Oscar Balongo

With over 7 years of experience in the water sectors in Kenya and Tanzania, I am currently a Regional Programme Manager at eWATERservices, a private water operator providing 24/7 access to clean water in Sub-Saharan Africa. I have a master's degree in Water, Sanitation, and Health Engineering from the University of Leeds, and I am a Mandela Washington Fellow and a Chevening Scholar, two prestigious leadership and scholarship programs sponsored by the U.S. and UK governments.
My mission is to improve access to clean water and sanitation for the poorest and most vulnerable populations, using smart technology and local operational excellence. I lead the scoping, design, and installation of water systems in rural and urban communities in Kenya and Tanzania, ensuring the quality, sustainability, and impact of the projects. I also liaise and collaborate with various stakeholders, including clients, authorities, politicians, partners, and teams, to build relationships, understand requirements, and align goals, expectations, and performance. I leverage my skills in water engineering, program management, financial analysis, policy analysis, and customer engagement to deliver high-value and high-quality water solutions.

• Mandela Washington Fellowship Award, 2023, The Fellowship brings young African leaders to the United States for academic coursework and leadership training and creates unique opportunities for Fellows and U.S. citizens to collaborate as they spur economic growth and prosperity, strengthen democratic governance, and enhance peace and security across Africa and the United States. I was enrolled in business track at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey and was among the 25 Tanzanian awardee of 2023.
• Chevening Scholarship Award, 2020, Chevening is the UK government's international scholarships and fellowships programme which offers fully funded scholarships and fellowships enabling outstanding emerging leaders from all over the world to pursue one-year master's degrees in the UK. I enrolled for the MSc WaSH Engineering programme at the University of Leeds and was among the 15 Tanzanian awardee of the 2020/21.
• Stanbic Entrepreneurship Challenge Award, 2020, Stanbic Bank Tanzania launched an exciting business competition targeting small and medium enterprises (SMEs) which are working hard to fulfill their entrepreneurial ambitions through projects that have a social impact on health, education, environment, technology as well as food and manufacturing. While working with Gongali Model Company I designed and pitched for a water franchising kiosk business model and was selected among five winners, winning TZS 10 million grant.
• In Country (Tanzania) Volunteer (ICV) Alumni Grant Award, 2020, The ICV Alumni Grant is provided under the UK government International Citizen Service (ICS) programme offering up to £1000 (GBP) to young volunteers who want to build on their ICS experience by creating and running youth-led projects. As the awardee of this grant. I use the grant to provided menstrual hygiene management training to 200 primary school girls in rural Arusha, Tanzania
• International Summer School (ISS) Scholarship Award, 2018, ISS Scholarships is offered by the University of Oslo for the master's level courses students demonstrating the relevance of their academic and/or professional background from across the world to study summer school course at University of Oslo. I Enrolled in a master's level course in Energy, Environment, and social change under a scholarship scheme.
• University of Oslo, Volleyball Tournament Rookie of the year, 2018
• International Citizen Service (ICS) Certificate of Achievement, 2017
• Certificate of Leadership for Teofilo Kisanji University Student Environmental Club (TEKUSEC), 2016
• Driving license: Class C

• Fitness: I like keeping fit and enjoy exercising: football, volleyball, hiking and running. I was a captain for my class team which won a title at the International Summer Football Tournament, University of Oslo, I participated in the 2023 half (21KM) KiliMarathon.
• Community service: I appreciate working on improving lives in poor and remote communities.
• I enjoy keeping up to date with current affairs, both national and international events, helping me to keep updated with current global issues.

• Felix Mutuura, Managing Director, Maji Popote, Kenya, +254(0) 722 259 580, feligit@gmail.com
• Elisha Omega, Business Development Manager, eWATER SERVICES, Kenya, +254721452813, elisha.omega@ewater.services
• Laurence Lukatenga, Operations Manager, Raleigh Tanzania, +255(0) 652 297310, laurencetengashakur@gmail.com
• Prof. Kevin Lyons, Director, Business School, Rutgers, NJ State University, +1 (973)-353-3347, klyons@business.rutgers.edu