Neema Lyimo is 25 years old, and a Computer Technician at Powering Potential. The youngest daughter in her family, she was raised by her parents in the Moshi district of Tanzania’s Kilimanjaro region. “My parents encouraged me to get an education,” she says. “They always told me life would be very expensive without it.”

As she moved through Tanzania’s system of public education, her favorite subject was always science. She loved learning about biology, chemistry, and agriculture, and her parents and teachers were consistently impressed by her dedication and work ethic.

In 2011, she passed her Form 4 exams — the Tanzanian equivalent of 12th grade — and decided she would continue her education. Her interest in the sciences led her to the JR Institute of Information and Technology in Tanzania’s Arusha region. She graduated with a diploma in Computer Engineering in 2014.

“This is my dream,” she says. “I want all of Tanzania’s students, especially young girls, to know that they can be an engineer like me, and I believe Powering Potential’s work will do this by introducing young people to technology earlier.”

“I am so thankful for Powering Potential. Through my work I am able to create a better world for children like my one-year-old daughter, Faith, who I hope will grow up to be a listener, a learner, and a teacher for all people everywhere.”