Hello, I'm
Dan
Mwenda — Senior Software Engineer, Nairobi Kenya
SENIOR SOFTWARE ENGINEER
I architect scalable systems & ship products that scale — 4+ years building production-grade backends, APIs, and full-stack platforms.
// primary_stack
years_experience
live_projects
apis_built
coffee_consumed
hello@danmwenda.dev
About me
Building things that
matter at scale
I'm a Software Engineer based in Nairobi, Kenya with 4+ years of experience building robust backend systems, RESTful APIs, and full-stack applications that serve real users at scale.
My core toolkit spans Go, PHP/Laravel, Node.js, Vue.js, and a strong foundation in database optimization, caching strategies, and cloud infrastructure. I've shipped everything from AI grading platforms to e-commerce engines and compliance management systems.
I care deeply about systems that are secure, observable, and built to last — not just systems that work on demo day. If it can't survive a 3am incident, it's not done.
Technical Skills
The stack
Tools I reach for daily — chosen for reliability, performance, and getting things shipped.
Languages
Frameworks & Libraries
Databases
APIs & Architecture
DevOps & Cloud
Engineering Practices
Selected Projects
Things I've shipped
Rubricly
An AI-powered grading system that automates academic assessment workflows. Built for scale with Go on the backend and Vue.js on the frontend, featuring real-time grading feedback and rubric management.
SkyComforts
A full-featured e-commerce platform with seamless server-side rendering via Inertia.js. Handles product catalogues, cart management, secure checkout, and order tracking.
Adventura
A curated HTML5 games platform for kids with age-appropriate content filtering, progress tracking, and a family-friendly UI.
PlayGalaxy
A browser-based HTML5 gaming hub with thousands of games, real-time leaderboards, and Firebase-powered user profiles.
RentNest
A property management system for landlords and tenants — lease management, rent collection, maintenance requests, and reporting.
ThriveVas
A high-performance Value Added Services platform built with Go, handling telecom integrations and real-time transaction processing.
Lindvra
An export compliance management system that streamlines regulatory workflows, document verification, and compliance reporting for international trade.
HoliwellAI
A clinical annotation platform where licensed mental health professionals annotate realistic patient scenarios to train AI models that understand human distress. Features adaptive difficulty progression, quality control with gold standard injection and inter-rater reliability tracking, and a full clinician approval and email notification workflow.
CredyWave
A smart debt collection and receivables management platform built for SMEs in Kenya. Streamlines the entire debt recovery workflow, helping businesses reduce outstanding balances and improve cash flow.
Selekta
A real-time live-tipping platform connecting performers with their audience — fans scan a QR code to tip via M-Pesa and influence the setlist, while artists get instant payouts, revenue splits, and event analytics.
// build_log
Thoughts from
the terminal
Raw notes on systems, tradeoffs, and things I've learned building at scale. No polish. Just signal.
Why I stopped trusting ORM queries in high-traffic systems
After watching a single lazy-loaded relationship silently destroy response times on a 50k req/min API, I started treating every ORM call like a potential ambush.
Redis is not a database. Stop using it like one.
The day our cache became the source of truth was the day I understood what "eventual consistency" actually costs.
JWT, RBAC, and the security gap nobody talks about
Token-based auth feels airtight until your role logic lives in the client. Unpacking the access control mistakes I've seen ship to production.
Building a VAS platform that handles 20M SMS/day
Telecom APIs are brutal. Rate limits, silent failures, carrier-specific quirks. The architecture decisions that kept ThriveVas standing under real load.
The payment integration checklist I wish I had earlier
Every payment API has a happy path and a graveyard of edge cases. Idempotency, webhook retries, partial failures — the stuff that bites you at 2am.
Docker in prod: what the tutorials don't tell you
Container orchestration looks clean in demos. It gets interesting when your entrypoint exits 0 and everything looks healthy — until it isn't.
Contact
Let's make
something real
// status
Nairobi, Kenya (GMT+3)
hello@danmwenda.dev
PHONE
+254 701 280 428
GITHUB
github.com/danmwenda
linkedin.com/in/dan-mwenda
+254 701 280 428 — Start a conversation
Direct Message
Scan to start a conversation
on WhatsApp
open to remote roles · consulting · freelance · based in Nairobi, KE 🇰🇪