1. Tell us a bit about yourself
My name is Kelechi EMENIKE, an Electrical/Electronic Engineer, data enthusiast and Python evangelist. I’ve been at Sahara for 6 years, with 5 years as an Information Technology Analyst and 1 year as Business Technology Analyst (Innovation).
2. What’s your motivation for volunteering?
I have a lifelong passion of raising a technology-aware generation globally, and Sahara Foundation’s goals of “empowering the communities where we operate in a sustainable, transparent and efficient manner” aligns with my personal objective.
3. Describe your volunteering experience in October with the Bridging the Gap Scholarship programme?
In October, I had a rare opportunity to partner with the Sahaa Foundation to provide a learning infrastructure for the Bridging the Gap Scholarship programme (aimed to support Internally Displaced Persons in North- East Nigeria). My role in this volunteering partnership was to deploy managed learning software for the students. After days of planning, research, development and implementation, the innovation and technology teams successfully put together the infrastructure needed for this project, and I am truly proud to be a part of the team that made it possible for our young scholars to achieve their dreams.
4. What contribution or achievement are you most proud of?
I hope this question is not work-related, lol. So I’ll answer it as such: I’ve been able to scale through many hurdles, including doing a 9 month full-stack developer programme in 30-days (don’t ask me how), passing the multi-cloud certification exam with Aviatrix at first try, just to mention a few (in 2020). However, my most memorable achievement would be being the coach of the underdog female soccer team of SGL that won gold at the 2019 edition of the Saharalympics – we proved that with hard work and dedication, David can knock down Goliath, and absolutely anything is possible!
5. What other organizations or causes do you support or volunteer for?
I’m passionate about teaching technology. I am the convener of the Python Data Community (a non-profit community of learners of the Python programming language). I’m also a member of the Andela Learning Community, Google Developer Community, Facebook Developer Circles Lagos, Data Science Nigeria (DSN), among others.
6. Do you know about the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)? If yes, what do you think of them?
Yes I know about the SDGs; thy are a summary of an actionable set of plans to make the world the best place to live (so that we don’t all need to go to Mars, lol). For me personally, my passion lies with goals 4 (quality education) and 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure).
7. What message would you like to share with others about volunteering?
Volunteering to me bringa about a sense of fulfilment. Like Edmund Burke wrote, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing”, don’t pass any opportunity to leave a positive mark on the sands of time, every grain of sand in the sea is important.
