Purity Ngina’s journey begins in the little village of Kyeni, Nyeri County, where she was born.
She grew up in poverty, like many other Kenyans, and was used to completing household duties like collecting water from the River Sagana, which was around three kilometres away from their house.
In addition, Ngina walked to school every morning without shoes.
In an interview, she indicated that the trials influenced her resolution and perseverance in life, as well as her positive attitude toward difficult situations.
In 2002, Ngina took her KCPE exams and received 235 marks, defying her family’s expectations.
Her late mother, dissatisfied with the results, advised the last born in a family of two to retake the tests.
Ngina, determined to salvage her academic future, scored 368 points the following year, beating the odds at a time when most people would have given up.
Her mother struggled to pay fees during her four years at Tumu Tumu Girls High School in Nyeri.
She, nevertheless, received a B+ (plus) in her Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) and enrolled at Egerton University to pursue a Bachelor of Science Degree in Mathematics.
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Ngina was driven by the need to achieve at all costs, going to great lengths to study hard in order to pass her exams.
For fourteen months, I could not sleep without taking something (sleeping pills), but sometimes I would say to myself, I don’t want to take these pills. When I did not take the pills, I spent most of the time on my laptop, and I really worked,” she said.
Ngina’s situation, regrettably, deteriorated after her mother went away. This, she explained, was one of the worst periods of her life.
“Her death made me work even harder because I wanted to prove to myself that as much as she was my greatest pillar, she is gone but still left someone who can stand on her own. It pushed me somehow to even work harder,” she said.
Ngina’s interest and expertise in applied mathematics earned her a full scholarship to pursue a Masters degree in Applied Mathematics after graduating with First Class Honours in her Bachelors in 2013.
Three years later, she enrolled in Strathmore University’s Biomathematics program while also working as an assistant lecturer.
Ngina earned her PhD in June 2018 at the age of 28.
