Evelyn Mogeni, popularly know as 'Nyasu' first knew her work was important when she showed it to the visiting institution, Groundforce, the global leader in water solutions. One of the senior staff members mentioned the incredible work she does in Kibera on LinkedIn. At the time she hadn’t joined and a fellow employee made her aware of the post.

Evelyn is always among the first at the Kibera Town Center's working desk because her work requires her to be early. As early as before people could start using the bathing shower waters. She would first collect water samples from the tap inside the center’s cafeteria before taking on the streets for the various water points belonging to the center. 

She’s among the three women in a mostly male dominated technical department for reasons that are understandable in this area. 

Her path to gaining technical skills was not through the traditional school system. She took advantage of the various employee development programs offered at the work Human Needs Project to advance her study. She attended short courses with the Davies and Shirt-lift. 

Through the center's support she has continued to pursue skills that are effective for her role.

Nyasu remembers a time when she told me that she would really want to connect with women in the community. I remember very well too because at the time, there was a lot of home fires caused by poor cooking gas methods. She had an affordable stove at home and was also being sold at the center. She wanted to engage with more people but was still in a role that couldn’t allow her to. 

“My current status as someone who’s skilled gives me more confidence and also people like it when you mention water technician ’ (broadens smile)’. She adds more weight to her titles and on weekends when the days are slow, you’ll find her with her daughter at the office going through technical manuals. 

Rising through the professional ranks as a woman meant she observed how socially, emotionally, and physically daunting a woman’s life can be. She, herself, has walked long distances for water with a child on her back. On our walks to the various water points, she would keenly observe young girls carrying heavy jerrycans, and her smile would shrink. “I see this on a daily basis,” Nyasu whispered, turning toward my camera.

Nyasu is always looking to learn. She mentioned that whenever she leaves a position, she recommends that the administration replace her with another woman. “That way, I’m not moving alone.” Her smile brightened and she grew energized as she shared how she can now attend water meetings—including those with UN officials—and be given opportunities to provide meaningful input on matters affecting women.

“You have to be friendly and also aware,” she says on how she approaches strangers. “Not many people are willing to give a drop of water; they aren’t convinced of what I will do with it. Being seen regularly is key.” When she identifies a place where getting water might be difficult, she tries to find a way to be friendly. “I’ll keep going until they agree,” she says with a broad smile. “I’ll even buy their mandazi,” she adds, smiling broadly.

Nyasu’s life has also been shaped by deeply personal factors; she lost her child, and the empathy she feels for other suffering women and children is what drives her to help. “You might not understand, but I gain more strength from this. This job forced me to go out when I could have easily shut down.”

Profiling Nyasu is a profound testament to the fact that the passionate pursuit of skills knows no age. The added dimension of community underscores the critical need for more women who can smile broadly and take life and water one drop at a time.

Over years of testing, Evelyn has quietly built a vital, comprehensive database on local water quality. If explored and utilized by community planners, her data has the potential to permanently improve public health and ensure clean, safe drinking water for everyone in Kibera.