Kai Cenat has turned a vacation into inspiration for advancing youth education.
In March 2024, the popular online streamer and YouTuber touched down in the African country of Nigeria for the first time. Cenat documented his experience and aired it on his YouTube channel. During his visit to Lagos, the largest city in Nigeria, he visited Makoko Children Development Foundation School and Orphanage, which serves as both a free school and orphanage for less-privileged children. The school is among some buildings in the Makoko community that float or are on stilts.
While visiting the school, Cenat connected with its 23-year-old principal, who told Cenat that the building’s condition is a barrier to teaching students.
“This building is coming down, it’s sinking,” the principal explained to Cenat on the documented video. “So, we are looking for support to [break] it down and rebuild it.”
Along with the building needing to be reconstructed, he also detailed that it was too small — one classroom was used to teach all 385 children living there. The principal shared in the video that the school is seeking support to “build more classrooms” and create “a conducive environment for learning.”
After seeing the challenges firsthand, Cenat decided to make a commitment to give back to the students.
“First of all, I want to say it’s so nice to meet all of you guys,” Cenat said to the school’s students. “You guys have so much great energy. I want to do as much as I can to help you guys and just be able to make sure y’all get better classrooms. Whatever they tell me you guys need, we’re gonna make sure you guys have them.”
Cenat then informed the principal that he would continue checking on them during his stay in Nigeria and after his departure.
“I want to see next time I come here, it’s a whole different thing,” Cenat stated to the principal.
Now, Cenat is staying true to his promise. During a stream on the live-streaming platform Twitch, he announced that his plan to build a school in Nigeria had “officially been stamped.”
“This new school in Makoko — for the kids that’s living in Makoko in Nigeria — I started working on the school,” he shared.
Kai Cenat has announced he will be building a brand new school in Nigeria 🔥 pic.twitter.com/Pf0rKc87Ma
— ryan 🤿 (@scubaryan_) March 22, 2024
In the announcement, Cenat asked people who live in Nigeria or on the African continent to direct him to anyone who would want to work and assist in bringing the school to life. He also shared that he intends to document the process of seeing the institution come to fruition.
