Week 3 in Kenya: Friends for Life

We’re back with the Emerging Leaders Academy to check in on the third and final week of the residential.

The week began with an immersion trip to Kibera, hosted by the Centre for Urban Mission, a ministry of Church Army Africa. Kibera, one of the largest and most densely populated neighbourhoods of Nairobi, was both a challenging and inspiring setting for the group’s final days together. Guided by the Centre’s team, participants walked the streets meeting local residents and visiting examples of vocational training that give young people new opportunities for the future. From the practical work of mechanics to the creativity of a glass-blowing art workshop, the visits showed how faith and community can spark hope even in difficult circumstances.

With the team at the Tafakari Centre for Urban Mission in Kibera

A Bible study on Ephesians 2 provided a powerful theological lens for the day. Reflecting on Paul’s words about the household of God, the group considered what it means to belong together across barriers of background, language, and culture. In Kibera, this vision felt alive and urgent: the Church as a place where walls come down, and where people discover dignity and belonging in Christ.

Hope in hard places: a drawing by Victor from Panama, Anglican Communion Youth Network.

To process what they had seen and heard, the group turned to poetry and song including, for example:

As you ride through the streets of Kibera, you feel the bumpy roads, highs and lows just like the faces; some happy, some mellow, sometimes lively, sometimes slow.

Here in Kibera, the sun strikes through broken windows. Yet it shines bright in the eye of the children.

Down narrow alleys, prayers ascend like fire, faith carries dreams above in tangled wire.

Kibera, a place where a million stories begin

Mama hustling chapatis from a tin pan,

Papa chasing jobs that never stay

Youth with degrees but no jobs to stick to

Yet in all these, the passion and drive to live every new day with hope lingers on.

For many, writing was a way to glimpse the beauty of God’s presence in unexpected places. The poems revealed Kibera not simply as a place of hardship, but as a community of resilience, joy, and deep faith in Christ.

Midweek, the group also had the opportunity to visit All Saints’ Cathedral in Nairobi, the historic seat of the Anglican Church of Kenya. Following directly after Kibera, it was a moment to connect the energy of the grassroots with the long-standing traditions of the wider Church – a powerful reminder of the Christian witness in Kenya.

Finally, to celebrate the end of the residential, the Academy took a trip to Nairobi National Park. Surrounded by open savannah with the city skyline in the background, participants had the chance to see Kenya’s wildlife up close and to experience another side of the country’s beauty. It was a fitting conclusion and a moment of fun before the journey home.

As the week drew to a close, so too did the Academy. After three weeks of teaching, travel, and immersion, participants left Kenya with new friendships, new questions, and fresh energy for leadership in their own contexts.

Thank you for following the journey. Stay tuned for updates.