Living in Canada, where English and French are spoken, I still hold onto my Swahili heritage, which has had a significant impact on my personal life. Until secondary school, I learned everything in Swahili, and finding resources that were tailored to our needs as children was a big challenge. This fueled my passion for creating Swahili Kids, where I can develop materials suitable for children not only in Tanzania, East Africa, or African countries but also for children in diaspora who have Swahili as their background but lack access to such resources.

As a co-founder of Swahili Kids, I moved to Ottawa as a student at Carleton University and proceeded with graduate studies before starting work. Although I feel like I have a new identity in Ottawa, I still consider myself belonging to two places – Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, where I grew up in a village, and Canada, where I now live.

Being born and living in Kilimanjaro and developing a sense of belonging to my community is something I hold dear to my heart. Swahili is one aspect of Tanzanian culture that I carry with me, as it is a unifying language for over one hundred different tribes in Tanzania. Language has been a big part of my life, and Swahili Kids is a way to bridge gaps for children who have Swahili as their background but lack access to resources.

Juliet and I started Swahili Kids in 2020, and it has been a passion project for us. I specialize in Swahili content creation, while Juliet specializes in IT and designs the resources to be shareable and user-friendly. Although we are not funded, we have big dreams of creating high-quality resources, such as adding voice-overs to our little books and hiring an illustrator. Our biggest challenge is funding, but we are also seeking expertise on children’s education and facing the challenge of making parents understand the importance of language.

I treasure my culture and wear traditional clothing, such as Kanga and Kitenge, which make me feel proud and connected to my culture. Tanzanian music and food like pilau also bring me back home. In conclusion, I advise being proud of your culture and identity, and if you have children who speak Swahili, do not let them lose their language.

To connect with Swahili kids and learn more about this incredible project, visit:  https://www.swahilikids.com/