KCPE: South Sudanese refugees top at Nakuru school
Mayen Yar Deng, Garang Atem Biar and Atak Matiop Atak. The three South Sudanese refugees topped at Nakuru's Roots Academy in 2020 KCPE exams.
When Mayen Yar Deng joined Roots Academy on the outskirts of Nakuru Town in Class One, little did she know that she would emerge the top Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) examinations candidate in the school.
Yar, who is a South Sudanese refugee living in Kakuma refugee camp, could not hide her joy when she received the results moments after they were released by Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha. She scored 413 marks.
“I can only thank God for giving me good health to tackle the exams and emerge at the top of my class. I attribute my success to discipline. The results are fruits of my hard work and dedication by my teachers who worked tirelessly to ensure I was well-tuned for the exams. I used to wake up at 4am to study. I had no free time,” said Yar who is an orphan.
Yar, who was a Christian Union chairperson in her school, said that it was not easy to get good marks after spending nine months at Kakuma Refugee Camp when the schools were closed due to the outbreak of Covid-19.
"Life at Kakuma Refugee Camp is tough and when the schools were closed due to pandemic, I had to cope with the harsh learning environment of studying in the scorching sun. I studied on an empty stomach. I kept pushing on and my hard work was not in vain," said Yar who hails from Jonglei State in South Sudan.
She thanked her sponsor Seeds of South Sudan, a non-profit organisation for paying her school fees.
“When I came to Kenya, I didn't know how to write. Today I'm on a trajectory to achieving my dreams of becoming a doctor, Roots Academy has become my second root."
She added: "I love this school and Kenya and I pray one day that peace will prevail in South Sudan before I go back to help the needy."
"I promise to work even harder when I join my dream high school, Kenya High School, I want to study hard and go back and help rebuild my country," said Yar.
Unfortunately, Yar says she may not join Kenya High School since her first choice was changed to Alliance Girls High School.
"My teacher told me I could not manage the high marks to join Kenya High, now that I have qualified, I'm worried my dreams may be shattered."
Refugee pupils at Roots Academy excelled and two others Garang Atem Biar scored 403 marks while Atak Matiop Atak scored 402 marks
