THE INTERNATIONAL CHILDCARE TRUST - KENYA
STREET LIVES
March 1999 - page 2
Clinic Reopens
Many street children 'sniff' petrol and solvents for solace. Having remained closed for several months the LVP Community Clinic has reopened. In the past the clinic has been run by a qualified nurse, now a trained and experienced Clinical Officer has taken the helm which has significantly increased the number and quality of services available to both our project children and the general public. The Clinical Officer opens the clinic Monday to Friday in the afternoons and all day Saturday when a qualified nurse assists him with the Infant Immunisation Programme which is run in conjunction with the District Hospital, Kitale. As and when demand increases he will be assisted by a full time Nurse's Aid who will take care of the clinic in the mornings taking care of the routine dressings etc., and be responsible for appointments, etc.
The clinic offers a good and affordable outpatient service for common diseases; malaria, typhoid, diarrhoea, etc. Complete immunisation programme for babies andtoddlerss, first aid treatment and professional referral for more serious illnesses. A vehicle for transport to hospital is available in emergencies.
Although the LVP Clinic had remained closed for several months it still served the community by participating an various vaccination programmes including the very successful 'Kick Polio Out of Kenya' campaign and a regional measles inoculation programme.
Production Hopes
The seasons have changed from one of the longest and wettest wet seasons to one of the hottest and dustiest dry seasons in many years. The LVP garden produced an abundance of crops throughout the wet season to the visible delight of Mr. Mwangi Njuguna, the Farm Manager. Now the dry season has taken a firm grip production has fallen although some vegetables are still being harvested and seedlings planted in preparation for the next wet season due to start towards the end of March. Mwangi explains that through irrigation from the borewell he hopes to continue a moderate supply of vegetables throughout the dry season and be ahead when the rains do finally come bringing our produce into the market before the traditional season when prices fall. A lesson learned from this long dry season is that with a low water consumption irrigation system, such as drip, installed in a relatively small area of the garden, Mwangi will be able to supply our children with fresh, organically grown vegetables throughout the year.
New Dormitory, New Skill
Liyavo Village Community Project has just completed a new, purpose built, dormitory for boys. Once beds are installed it will sleep 60 kids with adjoining shower and toilet facilities. The building was a mammoth project by Liyavo standards where most buildings in the village are still of traditional mud and wattle construction. For a few of the older kids it proved a great opportunity to work with a professional mason on a modern construction. One boy, Kennedy Simiyu has proved a natural mason and now takes on many small maintenance jobs of his own free will, and alone. Kennedy, now 14 years old, was admitted to the projects from the Kitale streets in 1997, aged 12. At the project he was detoxicated from a glue habit and has since passed through nursery classes and now attends Liyavo Primary. He is too old to really benefit from formal education, having missed so much in the beginning. At the projects he has learnt to read and write but lacks the English needed to succeed at school where the English is the official language. Kennedy has repeatedly requested that he be placed on a vocational training programme and/or an apprenticeship as a mason where he is confident he can succeed.
For Kennedy and children like him we are negotiating with the local authorities to allow him to take up vocational training before reaching the legal school leaving age of 16 years.
The one year old twins saved by the Liyavo Village Community Project, from the Kitale District Hospital, have transformed into healthy and intelligent toddlers. The twins had been living at the hospital since their mother died there. No-one had come to claim her body and the babies where developing signs of severe malnutrition, especially Paul who had not yet learnt to smile and was therefore given less attention. ICT-K was asked to intervene as their health was deteriorating quickly. Once in LVP's care the twins began their slow and steady recovery. Initially they were both prone to disease and illness but a balanced diet, love and attention, and a new, very large family soon put them back on the road of healthy development. Paul and Lea, who were named at the project, are both a handful and pleasure now; wandering off on a whim, chatting away continuously, and generally getting into everything.
If you would like to help or require more information, contact us:
ICT-K, PO Box 1745, Kitale Kenya.
Tel: +254 54 31323
Fax: +254 325 30246
e-mail:
ictk@africaonline.co.keHome