My “Technology for Social Change” Journey
David Watibini is a young enterprising software developer and technopreneur passionate about solving community and societal problems using technology. Finishing High School and getting exposed to tech events boosted his urge to get into the tech space, which he hoped would help him solve problems like inequalities in education, health, public safety, and climate change; these problems which he experienced at home and at a societal level. He claims the happiest day of his life was the day he wrote his first line of code ‘hello world!’. His mission statement, “The potential for social changemakers armed with today’s digital platforms in partnership with large and growing virtual networks can dramatically improve the human condition,” has been his driving force to build excellent applications like Chanjo. Chanjo, a web-based application, keeps track of a child’s vaccination schedules via texts to the mother. His involvement in technology and as an agent of social change got him elected as a Brand Ambassador to the United Nations Youth Association Kenya (UNYA Kenya), a youth-led NGO consisting entirely of youth volunteers. UNYAs is a great way to learn about the United Nations and get other youth involved in understanding and sharing the UN Charter’s ideals and other universal principles, a position he holds to today. Through this organization, he has worked on projects like ‘Changamsha Mtoto Wa Afrika’ in Narok County, Go Green project, Adopt a child, and several other projects that help fulfill the United Nations SDGs mandate. His idea of a better Kenya is where citizens’ solutions to problems will come from them rather than wait for international governments to intervene. He believes the slogan ‘Made in Kenya, Buy Kenya’ is the only solution to help Kenyans climb up the social-economic ladder.
