Boy, 15, builds underground home in Bungoma over land shortage

A shortage of land in his family has driven a 15-year-old Form 3 student in Bungoma to build an underground home for his parents and his siblings.

This, coupled with financial challenges, forced Emmanuel Samara, from Sitabicha village in Kimilili, to come up with an underground house design.

At first glance, the structure appears too small to accommodate a family. Its roof is covered with four iron sheets, while the walls are made of soil.

Beneath the small structure, however, are several tiny rooms connected by tunnels that Samara dug to create additional living space.

Inside one of the bedrooms is a double-decker bed, while one of the sitting rooms has a seat.

To access the other rooms, members of the family have to pass through the narrow tunnels that Samara created beneath the ground.

Samara says he initially had to work with the little space available in the family compound.

“This house here, our home has a small piece of land and we are many young people. The house was made with four iron sheets, but there was little space. So I built an underground sitting room and made a tunnel going to another sitting room,” Samara said.

The underground space has also become a meeting point for Samara and his friends, particularly when schools close.

He says they use the space to meet and discuss education matters.

Some of his friends, he says, initially questioned the size of the house, but he believed he could make the available space work.

“My friends used to tell me, Samara, your house is small. I told them not to worry. I would just use your mind and we can get space,” he said.

But while Samara has found a way to create additional space for his family, he is facing another challenge staying in school.

The teenager says he studied at St Mary's through Form One, Form Two and Form Three before financial difficulties interrupted his education.

He says he was asked to raise Sh180,000 but was unable to raise the amount.

“When I went to school and they told me to bring Sh180,000, I did not have it. They told me to go home,” he said.

With his return to school uncertain, Samara says he has resorted to studying from home.

He downloads lessons from YouTube and follows online teachers as he tries to continue with his studies.

“I said now I will study from home. I study here and download teachers from YouTube,” he said.

Despite the interruption, Samara says he is determined to pursue his education and is even willing to restart under the Competency-Based Curriculum if that gives him another chance to continue learning.

“If things become difficult, I can go back to CBC. I can go back to Grade Three, then work my way up to Grade Nine and become number one. Then I can get scholarship and continue,” he said.

His guardian is now appealing for support to ensure Samara returns to school and completes his education.

The guardian described him as a bright young person whose circumstances should not prevent him from pursuing his studies.

“Please, let us go back to the drawing board and see this young man study and finish. We should not stop him because he is a clever young person who can study anywhere and pass his examinations,” the guardian said.

The guardian said efforts were being made to find people who could support Samara's education.

We are trying to look for friends from now so that we can make sure, whether it is in Kenya, Rwanda or anywhere, this young man gets into a classroom and is able to study,” the guardian said.

Samara says the underground home remains a practical response to his family's limited space, while his education remains the bigger challenge he hopes to overcome