From dumpsite to a dream: Gloria's silent cry for hope

Gloria [Selina Mutua, Standard]

At the edge of Kitengela’s Parkview dumping site, where smoke rises from heaps of waste, and the stench of hardship fills the air, a young girl stands with quiet determination.

Her name is Gloria, an 18-year-old who recently completed her high school education, and whose story paints the painful reality many girls face, as well as the powerful hope that still drives them forward.

Gloria is among the candidates who sat for the 2025 KCSE examinations. She was happy that she attained a mean grade of C minus, though she had expected to perform better.

While the grade may seem modest to some, for her it represents survival against overwhelming odds. She isn’t discouraged by her results; instead, she sees them as a pathway to pursue her dream career.

She hopes to join the Kenya Medical Training College (KMTC) to pursue nursing. Gloria is driven by a deep desire to change her life and lift her family out of poverty.

Her struggle began two years ago while she was in Form Three. Life at home became increasingly difficult, forcing her to make a heartbreaking decision.

The dumping site in Kitengela Parkview became her only hope for survival. During the holidays, when schools closed, she collected plastic waste to sell, earning just enough to support her family and stay in school. With the little money she made, she bought food, sanitary pads, and contributed to her school fees and basic shopping.

“Sometimes we don’t even have food to eat,” Gloria says.

For her, being a girl child in such circumstances has been especially painful. She describes the experience as the hardest chapter of her life, one marked by hunger, exhaustion, and constant uncertainty.

She says that poverty is the worst enemy in her life, and she appreciates the grace that God has carried her through to this point.

Despite everything, she has hope for a better tomorrow. She believes that getting an education is the only way out.

Today, having finished high school, her greatest prayer is to continue her studies and build a future where she no longer has to choose between dignity and survival.

“All I want is to further my studies and have a better life,” she says. “I pray that God will make a way for me to join college.”

Is this life worthy for a girl child?