This CNN Hero upcycles old computers to open new worlds for young Kenyans
An innovative entrepreneur in Kenya, Ade Kiyiwa, is changing people’s lives through his use of old computers. In a quest to do good for the world, Ade has built a charity called Make It Possible to help young people get access to education, healthcare and financial and employment opportunities.
His latest idea is a program for high school students who can make their own laptops, which he calls the Make It Possible laptop. He has been using old computers to make these laptop computers.
Ade had been in the computer repair business for years when he had the idea to make these laptop computers.
One of his customers is his older brother. When Ade told his parents about the idea, his parents were supportive and gave him the money to make the laptop for his brother. Ade and his brother made the computer, then Ade started collecting donated computers for Make It Possible. That’s how the Make It Possible laptop idea started.
Ade now makes 500 laptop computers every year for Make It Possible. His goal is to make 50,000 laptop computers this year. That’s because of two things: First is, he believes that more people need to know their rights, and second is he wants to use the Make It Possible laptop concept to create new opportunities for Kenyan students.
Ade has been very successful at his business. He was the youngest person to ever sell a computer in Kenya.
He told me that when Make It Possible asked him to build the Make It Possible laptop for the students, Ade started thinking of his customers. He then decided to share what he knew about their problems with the Make It Possible laptop.
He told me that he and the Make It Possible laptop program were born out of his desire to make a difference in young people’s lives.
Ade told me that people need to change through their use of technology. He wants to do good for the world through the Make It Possible laptop program. Ade says he has used