“We want to develop an expert team of Leuven alumni in East Africa”
Kenyan alumnus and educationist Nyambura Owinyo
Reiner Van Hove
Dr. Nyambura Owinyo studied educational sciences and obtained her doctoral degree at K.U.Leuven. Recently, she has taken the initiative to establish a Leuven alumni network in East Africa. Owinyo is the interim secretary of the new association.
“In 1997, my husband received a scholarship from the Faculty of Theology in Leuven. My daughter Brenda and I joined him a year later. I obtained a Master’s in educational studies and later applied for a doctorate, for which I researched school vandalism in Kenyan schools. I am indebted to IRO, the interfaculty council for development cooperation, which offered me a scholarship and to Professor Danny Wildemeersch and Professor Jan Maaschelein, who were wonderful promotors!”
“Leuven was quite a challenge when it came to the language, although I did manage to learn een klein beetje Nederlands (laughs). It is not always easy to establish new relationships in a new environment, but I made good friends and I am still in contact with most of them. What I miss most about Leuven is the excellent accommodation for cyclists and the enriching intercultural mosaic created in the city by its diverse residents.”
“Back in Nairobi, I met Rev. Dr. Peter Gichure, who was one of the founding members of LEASU, the Leuven East African Students Union. We realised that we had both kept in touch with many of our Leuven colleagues. So we decided to try to bring everyone together and thus the idea of an East Africa Leuven alumni community was born. We worked out the logistics and on 15 February we had a wonderful reunion at the Catholic University of Eastern Africa where 20 members gathered in a wonderful garden setting. Stella Artois beer and sandwiches covered the tables – typically reminiscent of our Oude Markt experiences! The oldest alumnus had been in Leuven in 1982, and the youngest had just returned in 2008! There was great enthusiasm about the initiative, so we got off to a perfect start.”
“The network cuts across the various disciplines at Leuven: we have theologians, pharmacists, engineers, educationists, biostatisticians, philosophers, etc. Our members come from the region of East Africa: Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. Most of those who attended live and work in and around Nairobi, but we are in close association with other alumni working at various institutions in the region. As for me, I am currently working as a lecturer and an assistant co-ordinator of a programme offered by DePaul University (USA) in partnership with Tangaza College, here in Kenya.”
“With the alumni network, we hope to develop a strong team of experts who can engage in dialogue with our leaders, based upon our various fields of expertise. We also hope to liaise with the Leuven umbrella alumni association and the Belgian Embassy, not only to promote Leuven in Africa but also to give something back to the community. To this end, we hope to establish and develop viable and transformative initiatives that will not only benefit our people here in the South, but hopefully also those in Belgium.”
Want to know more?
For more information, send an e-mail to: ealeuvenalumni@gmail.com
