TechLit Africa founder Nelly Cheboi crowned CNN Hero of the year

Nelly Cheboi’s mother could not hide her joy when her daughter was crowned the 2022 CNN Hero of the Year.

Cheboi, a software engineer won the award thanks to her philanthropic work through her company TechLit Africa where she secured computers for children in her rural village.

The event which was held at the American Museum of Natural History saw the 29-year-old beat 10 other nominees to win the coveted award.

Cheboi in her acceptance speech said she was now targeting more children who she intends to equip with computer knowledge from a young age something she did not have the privilege to have.

"Every year, people are graduating into the corporate world without ever using a computer. This forces them to go back to the village with their education."

In a past interview with CNN, Cheboi said the conditions in her family and in most homes in the communities, were deplorable and that made her yearn to make a difference in the area.

Nelly Cheboi and her mother Nelly Cheboi and her mother Pulse Live Kenya

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"I want to get to 100 schools which translates to 40,000 school-going children. We need to rewrite what it means to grow up in rural Africa because people can work glamorous jobs and still work in your community," she stated.

As CNN Hero of the Year, the 29-year-old will receive $100,000 (Sh12 million) to expand her work. She and the other top 10 CNN Heroes will also receive a $10,000(Sh1.2 million) cash award and, for the first time, additional grants, organizational training and support from The Elevate Prize Foundation through a new collaboration with CNN Heroes.

Cheboi will also be named an Elevate Prize winner, which comes with a $300,000 (Sh37 million) grant and additional support worth $200,000(Sh24.6 million) for her non-profit work.

Other 2022 CNN heroes include Carie Broecker, Richard Casper, Nora El-Khouri Spencer, Tyrique Glasgow, Teresa Gray, Meymuna Hussein-Cattan, Aidan Reilly, Debra Vines, and Bobby Wilson