++ AIDUCATION INTERNATIONAL AWARDED THE MOST INNOVATIVE COMPANY IN THE EDUCATION INDUSTRY 2022++
Our clear focus on sustainable impact and newly launched goal to empower 1'000 Young Entrepreneurs have allowed us to take the lead.

Blog

KCSE exams: A year of records for Aiducation

Posted on 04/11/2016 at 11:28AM

In Kenya, every year hundreds of thousands of students take the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exams, which are a major determinant of the individual’s future career opportunities. The eagerly-awaited results of the 2015 KCSE examination have just been announced to the public. We are extremely happy that a dazzling 93% of our 123 AiduFellows attained the minimum university entry qualification of C+ and above, while the average of all candidates is at 32%. Even more, it was a record year of “A’s” of our AiduFellows.

A total of 522,870 students sat their KCSE exams at the completion of their secondary education last year in October. A good grade guarantees a place in one of the universities in the country. The recently released results of our AiduFellows who took the exam overwhelmed us:

  • 93% of our AiduFellows attained a C+, which is the minimum university entry qualification to public and private universities. 49% qualified to join university through direct entry. This means almost 50% qualified to get a government subsidy for their academic studies. They also have the chance to apply for other loans that enable them complete their university education.
  • More females than males (54%:46%) completed their four years of secondary education in our network, while the gender parity among all candidates was opposite (male: 53%, female 47%).
  • Out of 123 alumni, only eight did not qualify to enter university, but may pursue other middle-college education and join university later if they wish.
  • Seven of our AiduFellows (5%) scored an overall grade of A – this is 10 times more than the percentage all KSCE candidates attained (0.5%). This is a new record in the history of Aiducation!

Despite the good news, there was some troubling information as well. Although the KCSE examinations were held under very strict supervision, the Senate Committee on Education reported massive irregularities during the 2015 KCSE examination. In fact, almost 1% of all candidates had been disqualified in the 2015 KCSE examination as a result of their involvement in various examination malpractices, which is a 70% rise in cases of exam irregularities compared to the previous year.


Tags: KCSE, AiduAlumni


Tomato Splash: Showcasing the impact of a Start-up Academy

Posted on 03/31/2016 at 11:35AM

Darleen’s journey into entrepreneurship started with an Aiducation scholarship that financed Darleen’s high school education from 2008 onwards. In 2014, she participated in the first Aiducation-Swiss Re Start-up Academy, where the idea of her start-up “Tomato Splash” was born. Only one and a half year later, her farm produces up to 8 tonnes locally-poduced high-quality tomatoes per week. In an interview, Darleen tells us how everything started, what challenges she was facing and how Aiducation supported her business.

Darleen, what is the idea behind “Tomato Splash”?

My start-up aims at reducing food insecurity in Kenya. Moreover, it encourages the youth along the coast to be independent of tourism as an income generator, and thus to be independent of fluctuations in their salaries. Tomato Splash offers these people the possibility to venture into new fields of self-employment and also creates job opportunities for them. I have an acre which is divided into 4 quarters each having one thousand tomato trees. Each of them produces 2 tonnes of tomatoes per week if the harvest is good. I therefore require all the skilled labor I can get.

How did you come up with your small business idea?

Splash was not my initial idea during the first Swiss Re Start-up Academy. However, I joined a group which had a start-up idea in the field of agriculture and there Tomato Splash was born. I chose tomatoes because no meal in Kenya can be prepared without tomatoes. Also, there was demand for tomatoes since the current suppliers of tomatoes came from miles away and the tomatoes were therefore not delivered fresh for consumption.

What role did Aiducation play in the success of your business?


Tags: Start-up, Kenya


Aiducation: Nurturing the start-up spirit

Posted on 03/31/2016 at 10:47AM

A bike delivery service, a sustainable pig farm, and a fish farm supporting women food vendors – these may sound like typical businesses …but these are businesses created by young entrepreneurs from the Aiducation program who are setting a new standard of what a young person can accomplish in a developing country. In our hot-off-the-press start-up brochure we highlight the impact of the Swiss Re Start-up Academies and showcase three businesses that have been funded by the Start-up Fund.

Supporting entrepreneurship aligns well with the found principles of Aiducation International – to support young students who will then change their communities for the better. With an Aiducaiton scholarship, our AiduFellows can finish high school and they have greatly improved prospects to find a job, attend university and help their communities. In order to support our Aiducation Alumni with their ideas for their own future and the future of their country, we host both Mentorship and Start-up Academies. Together with external mentors and Aiducation professionals, our AiduFellows and Alumni spend one week elaborating business ideas for a sustainable society. The business ideas are creative, unique and inspiring! After the Entrepreneurship Academy is complete, our Start-up Fund provides financial philanthropic investments for our young entrepreneurs to build their social impact business.

Since our first Swiss Re Start-up Academy in 2014, 38 unique start-up ideas have been presented at our Academies. Behind each is an entrepreneurial AiduAlumna/ AiduAlumnus with passion and drive, and after the Academy also the know-how to realize their start-up idea. Eleven start-up ideas from participants of the Swiss Re Start-up Academies launched with financial support from the Start-up Fund.



Maximizing social impact: More than 300 new applications from Kenya

Posted on 03/23/2016 at 11:28AM

Aeronautical engineer, paediatrician or bank manager – careers that are not easily pursued if financial and personal support is lacking in your home country. Instead of accepting that talented young people are unable to pay for their high schools, let us consider the possibility of helping them achieving their dreams! We have just received over 300 new applications from Kenyan primary school graduates for our AiduFellow Programme and we are so proud of the attention our programme receives! All those students wish to begin a career for their own successful future and for the positive development of their country.

Every year we receive hundreds of applications from brilliant students who wish to participate in their country and to have a positive impact in their society. Our application evaluating progress of the applications follows strict principles: we consider their financial neediness for a donation in order to pursue their path, we demand an application essay and take a look into their grades in order to see their talents, and we look for students with strong visions for themselves and the development of their country. We are proud to state that 90% of the scholarship money is directly invested into the education of the AiduFellows and that the donor (AiduMaker) and his or her supported Fellow keep personal contact. The personal donation is clearly supporting a sustainable impact on Kenya’s society! Let us take a look at some of our outstanding talents in order to understand the positive impact we are looking for.

Our AiduFellow Hannah from Majengid Mapya, Kenya, is only one of our outstanding talents we wish to support with a scholarship. She realized that sustainable impact cannot only been realized by external help. Instead, she seeks to move on in that direction. Dreaming of being a bank manager, she wants to fund schools for every child of Kenya in the future. This awareness of her own society and the determination to change the status quo is exactly what we want to achieve!


Tags: AiduSeekers, Kenya


Music, determination and Aiducation can change lives

Posted on 02/14/2016 at 01:30AM

Allyson and Simon from Basel Switzerland are inspiring 16-year-old high school students who believe in the power of education. They are organizing a Charity Music Concert to share their musical talents and raise money for a scholarship for Philippine AiduSeeker Rica M.

On February 21st, Alysson and Simon, together with Aiducation, invite you to listen to Allyson and Simon playing solo and duet works by Bach, Piazzolla, Ravel and more. The music will be magical… but this event will also touch your heart.

Allyson and Simon are high school students that share a passion for music. Alysson started to play the violin when she was only five years olds, and by age 12 music was her primary passion. Simon started when he was seven years old and after playing piano and guitar for a few years, his love for music grew and he plans to dedicate his future life to music.


Tags: AiduEvent, Benefiz concert