Biography

Qalicha Boru works as a giraffe guard (he literally guards giraffes!) in Nairobi, but it is in the arid district of Moyale, where he grew up in Northern Kenya, that he has become a Local Hero. Long regarded a marginal area by governments, Moyale suffers from high rates of poverty, recurrent droughts, tribal animosities and high rates of HIV/AIDS leaving children to fend for themselves or be forced into marriage at a young age to provide relatives a dowry. Qalicha has been working slowly and methodically for several years with the local community and government leaders in the Moyale District to address the great needs of this community. He founded Community Agenda for Sustainable Development (CASDEV), an organization that seeks to eradicate poverty and address critical socio-economic and environmental issues in rural Moyale. With a focus on sustainable solutions, Qalicha devised a vocational training program to provide single mothers with skills training so that they can generate income and ensure their children's educational and medical needs are taken of. 

By engaging government leaders and local citizens, Qalicha is helping to redefine the view and outlook of the long neglected community. Civic engagement is up and new ideas are emerging on how to sustainable solve critical issues. So far, CASDEV has trained 20 youth and 20 single mothers in income generating activities and ensured the young children are enrolled in school and receiving needed medical care.