A bike for kenya use--advice sought.

I am a hard core road cyclist but this is for my daughter... She lives in Kenya and is looking to get a new bike from here. And I don't know much about gravel and mountain bikes. So naturally, I'll ask the hive-mind

50% of her rides will be on pavement--rough pavement, with potholes, gravel, etc.
50% of her rides will be on dirt trails and paths, but not particularly technical.

Her average ride is 30-60k (20-40 miles)
And she wants to spend about $1500.

I was thinking a hard-tail, basic mountain bike, but just am not familiar with those brands/options. Now, if she wanted a carbon or Ti road bike.... ;-)

Any advice? Thanks in advance!

-Rick