How FCA Kenya Helped Najila Luka Turn Her Education Dreams Into Reality

At just 16 years old, Najila Luka already knows the weight of responsibility. She carries it each time she walks to the market with a tray of homemade bread balanced in her arms — not just for survival, but for her dream: to stay in school.

Najila lives in Kakuma refugee camp in northwestern Kenya. She arrived there as a toddler, cradled on her mother’s back, after her family fled conflict in northern Sudan. Her mother, alone and determined, brought her eight children across the border in search of safety.

In many refugee communities, education often takes a back seat to daily survival. Teenage girls are the most vulnerable — pulled from school to help with household chores, married off early, or forced to find small jobs to support their families. Many never make it past primary school.

Najila could have been one of them. But instead, with determination and the support of her family, she made it through primary school and is now continuing her education in secondary school.

“ My family and I bake bread from the food rations we receive,” she says, standing beside a modest charcoal stove. “We sell it at the market. I help out on weekends and after school — that’s how we earn a little money for school fees and other needs.” 

She now studies at Blue State Senior School in Kakuma, run by Jesuit Refugee Service, an education implementing partner for UNHCR. FCA is an operating partner supporting access through cash based intervention for transport and uniform, and procurement of Teaching and learning materials. 

Najila is proud to be one of them.

“I really value education,” she says. “It opens your mind. It helps you see the world differently.”

Her eyes light up when she speaks about her dream — to become a journalist.

“We once visited a radio station, and I thought, wow, this is something I could do. It seemed so exciting — asking questions, sharing stories. It just seems like a cool career.  I want to do that. And maybe one day, I can support my family too.”

But her path hasn’t been easy. Until recently, she didn’t even have her own school uniform. Instead, she borrowed one from a neighbor — worn thin, oversized, and faded with use. She remembers how it made her feel.

“I know it sounds small, but wearing that old uniform made me feel like I wasn’t as good as the other students,”she says softly. “I was afraid to speak up in class or ask questions.”

Things changed when ECHO, through FCA Kenya’s ‘Promoting Access to Quality Inclusive Education in Protective Learning Environments in Kakuma, Dadaab Refugee Camps, and Kalobeyei Reception Center’ (PIEPLE) project, provided Najila with KES 2,029 in cash assistance and school supplies. The grant was calculated to cover the cost of one school uniform. For the first time, she was able to buy a uniform that fit her — clean, neat, and truly hers.

“Now, I feel confident. I feel like I belong,” she says with a bright smile. “I can talk to my teachers. I’m not afraid anymore.”

She even managed to buy the uniform for less than expected — and used the remaining money to buy a skirt for her younger sister’s school outfit.

“That made me really happy,” she says. “Helping my sister gave me hope.”