It Changed My Life: From corporate jungle to charity work in Africa

Tax specialist had it all planned out but a visit to Kenya redirected his efforts to volunteer work

Gabriel Teo had a successful career as a tax consultant in Singapore but he gave everything up to set up the Tana River Life Foundation in Africa, a non-profit organisation which focuses on educating and empowering poor communities in Kenya.

From left: Mr Gabriel Teo, with friends Solomon Makwola and Kingston Bisiko. He left the corporate world after five years and headed to Kenya, where he founded the Tana River Life Foundation (TRLF). The non-profit organisation builds schools, offers scholarships and works to improve the lives of people in remote areas in the country. PHOTO: DIOS VINCOY JR FOR THE SUNDAY TIMES

Wong Kim Hoh

Deputy Life Editor

Updated

Published

Jun 10, 2018, 05:00 AM

Smart and ambitious, Gabriel Teo Kian Chong had it all planned out after he completed his A levels in the mid 1980s.

He was going to read accountancy at the National University of Singapore (NUS), join a big accounting firm and specialise in tax.

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