Joshua Namisi: CES helps build a surgeon

Joshua Namisi has overcome many barriers on his way to becoming a medical student, with plans to be a surgeon. CES is pleased to have supported him on his way.

Editor’s note: This article is from a lightly-edited transcription of a conversation I had with a CES-supported student, held in June 2025.

My name is Joshua Namisi. I am a fifth year medical student at Uzima University in Kisumu, Kenya. I'm pursuing medicine and surgery. I would like to share briefly about my background.

I am a third born in a family of seven children. Given the size of our family, my parents found it very difficult to take us all through primary education, not to mention secondary education. One reason is that they never had jobs that they could depend on to facilitate our education. So, three of my siblings had to drop out of school when they were in primary. They never got a chance to pursue their secondary education.

However, I was privileged to find a person, one of one of my neighbors at our home in Busia County in Kenya, who was like a Good Samaritan to facilitate my primary education. I did my KCPE (the national Kenya Certificate of Primary Education) examination 2015. I did well, scoring 339 marks out of a possible 500 

Having achieved those marks, the person who was paying for my primary education was impressed. At first, he was very willing to take me to a local secondary school around Busia, but unfortunately he lost interest in supporting me. I found it very difficult, because having lost interest from this Good Samaritan, I couldn't continue with my secondary education.

My parents were unable to help much. They’re peasant farmers, and used to plant some crops in our village to sell in the nearby town. The income they made wasn't enough to take me through secondary education.

So, my parents resolved that they would take me to my aunt's place in the city of Kakamega (where CES Kenya is based). I stayed there for six months. But my aunt and her husband already had family to support through school. So they just decided to take me to Shieywe Secondary School in Kakamega, where one of their children had attended, not knowing who would facilitate my secondary education. They took that step of faith.

They were able to spare some funds for my education, but I was often sent home because the school fees had not been fully paid. That interrupted my education, because every time I was sent home, I missed out on what my classmates were continuing to learn.  And, it was difficult for me to catch up. Each time I returned I had a lot to write, a lot to read, and sometimes when reading without listening to the to the teacher, it is difficult to grasp the content.

This led me to not do well in my in my studies in Form One (equivalent to North American Grade Nine). This went on for five or six months. I missed two exams because of not paying school fees.  I went through a season of depression. Here I was, a student who had been a diligent learner in Primary. I had a dream in me. I wanted to change my background, to change it completely, even my community at large. But seeing how the situation was and how everything unfolded, I wasn't sure if one day I'll be able to change the whole story.

During Form One I kept praying for change to happen, but nothing happened. I scored a C Minus in Form One, and that was not my potential, because I knew very well I was capable of scoring very high marks in secondary school.

CES brings a new opportunity for Joshua

So it happened in Form Two, first term, the class teacher called my name, and told me that my name was amongst the list of the students who were supposed to be sent back home because they had not cleared their school fees. I was not even allowed to sit in class. In Form Two, first trimester, it happened that I had not settled my school fees for that term, and the time for examination had reached, and I was supposed to sit for the exams, but I had not paid so I couldn't be allowed.

I was chased from class to go to my aunt's place and ask for her to come and pay my fees so I would be allowed to sit for the exams. I remember that I was crying. I didn’t want to go back home, because I knew very well it wouldn't help at all. I'd just stay with my aunt, and they couldn't do anything to change the situation. 

So I was in one of the corridors in school, crying, crying. And after crying for like, 30 minutes, I was really sobering. And then in the corridor I met one of my teachers. She asked about my situation, and I narrated the whole story. I told her about my situation at home, the situation at school, and my dream and the purpose that I really desired to accomplish here on Earth, and what I believe to be the potential I have to change the whole story in my background and my community at large. So I even narrated to her that I had not stayed much in class -- most of the times I was out of school because of school fees.

So she listened to me very well, and she introduced me to CES. She went and talked to the class teacher. The class teacher talked to the Deputy Principal, who then talked to the teacher who was the CES coordinator in that school. From there, I came to meet the CES leadership in Kenya, and they listened to my story. I narrated my potential, and they agreed to offer help. That's how the CES organization came into my life.

And from that first term, first trimester, my school fees were paid. And after settling my school fees for that first trimester, they even went ahead and settled for my upkeep. I remember there were some supplies, even food, and some personal items that were being brought by CES leadership that really helped me during my time in high school.

And from that time, every trimester CES Kenya paid my school fees, up to Form Four. I really concentrated on my studies. This was possible because since that time, I was never sent home for school fees. I got an opportunity to focus on my studies, and my performance changed completely. I used to score C Minus. That was the last score I got in first term Form Two. But from second term, it started to increase gradually. I started performing well in every exam. I became subject champion many times, and this had never happened to me before.

The teachers in the school were amazed at the difference in my performance. They didn’t understand the problems I had with paying school fees before CES came into my life, and what it was like after I received support. I had time and energy to concentrate on my studies.

I became one of the top three students, even in Form Three. I was subject champion in most of my exams in Form Four.

So I was able to do very well up to 2019. That’s when I sat for my KCSE (Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education, a national examination required of all Kenyan high school graduates). I scored an A plain (Editor’s note: that’s an “A” without a plus or a minus, and truly an amazing score on the KCSE), and that is the highest grade that can be achieved in the KCSE. I was the best student in my school. After that, after scoring that A plain, I qualified to study medicine and surgery at university.

So I went to the CES office to report my results to CES leadership. I remember that Mr. Malik and Madam Sarah were so happy with my performance.

And after secondary school was finished, I was given three months to go and mentor some students in my school. I taught them chemistry and mathematics, as a way of giving back to my school. That was very fulfilling, and I will always remember that opportunity to give back to my school. (Editor’s note: Joshua is talking about the CES Mentorship program, in which secondary school graduates are invited to work as mentors and teacher assistants in their schools, prior to joining university. They receive a stipend for doing so).

Joining university on the way to becoming a doctor

Having done my KCSE, I was able to join Uzima University in Kisumu, Kenya in 2020 to pursue medicine and surgery. Since 2020, CES been working with me, partially paying my university fees. My parents were expected to settle some amount of the fees, and CES would pay a fraction.

It was not easy for me to even get the fees to sit for the exams and concentrate on my studies in my first year and second year. CES used to settle their part of the fees very early, at the beginning of each trimester. But I had issue with my parents because they could not afford the fraction that it was left for them to pay.

So most of the times it was during exams, I used to struggle in my first year and second year, because the fraction that was left for my parents to settle had not been paid. That resulted for me, in some struggling with the finance department until the very last minute. It's whether I'm allowed to do exams (Editor’s note: yes, in Kenya there are fees to write exams. If you don’t pay, you don’t get to write the exam) that was making me to have unsettled life. I couldn't concentrate so much in my studies, even having achieved the grade and gotten a chance to pursue medicine and surgery. The cost of the course itself was very heavy too.

Without concentrating and focusing on studies, I couldn't do well. That is not who I am. I really believed in myself, and I still do believe in myself. I cannot settle for less, and I am a person who can achieve greater things. But I never had a settled life in my first year and second year. 

So I came to the CES office and narrated the whole story to Madam Sarah (CES Kenya office manager), and our patron, Mr. Malik Khaemba. The good thing about these two people, and I really thank God for them, is that they always listen to us. Every time I come to the CES offices, they always give me a listening ear to narrate my story and to express myself.

So I told them everything -- how it was very difficult to settle the fraction of fees that was left for my mom and dad. And they listened to me, and they promised me that if an opportunity arose, I will be given full sponsorship.

Just the following trimester, I was called by Madam Sarah, and she told me to come to the office, and to bring a letter regarding the school fees, for applying for full sponsorship to university. As a result, I got a chance to be sponsored fully in third year, fourth year, and now in fifth year. I've been in full sponsorship under CES Kenya, and that has allowed me to do very well in my university studies.

CES coming in and offering me full sponsorship has really impacted me in a way that I cannot explain in words, because it has made me to have all the time to read, and all the time to go to the clinic and interact with patients. Even with the small amount of spare time I have, I normally go to the clinics, where I interact with patients.

I am currently rotating in orthopedics and trauma, but I've rotated in so many other specialties and departments like obstetrics and gynecology. It is only after students have paid full school fees and don't have any fee arrears that they are allowed to access university services. So having been sponsored fully by CES has allowed me to access all the university services, including library and being allowed to go and interact with patients, clerking patients, and being taught by the consultants. It has really impacted me, and I'm doing so well in my studies courtesy of CES coming in.

I am deeply grateful for what CES has done so far. And it's really timely, and I really thank God for CES and all the services, all the finances that they have offered, and they have continued to offer me support.

One of my dreams is to give back to my country of Kenya, and even my community of Busia County, because so many people die because of ignorance, such as not knowing the early symptoms and signs of deadly and diseases. So they normally wait until the disease is chronic and advanced before they will seek medical attention. That is a narrative and a story that I'm very much interested in changing and giving back to my community. I strongly believe I'm going to be a good medical doctor, and I'm going to give back to my community and serve the community.

Joseph looks ahead

After pursuing my undergraduate studies at Ujima University, I would really love to specialize in internal medicine in my master's. And I believe that God willing and working with CES and the services that I received from CES, the financial support and every other kind of support, not forgetting the emotional support. Madam Sarah and Mr. Edwin (Edwin Juma Nyongesa, chair of CES Alumni) often check to find out how I'm faring on in school.