He has an incredible journey. His motto is: "The more I'm able to empower myself, the more I can do things that sustain the world as a whole". in general ". Discovered in 2016 in Sierra Leone, the child handyman has become a planetary icon. Thanks to his prodigious gift. Kelvin Doe can be found in every African country. But the problem is that nothing is done to detect and promote these talents, let alone retain them in their country of origin, or at least in Africa, when they have finished developing entrepreneurial skills.
It was at the age of 11 that Kelvin Doe started his own radio station in Sierra Leone. Its programs then broadcast music and information. The young teenager who then calls himself "DJ Focus" could not go unnoticed. The youngest guest at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the famous American university, is a Sierra Leonean. His name is Kelvin Doe. In 2012, David Sengeh, a doctoral student of Sierra Leonean origin at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), launched the "Innovate Salone" competition for young Sierra Leoneans with a creative spirit. Objective: to identify and recruit new talents to make them seeds for the future with this noble ambition that their inventions serve their community. And here is the famous Dj Focus revealed to the whole world. He thus had the opportunity to leave his country, so scarred by years of war, for the first time to go to United States of America. After his godfather pleaded his case with the authorities of this famous university, because of the talent of the young boy who was then 16 years old.
Self-taught, a handyman by trade, Kelvin Doe had succeeded not only in making a battery and an electric generator to supply his family and his village, with recovered objects. Better, with a CD walkman, he had also made an FM radio which broadcast programs from the one his neighbors had ended up nicknamed "DJ Focus".
According to CNN, this is the first time that this prestigious institute specializing in science and technology has received a boy of this age in its program. For several years now, he has been a resident of the Harvard School of Engineering. A prestigious institution of which he has already met the president, Drew Gilpin Faust. The objective of this residence is to acquire more knowledge to contribute to the development of its community. And the young boy is already dreaming of making a wind turbine from recycled objects.
Kelvin Doe turned 19 in 2021. On this occasion, TV5 wrote about him: "At 19, Kelvin is a smiling, calm and humble young man. However, from the height of his young age, he already rubs shoulders with great personalities from all over the world. This year, it was the President of the AfDB, Akinwumi Adesina, who called him to ask him to participate in the annual meetings. "I did not expect it at all," says the young man. On this occasion, Kelvin met many African heads of state but also big names like Kofi Annan, former secretary of the United Nations, or even great African business leaders. "It was very inspiring for me to shake hands with these people," said Kelvin, who could not hold back his tears during the opening ceremony of the Assemblies".
Biography
David Sengeh.
Kelvin Bokai Doe (also known as DJ Focus) is the founder of the Kelvin Doe Foundation, a non-profit organization that works with strategic partners; devoted to providing creative spaces to nurture communities, ignite a culture of innovation, and inspire civic engagement.
Kelvin engages with educators, the private sector, government leaders, and leading global visionaries to mobilize and provide resources, mentorship, and tools to advance the impact of experimental and hands-on learning programs, both in Canada and his home country: Sierra Leone. His recent activity includes crowdfunding to set up a makerspace in the Dworzak neighborhood of Freetown, Sierra Leone.
Kelvin has won several international awards on “frugal innovation,” including a presidential Gold Medal. He is also the youngest person to participate in the “Visiting Practitioner's Program” at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
Kelvin is a frequent speaker at sci/tech/art and youth empowerment conference(s) and serves on the Honorary and Advisory Board of Emergency USA, an organization with a mission to provide free medical and surgical care to victims of war and poverty.
Kelvin's story is still being written. Frustrated by the difficulties of moving forward with his career in Sierra Leone, he traveled to Toronto, Canada in the hope that he could study engineering and increase his skills so that he can one day return to Africa to help his people.
By Tcha Sakaro
