The female mechanics of Marsabit

Not only are women making inroads in careers previously considered masculine, many are doing a pretty good job while at it. Khalima Hussein from Marsabit is one of them.

The 23-year-old is the storekeeper in charge of spare parts and tool boxes at Toyota Kenya, Marsabit branch, where she has worked for six years, as a mechanic too.

“My friends mocked my decision to become a mechanic, some even suggested that I settle for tailoring instead. But I stood my ground and here I am; I can boldly tell you that being a lady mechanic has changed my life phenomenally,” she tells Nation.africa.

In a region where women mechanics are unheard of, Ms Hussein started training to be a mechanic at the age of 15.

Her mother was supportive and did not want to stand in the way of her desire for being an automobile mechanic.

Having lost her father while she was in Class Eight at North Horr Primary School in 2012, she found herself staring at a bleak future and with the burden of being the firstborn, she opted for the easiest path to salvage her family.

A few villagers insisted that she be taken to high school but after seeing her determination to train as a mechanic, they all bulged. She had already fallen in love with a dismantled car engine and determined to pursue her heart’s desire to the end.

Grade Two course

She joined Kalacha Polytechnic College where she trained for Motor Vehicle Mechanics Grade II between 2013 and 2014. Ms Hussein later worked at a local garage in Marsabit town for six months, before registering for Grade Two course in October 2015.

Being the first female mechanic graduate at the polytechnic, her tutors saw uncharacteristic determination and advised her to keep on advancing her expertise, telling her it was possible to use her career path to scale the heights to being an automobile engineer.

After completing her Grade Two course she joined Ambalo Garage in Marsabit town and served for two years. Here, the garage owner got impressed with her hard work and promoted her to storekeeping as she also worked as a mechanic.

In 2016, she registered for Grade One course after which she approached Toyota Kenya Marsabit Branch to be considered for a job as a mechanic. Getting a job at Toyota was not easy.

She was, however, determined to challenge the stereotype that women from the region cannot work in the automotive industry. She got the job after undergoing rigorous aptitude tests.

Her unresolved prowess and love for her work birthed the idea of an empowerment program at the Marsabit Toyota Kenya garage for women who desired to be mechanics.

Ms Hussein sees her dream of becoming an aeronautical or automobile engineer as soon as she completes her Diploma course, which she has applied for.

She confides that she earns a lucrative pay compared to what most white collar jobs offer.

Three other ladies followed her footstep to train as mechanics with one of them, Midina Ali, currently serving as a paid intern at the same garage.

Ms Ali recounts how her burning quest for becoming an automobile engineer nearly got watered by the prevailing negativity surrounding the job.

She tells Nation.africa that her peers and other older women told her that mechanics was a dirty job; that it was only meant for men since women shouldn’t soil their hands or venture into such jobs.

Aeronautical course

However, when she had an encounter with Ms Hussein, she saw a role model and her dreams got vivified. She also trained as a mechanic at Kalacha Polytechnic and graduated with a Grade Two certificate.

She looks forward to registering for an aeronautical course in the near future.

The two women have challenged other young ladies to also venture in other assumed male-dominated jobs, adding that women should not only be consigned to tailoring and other menial jobs.

Their dream is to open their own garages and be employers in future.

They both found the idea of women mechanics intriguing and decided to give it a go. They say they were tired of the overdependence on men by women – majority illiterate - that was synonymous with the region.

Toyota Kenya Marsabit Branch Service Manager Maxwell Mureithi, recounts how the two ladies' enthusiasm changed the management’s perception about local women.

He praises the two mechanics who have lived up to the mantra that ‘what a man can do a woman can do better.’

The organisation started their empowerment program training four girls but two dropped out to get married. Despite that, they still see themselves on the path of successfully building a network of female mechanics that will fast spread across Marsabit County.

He says their empowerment program is dedicated to training orphans, school dropouts, single mothers and victims of trafficking, to become mechanics.

“We’re happy with the steps we’ve made so far with our Lady Mechanic Empowerment Program that focuses on the poor,” Mr Mureithi says.

He adds that they are in the process of enrolling more trainees to undergo practical and theoretical classes where lecturers from technical colleges are brought in to tutor them, with an examination at the end of sessions to validate their skills.

Being the social and commercial hubs of the country and playing host to several local and non-locals, Marsabit and Moyale towns are the dream towns of the thousands of the local. Its population is, therefore, constantly increasing as people and vehicles troop in with the rapid urbanization brought about by the Isiolo-Moyale highway.

The need for mechanics has been overwhelming, compelling most vehicle owners to outsource from other counties. That is why the organisation is empowering female mechanics.

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