Latifa and her siblings tragically lost their parents during the militia attacks in Somalia that forced them to flee. The children were unable to attend school in Nairobi because they had to work in order to help their grandmother support the household. Latifa wasn’t sure she’d ever be able to attend school to pursue her dream of becoming a doctor.
“I’ve always had a desire to go to school and I’ve always wanted to be a doctor because of my grandmother. My grandma is my role model. She used to be a midwife. That’s why I have the desire to go to school and become a doctor,” Latifa shared with us.
In 2016, RefugePoint began supporting Latifa and her family, including providing full educational scholarships to Latifa and her siblings. When Latifa began school for the first time, at age 11, she was elated. “I was very happy [to begin school ] because as a child, seeing my friends going to school while I had to stay at home was not a happy thing. I always thought that if I had the ability to go to school, just like my friends, it would have been nice. On Saturdays and Sundays I would play with my friends, but on Monday they were not there with me. They had to go to school and I was left alone at home. I am going to school so that I can better my life. We have faced a lot of problems in this life. If I finish school and get good grades, I can start working on bettering my financial state. School and completing my studies mean everything for me,” Latifa shared.
For refugee children, going to school isn’t only about advancing their education, but also serves as an essential protection tool. At school, refugee children are able to rebuild critical support systems (teachers, mentors, coaches) that they may have lost. School also allows children to integrate into their new communities by learning new languages and developing new friendships. This has certainly been true for Latifa. “The hardship I faced when I moved to Nairobi was language. I could only speak Somali, and there was no Somali teacher at that time. I didn’t know Kiswahili or English when I started in class four. It was the hardest year in my life, and I had a lot to catch up on. Finally, when I was in class five, I overcame it. I knew how to speak a little, at least enough to understand what the teacher was teaching in Kiswahili and English,” said Latifa.
Being at school has also allowed Latifa to have the space and energy to focus on her studies. “Being at school the whole day, I don’t have to worry about everything at home. There are some times when we don’t have enough food to cook. When I am at school, I don’t have to worry about food, about family, or anything like that. All I have to worry about is my studies.”
This year, Latifa will move one step closer to her goal of becoming a doctor when she completes high school. Her academic progress has been impressive—Latifa is the most improved student in RefugePoint’s education program. When comparing her national exam scores at the primary school level and her performance today—the progress is impressive. “I am very proud of her,” says Kimani, RefugePoint’s Education Officer, “She makes our work worth doing, every single day.”