The organisation was founded in the year 2007 by Hamilton Ayiera Nyanga who was born in Korogocho slum and hails from a poor family background.
The organisational background
He was forced to drop out of school due to lack of school fee as his poor parents could not afford to pay his secondary school fee. After dropping out of school, just like other many Korogocho slum dwellers, he sought refuge at the nearby dumping site where he scavenged for used plastic and metal material for recycling as well as left-over food coming from big hotels in Nairobi city and airports for his survival. The idea of starting the organization came up to his mind after coming back to Kenya from Cape Town, South Africa where he represented Kenya in the Homeless World Cup street soccer tournament as a player in 2006.
Homeless World Cup is an annual international street soccer tournament that provides a lifetime opportunity for street/homeless youths from all over the world to change their own lives.
Hamilton came back from South Africa with a strong desire of positively changing the desperate situation of slum children, slum youths and slum community at large. He was later joined by like-minded slum youths and they are now working together as a team to achieve a common goal:
Positive transformation of pathetic situation experienced in Korogocho slum.
The AYiERA iNiTiATiVE strongly believes that sports, if well used can be an effective vehicle for social positive change and development in slums of Nairobi and other parts of the world.
AYiERA iNiTiATiVE referred to as (AI) is a community based organization registered by the government of Kenya with the ministry of Labour, Social Security and Services, under Social Development department. The organization is non-political, non-religious, non-profit making, charitable and sports for development organization, with its head quarter in Gitathuru/Gomongo, Korogocho slum Nairobi/Kenya.
The organization was established with the main aim of positively transforming poor communities (Korogocho slum and its environs) and to improve the lives of the less privileged children and youths of Korogocho slum by using sports specifically slum footie – a small football game initiated by Ayiera Initiative, as a tool to achieve the above mentioned aims; sport in this case being used as catalyst for positive social change and development. The organization also empowers disadvantaged children of Korogocho slum and its environs by engaging them in academic, sports and art programs and activities.
AYiERA iNiTiATiVE works with disadvantaged youths, orphans and vulnerable children.