SaaS / GovTech / Education Funding · Product build
Mfadhili.com
A bursary management SaaS platform helping Kenyan institutions publish, receive, review, and process funding applications from one centralized system.
Role
Software & Data Architect
Recorded outcome
Centralized application intake and review workflows.
Reduced manual tracking across forms, spreadsheets, and email.
Created a maintainable foundation for future institutional reporting.
Overview
Mfadhili.com is a bursary management SaaS platform for institutions in Kenya that need to manage education funding workflows with more structure and visibility.
Problem
Bursary processes often depend on disconnected forms, spreadsheets, email threads, and manual status updates. That makes it difficult to track applicants, review eligibility, manage documents, and produce reliable reports.
Users
Primary users include administrators, reviewers, applicants, and institutional leaders who need confidence in the state of every funding cycle.
My role
I shaped the product architecture, workflow model, core data structures, and implementation direction for a maintainable SaaS foundation.
Technical challenge
The system needs to support sensitive applicant data, clear review stages, role-based workflows, and reporting without turning early product delivery into an overbuilt enterprise platform.
Architecture
The architecture centers on a workflow-backed application model, structured records for applicants and funding cycles, and a dashboard layer for operational review.
Key features
- Application publishing and intake.
- Applicant record management.
- Review and processing stages.
- Document-aware application workflows.
- Reporting-ready data structures.
Impact
The product creates a single operational view for bursary teams and reduces the coordination overhead that comes from scattered application channels.
Stack
Astro, React, Node.js, PostgreSQL, cloud hosting, and workflow automation patterns.
Screenshots
Screenshots should be added once production-approved imagery is available.
Lessons learned
Funding workflows need transparency as much as speed. The architecture should make every state visible and every handoff traceable.