From left: Kenyans living in France Mical Njiri, Clarice Caroli, Julius Pambo and Collince Muka.
When we read about France in books, it is all about croissants, cobblestone streets, and, of course, the Eiffel Tower. But when you land in Paris, all you imagined dulls in comparison to the vibrancy of the city, its picturesque streets and at the heart of it all, its people.
But beyond the shining lights, Paris, France, is also a place of discovery, struggle, and growth. Here, young Kenyans are carving their niches as they pursue their dreams in this land of art and baguettes. Among them is Collines Muka, an English and French teacher in Versailles, France.
Collines Muka, 26, is a Teacher and Apprentice in Paris. He teaches English in Versailles and studies at a training institute in Paris.
Collines moved to France in 2023 through the English Language Assistance Programme, an exchange initiative between Kenya and France.
“This programme gave me a chance to teach English in a high school in Versailles. After the contract ended, I was lucky to get a full-time teaching job. Later, I joined an apprenticeship programme where I’m studying to teach English to adults, especially football managers. It has been an incredible journey of professional growth and cultural learning.”
Collines has always been passionate about language, culture, and education. When the opportunity to teach in France came up, he knew it was the perfect chance to grow both personally and professionally. “I saw it as a way to experience a new education system, improve my French, and expand my teaching experience beyond Kenya,” he explains.
Before moving abroad, he studied a Bachelor’s degree in French at Pwani University in Kilifi, graduating in early 2023.
“After graduating, I worked for about one year at Alliance Française in Mombasa as a pedagogical assistant.”
When he first arrived in France, Collines was both excited and overwhelmed. “My first impression was how differently people spoke French,” he recalls with a laugh. “The French I had learned in Kenya was textbook French, but here, it felt completely new. I felt like I was starting to learn the language again.”
Instead of taking more language classes, Collines chose a different path. “I decided to learn from the people,” he explains. “I talked to locals even when my French was poor. They corrected me every time.”
Living in Paris, he says, has been rewarding but expensive.
“Paris is very costly, especially for students and young professionals. Housing and daily expenses can be expensive, but there is government aid. For example, the State pays part of my rent through a programme called CAF (Caisse d’Alloctions Familiales). So, my rent is around Sh89,880, they cover half of it.”
For Collines, homesickness is his biggest challenge. “I miss my family and our gatherings. I also miss Kenyan food, especially ugali and sukuma wiki. I once tried to make ugali with rice flour, it didn’t go well. It took me six months to find maize flour in France.”
Collines teaches on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays. His learners are children aged between three and four years.
“In France, teachers greet students warmly every morning, show affection and make them happy to be in school. It is unlike Kenya, where discipline came first.”
He teaches English lessons throughout the day, with breaks for lunch and preparation. His classes end around 4:30 pm. On Wednesdays, he attends his apprenticeship classes in Paris.
“I study from 8.30 am to 4.30 pm. It is very intensive,” he says. “The programme, Language Connection, trains English teachers for special purposes, in my case, English for football managers.”
When he is not working or studying, Collines loves to travel. “I enjoy exploring new places. I have been to Marseille, Lyon, Dijon, Belgium, Switzerland, and Spain.”
He hopes to bring his international experience back to Kenya. “Of course, I want to return home. My dream is to continue teaching internationally and later help develop teacher training programmes in Kenya, especially in areas like English for sports, business, and technology.”
A chance to restart
At just 21 years old, Mical Njiri is living in Paris, working as an au pair (young person who lives with a host family from another country and helps with childcare). Her journey from Kenya to France is one filled with courage, discovery, and a deep love for languages.
Mical Njiri, 21, lives in Paris as an au pair while improving her French and applying for a degree in Foreign Languages.
“I started learning French back in primary school. But it was in high school that I really fell in love with it. Our teacher would show us videos of people shopping, ordering food, or walking through the streets of Paris.”
During school holidays, Mical would watch travel vlogs about France, imagining herself strolling through the same streets.
“At first, I only wanted to visit,” she says. “When I joined a French holiday programme at Alliance Française, I met people my age who were studying in France. That is when I realised you do not have to be rich to go abroad. If you really want it, you can make it happen.”
After high school, Mical joined Strathmore University in 2022 to study Financial Engineering. But she did not finish her studies. “It was tough. The math was advanced and abstract. I tried to push through, but deep down, I knew it was not for me.”
Luckily, she had never stopped learning French at Alliance Française. One day, a family friend shared a link to the Teaching Assistant Programme in France (TAPIF).
“My mom sent it to me, and I applied. Luckily, I got in.” says Mical.
In September 2024, Mical arrived in France as a language assistant.
“Before leaving, I promised myself this one year in France would be for finding my true passion. I did not want to spend my life doing something that I was not passionate about.”
Her teaching contract was set to end in April, but was extended until June because of her excellent performance. “When I finished, I wanted to keep improving my French, so I became an au pair. I needed to reach a level where I could study fully in French.”
Now, Mical is applying to begin a degree in Foreign Languages in France next September. “I did not finish my degree in Kenya, but I do not regret it. I believe life allows us to restart.”
Moving to France came with surprises, one being how much the French value rest. “They really take their breaks seriously. When it is time to rest, they rest. No one disturbs them.”
Adjusting to the French language outside the classroom was another challenge. “They speak fast. In school, teachers are patient. But in real life, people talk quickly and use slang. I had to adapt and learn to listen with emotion, not just grammar.”
Mical did not stop at teaching and childcare. She also found a way to use her language skills in real life. “I signed up as a freelance translator online. Sometimes foreigners in France need help at the hospital or with paperwork. I help translate between them and the staff.”
She also appreciates France’s strong social system. “The healthcare is amazing. Once you get a medical card, 70 percent of your hospital bills are covered, and sometimes even 100 percent if you have private insurance. Even people who lose their jobs get monthly support from the government. Public schools are free. It is a country that really takes care of its people.”
However, Mical says that finding housing can be tricky. “I have been lucky. As a teacher, I stayed in the school’s housing, and as an au pair, I live with my host family. But my friends had a hard time finding apartments because you need a bank account to rent, and the bank needs an address. It is a loop.”
One of her favourite things about living in France is the chance to travel. “With a Schengen visa, you can go anywhere in Europe easily and cheaply. During Valentine’s, I travelled to Rome, Barcelona, Lisbon, and Porto. All those flights cost about Sh15,000 only.”
Mical dreams of becoming a global citizen. “I do not want to stay in one country. I want to keep learning languages. Spanish and Chinese are next and work in international translation. I want to live, learn, and connect with people all over the world.”
Unexpected French adventure
Julius Pambo, 29, works as a supply chain engineer in Paris.
Julius Pambo is 29 years old and lives in Paris, France, where he works as a supply chain engineer.
“I studied industrial engineering at university. Supply chain is part of engineering too, only that it focuses more on logistics, procurement and production.”
Julius’s academic path took him from Mauritius to France. He attended École Centrale de Nantes, one of the top engineering schools in France.
“I began at the Mauritius campus in 2016 and later joined the main campus in France in 2019 and graduated in 2021.”
After graduation, he started working right away. “It has been good so far. But this month, I decided to go back to school to pursue a master’s degree in management and international trade.”
Moving to France was never part of Julius’s plan.
“To be honest, France was not even on my list. I got a scholarship in 2016 when I was studying at the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) during my first semester. My French engineering school was setting up its first sub-Saharan African campus in Mauritius, and they partnered with L’Oréal to give scholarships to Kenyan students.”
Representatives from L’Oréal and the school visited Julius’s high school, Alliance High School, to promote the programme. “I was not even one of the main invitees,” he recalls. “But my friends said, ‘Let us go see what this is about.’ Most people did not take it seriously; many wanted to go to the US or the UK.”
That decision changed his life.
“The scholarship from L’Oréal was fully funded. It gave me a chance to study engineering at an international level and eventually move to France.”
When Julius arrived in France in the summer of 2019, he immediately noticed how different life was. “The first thing that surprised me was the sun. In Kenya, the sun sets around 6pm or 7 pm. But in France, at 10 pm, the sun was still up.”
Far from home, Julius has found ways to hold on to his Kenyan roots. “Ohangla music keeps me connected to home. I also ask friends travelling from Kenya to bring me traditional food and clothes.”
He laughs as he shows his Kenyan bracelet. “Most Kenyans abroad wear this. It is a simple way to show who we are.”
When Julius arrived in France, he continued his engineering studies at École Centrale de Nantes. He completed his internship in 2020 in northern France. “Internships are taken very seriously here. I was paid Sh180,768 a month, and it was tax-free. For a student, that was a big deal.”
After graduating in 2021, Julius’s path to work life was not smooth. The Covid-19 pandemic had disrupted everything.
“I went back to Kenya and even closed my French bank account. When I returned to France for graduation, I only got a tourist visa instead of a long-term one. It was very hard finding a job, renting a house, or even getting the right papers.”
Eventually, he managed to regularise his stay and find work. “My first job was temporary, replacing someone on leave but after two weeks, my boss offered me a permanent contract. That changed everything. It is not easy for foreigners to get permanent contracts in France.”
Julius believes it is cheaper to live in France than in Kenya. “Food in French supermarkets is very affordable. You can buy a lot for Sh4,070, chicken, eggs, rice, everything. Public transport is also cheap and efficient. I pay Sh13,260 per month, and it covers buses, trains, and trams.”
However, rent is a different story.
“Rent in France is expensive. I pay Sh180,768 a month. But for students or people struggling financially, the government helps through a programme called CAF. They can pay up to 70percent of your rent.”
Mind-opening experience
Clarice Caroli, 23, is an English Assistant in Calais.
Clarice Caroli, 23 years old, studied a Bachelor of Arts in French and Psychology at the University of Nairobi.
Today, Clarice finds herself far from home, in the northern French city of Calais.
“Calais is right on the border between France and the United Kingdom. I am here as an English language assistant in two schools. In French, they call them collèges, meaning primary schools.”
Leaving Kenya for France was not an easy decision, but it was one she had dreamed about for years. “I studied French as a foreign language in Kenya, and I told myself, why not go to the country where French comes from?” She says. Her family supported her decision. “My dad was very happy, but he cried when I was leaving for the airport.”
Read: From a dishwasher: How Cyprian Ajevi turned leftovers into a thriving cooking business in the US
Clarice came to France through a France Éducation programme, which brings Kenyan students to French schools every year for a cultural exchange. It allows young Kenyans to assist English teachers in France while immersing themselves in French culture.
Living abroad has already started to change how Clarice sees herself and her place in the world. “This experience is opening my mind. When you meet people from different countries, you learn to see things differently. Sometimes you come thinking you will be a teacher, but after meeting others, you feel inspired to become a lecturer or something bigger.”
Even as she adjusts to life in a new country, Clarice is already exploring. “I have visited some museums. With the programme, we get a card that lets us enter selected museums for free. And of course, I want to see the Eiffel Tower. I saw it so many times in my school French books and I cannot wait to see it in real life. It will feel like the pages have come alive.”
Follow our WhatsApp channel for breaking news updates and more stories like this.
