BRI Stories | China-trained Kenyan youth realizes his dream at Konza transformer substation

David Maina Kamore is pictured at the construction site of Konza transformer substation in Machakos County, Kenya, May 5, 2023. (Xinhua/Han Xu)

MACHAKOS, July 29 (Xinhua) -- David Maina Kamore, 32, is an electrical engineer, a profession he had been dreamed of since his childhood, at the Konza transformer substation.

He went to China in 2009 and studied Chinese for a year at Huazhong University of Science and Technology before majoring in electrical engineering and automation at Chang'an University.

David Maina Kamore reviews blueprints at the camp of the construction site of Konza transformer substation in Machakos County, Kenya, June 12, 2023. (Xinhua/Han Xu)

David Maina Kamore patrols at the construction site of Konza transformer substation in Machakos County, Kenya, May 5, 2023.(Xinhua/Han Xu)

David Maina Kamore patrols at the construction site of Konza transformer substation in Machakos County, Kenya, May 5, 2023. (Xinhua/Han Xu)

This photo taken in 2014 shows David Maina Kamore upon his graduation at Chang'an University in Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province. (Xinhua)

Having graduated with a bachelor's degree in engineering in 2014, David put what he learned to practice at his hometown, and gained much experience since then. In 2022, at the crucial stage of the construction of the Konza transformer substation, David applied to China Aerospace Construction Group Company (CACGC), contractor of the 400kV substation, for a post there. It was also the first time for him to actually work with high voltage electricity.

This aerial photo taken on June 12, 2023 shows a view of the construction site of Konza transformer substation in Machakos County, Kenya. (Xinhua/Han Xu)

David Maina Kamore (L) communicates with a worker at the construction site of Konza transformer substation in Machakos County, Kenya, May 5, 2023.(Xinhua/Han Xu)

David Maina Kamore patrols at the construction site of Konza transformer substation in Machakos County, Kenya, May 5, 2023. (Xinhua/Han Xu)

The substation, located about 70 km southeast of the Kenyan capital Nairobi, is part of the Kenya Power Transmission Expansion Project (KPTEP), a key project under the Belt and Road Initiative in this East African country. It is also an auxiliary facility for the Konza Technopolis, one of the country's flagship development projects of Kenya Vision 2030.

This aerial photo taken on May 5, 2023 shows a view of the construction site of Konza transformer substation in Machakos County, Kenya.(Xinhua/Han Xu)

David Maina Kamore checks the operating status of devices at the construction site of Konza transformer substation in Machakos County, Kenya, May 5, 2023.(Xinhua/Han Xu)

David Maina Kamore walks at the camp of the construction site of Konza transformer substation in Machakos County, Kenya, June 12, 2023. (Xinhua/Han Xu)

"I thank China for helping me realize my dream, and building my hometown is a very happy thing to me. I expect what we do to well benefit the Kenyan people," the engineer told Xinhua.

David Maina Kamore (L) discusses with his colleagues on the transformer installation at the construction site of Konza transformer substation in Machakos County, Kenya, May 5, 2023. (Xinhua/Han Xu)