NAIROBI, Feb. 6 (Xinhua) -- Defying the sweltering afternoon heat, Jenny Fair and her young peers huddled around a large table, marveling at remotely controlled robots making circular motions.
Currently in Grade Seven, the 13-year-old learner is enrolled at Code with Kids, a community-focused organization dedicated to providing affordable and accessible science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education to underprivileged Kenyan youngsters aged between three and 18.
Located in the heart of Kibera slum, the largest informal settlement in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, Code with Kids has become a magnet for children and young adults from low-income areas, who are keen to improve their proficiency in advanced digital skills, such as coding, artificial intelligence (AI), and robotics.
The center, according to its founder Renice Owino, was established in 2016 and has since trained over 3,000 learners in various aspects of STEM, including space science, web design, AI, and robotics.
Owino told Xinhua that the center uses a curriculum donated by WhalesBot, a Chinese educational technology and robotics company that develops AI-enhanced STEM learning robots and coding kits for young learners aged between three and 22.
In addition, WhalesBot sold robotic kits to Code with Kids at subsidized rates, Owino said, noting that learners do not require laptops to operate the kits, easing financial pressure on parents.
"These kits are very child-friendly and learner-friendly. They are strong and durable. The Chinese curriculum is also progressive and keeps improving." Owino said.
She said she has visited China three times and was impressed by the Asian nation's competitive edge in future-oriented technologies such as AI, robotics, and machine learning.
The platform developed by WhalesBot comes preinstalled with an AI module, enabling learners to integrate AI into programming, and is also equipped with sensors for performing various tasks.
"Students are able to learn how to build robots to meet specific tasks they are required to solve. They are also learning different concepts of computer programming," Owino said.
She added that the center also has drones for learners pursuing space exploration, noting that it generates income by developing websites and education-related applications for clients.
Fair was among the young learners who represented Kenya at the ENJOY AI 2024 Global Final, an international STEM and robotics contest for children and teenagers held in China.
During the competition, Fair and her peers showcased their problem-solving skills using robots and won a problem-solving award, delighting their parents and tutors.
In December 2025, a total of 46 young learners represented Kenya at the Enjoy AI competition in China, ten of them from Kibera, according to Owino.
Fair said she was thrilled to win at the 2024 edition, adding that her visit to Shanghai exposed her to China's rapid modernization and technological progress.
"The competition was fun. I interacted with people from different countries and made many friends. I enjoyed everything there," said Fair, an aspiring computer programmer.
Auralia Aranza, a 13-year-old Grade Seven pupil who participated in the 2025 Enjoy AI competition in China, said she is passionate about coding, particularly creating tasks for operating fireworks.
While in China, Aranza and her peers visited Wuzhen and Shanghai, competed with learners from across the globe, and clinched medals in the problem-solving category.
In one of the dimly-lit corners of the building housing Code with Kids, Asina Khidir, a 13-year-old Grade Eight pupil, gently pressed the laptop keyboard to navigate a robot, impressing her tutor standing nearby.
"I want to become an astronaut in the future. We had a task last year related to space, and it was very easy for me to complete because I love everything connected to space," Khidir said.
Despite his small frame, Solomon Oyondi, a 14-year-old Grade Eight pupil, skillfully controlled the movement of a robot using an AI-enabled coding program installed on a laptop.
Oyondi is among dozens of young learners from Kibera and its environs who regularly attend two-hour coding training sessions at the Code with Kids center for a modest fee.
Bruce Salimo, one of the center's volunteer tutors and a web designer, said children from low-income settlements have demonstrated strong aptitude and passion for coding, driven by the prospect of rewarding careers in the future.
"Right now, these children really enjoy coding and learning about technology and engineering. The passion to learn is there," Salimo added. ■