AKA Mombasa student advocates for diversity through 'Project Pluralism' initiative
World Water Day: AKA Mombasa student creates inexpensive electricity supply and water purification system
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Aga Khan Academy reps visit Dhaka
Mukhi Family: Cherishing the Academy's nurturing environment
“Through our chain of observation, the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa surely plays an active role in the holistic development of every child. This is our consistent finding all through the two years of IB Diploma programme our daughter studied. This two-year journey at Aga Khan Academy Mombasa was fully laden with profound experiences that we cherish, as we have eventually seen our daughter progress in all domains of development.”
Faliha Altaf Mukhi graduated from the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa in 2017 with an International Baccalaureate Diploma and is now pursuing her Bachelor’s degree in Global Business and Digital Art at the University of Waterloo, Canada. Faliha's proud parents, Aneela and Altaf Mukhi, are very happy with their child’s experience at the Academy. “The overall progress that we have seen in her is outstanding, both academically and non-academically!” they exclaim.
Faliha’s parents reside in Kampala, Uganda. Enrolling their daughter at the Aga Khan Academy, they say, was one of their best decisions. They feel that the educational experience provided by the Academy is exceptional, in the Eastern African region and beyond.
According to her parents, Faliha was able to take advantage of a number of development opportunities during her two years at the Academy. For example, she was the president of the Green Gang, an environmental protection endeavour, and was also involved in reporting for the school's website. In addition, Faliha participated in several information technology projects such as database creation and graphic design – she designed certificates, logos and marketing materials. “This experience at the Academy contributed tremendously towards her dream career in digital art. Through the Academy, she also had an opportunity to intern at the Aga Khan Foundation Uganda which further increased her IT skills and leadership capacity,” her parents mention proudly.
“The Aga Khan Academy Mombasa is modern and well informed in implementing an effective educational approach,” say Aneela and Altaf. They particularly appreciated the communication facilitated by the Academy through which parents are kept up to date on the curriculum, activities, assignments, results as well as overall performance. “This regular monitoring through effective means of communication helps the parents to take immediate action and ask for assistance from the very cooperative and talented teachers,” they comment.
For Faliha’s parents, the Aga Khan Academy helped tap into the hidden talents and potential of their child. “The day we were informed by our daughter’s mentor that she had successfully led her team towards their destination on their mountaineering adventure on Mount Kassigau, we felt very proud indeed! It made us reflect on her perseverance, leadership and analytical ability for problem solving. These innate abilities, somehow, remained subdued before this experience at the Academy,” they note.
“I can happily say that the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa expresses all the traits of a learning community with all stakeholders having shared values and vision. Students at the Academy are active participants in learning... Such an environment truly nurtures them fully,” says Aneela. Moreover, Faliha’s parents find the systems at the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa to be well organised, and they commend: “Residential and academic, both sectors are remarkably performing to the best of their ability. Well done all!”
AKA Mombasa’s student wins laurels at national chess tournaments
Aga Khan Music Initiative performance
Highlights from the Aga Khan Music Initiative's performance at the Aga Khan Academy Hyderabad.
Photos by Nabil Patel
AKA Mombasa August - December 2020 wall planner
Sazil Ramani – an ‘Academy advocate’ for service and social change
– Sazil Ramani, grade 10, Aga Khan Academy Hyderabad.
Sazil joined the Academy at its inception in 2011 and has since discovered many passions and predilections. “After coming here, I realized that I have a talent for photography, and am pretty good at design too. This year, I got to not only act in the annual summer productions as part of our drama class but also designed the posters and brochures. The Academy has given me many opportunities to prove myself, and I am sure this will help me in choosing a career in the future.”
His favourite subject is science, because he likes discovering new things, especially with regard to the realities of life and our surroundings. In particular, he enjoys scientific pursuits because they provide appropriate evidence to back the claims they make, and this makes it possible to persuade others towards positive social, economic and political change. Sazil aspires to be a mechanical engineer.
“As I am a residential student, I get a lot of opportunities to experience different aspects of life at the Academy,” says Sazil. “What I find most unique is the studious and peaceful environment, the greenery around us, the people from different backgrounds and cultures living with us, the facilities provided and the number of opportunities we get to prove our talents.”
Sazil’s biggest role model is His Highness the Aga Khan. “His hard work and dedication, his vision of a better world and his mission to improve the quality of life of those less fortunate. I have a similar vision and that’s why he inspires me.”
Watch a video Sazil made compiling visual anecdotes of diverse service experiences of his classmates and himself at various government school sites.
Saifan Aswani: Helping the environment through reflection and determination
Incredible things happen when you slow down. When you take the time to look, listen, watch and reflect. You see the beauty and apparent simplicity in the world around you.
Saifan Aswani, a student at the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa, knows the value of taking the time to appreciate his surroundings. In fact, he says he is “bonded with nature”, and loves to sketch and photograph natural landscapes. His ambitions would see him taking to the skies in the field of aeronautics, bringing his passion for being in nature to another level.
Saifan’s penchant for reflection has instilled in him tremendous gratitude for his current good fortune to be studying at the Academy. He shares his personal journey of growth since arriving in Mombasa from the Congo: “Before I joined, I used to be a student who didn’t work hard and wasn’t independent. Coming to this Academy has changed a lot for me, not only increasing my knowledge of the concepts taught, but also developing self-respect and respect for others.” He continues, “The Academy doesn't only teach theories, but connects the concept to the real life. Living here makes me learn more about cultures as we have students and dorm parents who come from diverse socio-economic backgrounds.”
When you add all this up – a deep sense of reflection, an appreciation for nature and an education designed to support students to connect with others and improving the world around them – it is no wonder that Saifan has recently won an award for his work in the field of environmental studies.
Taking part in the seventh edition of the Golden Climate International Environmental Project Olympiad and representing Kenya and the Academy, Saifan won a gold medal in the agriculture category for his creation of a desalinisation unit.
Saifan first thought of his project idea in 2017 while contemplating the Indian Ocean which graces the shores of Mombasa near the Aga Khan Academy’s campus – he had slowed down, taking the time to look, watch and reflect. As Saifan explains, the salty water of the Indian Ocean can hinder the growth of plants in the surrounding area. Saifan developed a desalinisation unit as a low-cost, eco-friendly solution to this problem. He hopes it will help the local flora and develop more productive agricultural practices.
Compassionate and motivated, Saifan explains that, “The innovation came up as a result of research and investigating local issues surrounding my environment.” He then designed and built the desalinisation unit himself. In the same way that an artist combines simple shapes into a masterpiece, Saifan imaginatively transformed natural processes into a solution with real life applications: “The innovation consists of basic applications I studied in class: evaporation, condensation and solar energy.”
As the youngest participant from his school, he encountered many challenges in creating his award-winning design. The determined and hard-working Saifan recalls sound advice from his supervisor that helped him to persevere: "He told me, ‘I'm not telling you it’s going to be easy. I'm telling you it’s going to be worth it.’"
Throughout his time at the Academy, Saifan has realised that there was more to education than concepts, numbers and exams. As he says, “We are the leaders of the future.” He credits his experience of the past three years at the Academy for instilling in him the discipline of hard work, an appreciation of diverse cultures and the motivation to pursue this responsibility. As he has learned, “There is no elevator to the floor of success. You have to take the stairs!"
By Asif-Aly Penwala
