Born and raised in the Mathare Valley slum, Moses Sumba grew up in extreme poverty.
As an orphan, he was raised by his grandfather, who struggled to make ends meet as a security guard earning a meagre income of Ksh3700.
Despite the obstacles he faced, Sumba never let go of his dream to make a positive impact in his community through education.
He understood firsthand the value of education in breaking the cycle of poverty and wanted to provide the same opportunities to other children in Mathare Valley.
In his secondary school years, he faced constant hurdles due to financial constraints.
He missed many classes and experienced disruptions as teachers frequently boycotted due to delayed payments.
After completing his secondary education in Siaya where he attained a mean grade of C-, Sumba’s dream of pursuing higher education seemed distant due to the lack of financial resources.
His grandfather, upon retiring, managed to provide him with a small sum of money amounting to Ksh 6000 to study an early childhood course.
However, tragedy struck when his grandfather passed away, leaving Sumba without the means to continue his studies.
Therefore, he decided to undergo a brief marketing training program that would subsequently grant him the opportunity to earn a commission for each policy sold.
“But I left the job after four months. This was not what I wanted to pursue. My dream was to become a teacher and run my own school,” he said during an interview with Business daily.
Determined to pursue his passion for teaching, he started working as an untrained teacher in a school within the Mathare slum.
Though the salary was meager, it fuelled his determination to make a positive impact on the lives of the children in his community.
Realizing the need for more extensive educational opportunities, Moses Sumba started offering evening tuition classes from his small house, serving as a beacon of hope for children yearning for knowledge.
As word spread about his dedication and effective teaching methods, the number of pupils attending his classes grew rapidly.
Encouraged by parents and students alike, he decided to establish a more substantial educational institution that could accommodate the increasing demand.
With the support of a parent who recognized his dedication, Sumba borrowed funds amounting to Ksh 40,000 and set up a makeshift school, which would later become known as Valley View Academy.
‘‘The money came from one of the parents who had noticed my dedication,” he added.
Valley View Academy started small but quickly gained a reputation for providing quality education within the Mathare slum.
Sumba’s innovative teaching methods, coupled with his unwavering commitment to his students, set the school apart.
Under his guidance, the academy flourished, nurturing young minds and providing them with opportunities they would have otherwise never received.
In 2013, one of the students from the school achieved a notable achievement by being recognized among the highest-ranking candidates in Kenya’s Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) examinations.
With a remarkable score of 404 out of 500 marks, this student’s performance stood out among their peers.
The turning point for Valley View Academy came when a group of young girls from the slum, who were part of a football club Sumba had initiated, were invited to the Netherlands.
The girls recited a powerful poem about life in the slums, capturing the hearts of sponsors who were moved by their resilience and determination.
The generous Ksh3 million donations they received enabled the construction of permanent buildings for the school, transforming it into a symbol of hope and progress within the community.
After an interval of almost twenty years since completing high school, Moses Sumba took a significant step in his educational journey.
In 2013, he made the decision to enrol in a university and pursue a Diploma in Early Childhood Development and graduated.
