30-Year-Old Woman Underperformed in 'BECE' & Worked as Housegirl Now a Landlady
- Mary Wanjiku Gachie's future looked bleak in 2006 after she scored 180 marks in her KCPE exams
- She turned her life around after secondary school and not only got employed but also rose to the level of a manager
- Wanjiku left the corporate world and got into real estate, now she boasts of owning a prime housing project in Runda
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In 2006, Mary Wanjiku Gachie sat her Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) exams at Ikinu Model Primary School in Kiambu and scored a paltry 180 marks.
Source: UGC
Her future looked dead and buried in the eyes of many people, but it was a setback that would serve as a testimony for the future.
String of setbacks
Speaking to Hillary Lisimba, Wanjiku revealed that she was forced to become a house girl since her mother was unable to get a secondary school for her.
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Her education dreams seemed to get back on track after one of her aunts offered to pay her fees.
"In April, that is four months after joining secondary school, my mum passed on," she expressed.
Even in the midst of all the challenges, Wanjiku managed to complete secondary school and, this time too did not perform well.
Promoted from secretary to manager
After her Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE), she took a few short courses in computer, French, and driving.
In 2013, she secured a job as a secretary at Africoff Trading and managed to rise through the ranks to the level of a manager.
"They gave me a promotion after learning that I had mastered the tactics of the company to the level of being an expert," she said.
As fate would have it, Wanjiku's rise to the top came with more good tidings as she met the love of her life who would soon become her husband.
Turning point
After deciding to get married, they pooled resources together and started a housing project in Runda that culminated in several houses both for rent and sale.
"In June of 2020, I resigned and became a director of our investment company where I now channel my mind and energy into making the project a success," she concluded.
At the moment, Wanjiku looks back at her past in awe, unable to believe that she rose from a hopeless place to a landlady in one of Nairobi's prime suburbs.
Kathy Andrews
Wanjiku's case is reminiscent of Linnet Kathambi aka Kathy Andrews who dropped out of secondary school but now runs a multi-million timber business called SUNG Timber.
Apart from the timber outlet, Linnet is also the director of Lyn's Stays and owns a host of apartments around Nairobi.
Having risen from the bottom, she currently gives back to society by building houses for the downtrodden.
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