Willis Awandu comes from Nyando in western Kenya - a region where access to clean drinking water is not guaranteed in many places. Water shortages, inadequate infrastructure and the consequences of climate change affect health, food security and social stability there.
After successfully completing secondary school, Willis Awandu began studying civil engineering at the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology in Juja. Alongside his studies, he became involved in the Catholic student community and was sponsored by the Society of KAAD Association of Scholars in East Africa (SoK KASEA) as a promising young scholar - as one of the first so-called SoK scholars, made possible by donations from former KAAD scholars in Kenya. He subsequently took on representative tasks as an ambassador for the program and took part in KASEA events.
Following his studies, he gained his first professional experience in the Kenyan water sector and then completed a Master's degree in Water Economics and Management at the University of Stuttgart with a KAAD scholarship. After returning to Kenya, he worked as an engineer in water infrastructure before taking up a lectureship at Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology in Kakamega in 2020.
Since 2022, Willis Awandu has been working on his doctorate at the Technical University of Darmstadt on a highly relevant topic: the development of an integrated, energy-autonomous water treatment system for rural regions in developing countries. His academic and professional career is closely linked to the goal of using engineering solutions to improve the quality of life, public health and development prospects in his home region in the long term.
In addition to his academic activities, Willis Awandu is a committed member of the KAAD alumni network. He belongs to the KASEA Western Kenya Group and has been part of its leadership team since 2022. In his alumni work, he combines academic exchange with church and social responsibility and is committed to strengthening sustainable educational structures in the region.
