The International Childcare Trust - Kenya
Liyavo Village Community Project

Trans Nzoia District is one of the 21 districts that constitute the Rift Valley Province of Kenya and has Kitale as it's administration capital. The district is bordered by Uganda and Mount Elgon to the west, Bungoma and Kakamega to the south, Maraquet and Uasin Gishu to the east and West Pokot to the north. The population is about 600,000 of whom roughly 54% are under 25 years of age. Kalenjin, Luhya and Kikuyu form the major tribal groups while other large groupings include Turkana, Kisii, Luo and Kamba.

The main source of income for the district is agriculture followed by the civil service though the informal (juakali) sector does significantly contribute to the economy. The harvest however is unevenly distributed with the squatter families, who represent almost half of the population, reaping 0% of the produce and wealth.

Street Children:

Kitale has a large population of street children with estimates of between 250 and over 500 children on the streets at any one time. Estimates vary depending on how one defines a street child; should one limit it to those who spend all their time on the streets?

Street Children can be broadly divided into 3 groups:
For street workers all three groups must be considered legitimate as all three groups are being denied some of their most basic of human rights.

Background:

The International Childcare Trust - Kenya (ICT-K) has been working in Trans Nzoia District since 1992 with special focus on deprived, abused and street children. Initially a 5.2 acre plot was bought by ICT-K where children displaced by the ethnic clashes of the time could find refuge. Buildings were gradually converted or constructed for the children's and project use while poultry rearing and market gardening were initiated to reduce the projects costs.

In the wider context Kenya was experiencing widespread clashes that were leaving whole communities landless and without means of survival. In the North Rift Valley makeshift refugee camps were established to which ICT-K delivered relief supplies and later, having established women's groups and other CBOs, seeds, tools and other necessities were distributed for the communities to establish themselves.

By 1994 the worst of the clashes had all but ended and some of the refugees were able to return home while others settled more permanently where they were (Liyavo and Birunda are such settlements). For many though the opportunity was not there and they have contributed to the large squatter population of Trans Nzoia. In all conflicts it is the children who suffer the most. They have few rights and little understanding of why their lives are being torn apart in adult made conflicts. In the wake of the clashes many more children made their way to Kitale town where the number of children living on the street dramatically increased. HIV/Aids, starvation and general poverty had already forced other children onto the streets. ICT-K intervened with the opening of Lukhuna and Kibos centres to implement the 'Trans Nzoia Children in Need Community Project' (TdH NL Project code KE021a-1382).

Trans Nzoia Children in Need Community Project's Kibos Centre served as a drop-in centre for any child who wished and as a key step to entering the more stable and permanent Lukhuna Centre:
Kibos Centre was located in a rented industrial warehouse which not only served as a drop-in centre but also 24 hour care was offered those who were willing to undergo detoxification from glue. The centre held daily remedial classes, lunch was given to those who studied while shelter, bedding and three meals a day was given those serious enough to stay and, for many, leave the streets permanently.

All the children at Lukhuna Centre attended local schools, many having passed through Kibos's remedial classes. The rented centre was 100% residential and catered for approximately 100 children at a time. Good diet, caring staff and constant guiding and counselling ensured the work Kibos had started continued throughout primary education.

The 2 centres together helped many hundreds of children re-asses their positions and gain a sense of self value as they started belonging to the community rather than being a waste product of that community. Sports events and the project choirs helped promote awareness among the wider community and change some of their more negative attitudes toward street children in general.

In 1997 Kibos centre was closed following pressure from the Children's Department over facilities and infrastructure of the centre. Being a rented site made conversions and investment out of the question and so it was decided to move some of the kids from Lukhuna to Liyavo and all of the kids from Kibos to Lukhuna. Construction of more dormitories at Liyavo eventually made it possible for all the children from Lukhuna to move and the combination of all the children's programmes at Liyavo.

Liyavo Village Community Project:

LVCP offers full residential care for boys and girls from a variety of backgrounds and situations. From 1992 until 1998 the population was limited to about 40 children the majority of whom were from squatter families that had come to Kitale to escape the violence and ethnic cleansing that so much of rural Kenya was experiencing during the early 1990s. Construction of new dormitories and the refurbishment of some of the existing dorms has made it possible to adequately house 150 children at any one time while 2 places are reserved for emergency cases. The majority of children now at the project originate from the streets although a large minority are 'for the street' or from 'Difficult Circumstances' within the squatter communities.

The constant population of about 150 kids attend local primary schools or are undergoing remedial classes at the centre. There are also a few nursery school age children. The centre has been able to locate families and relations for nearly all of the children under it's care which has made home visits possible for the majority of kids. Home visits are seen as vital in maintaining or re-establishing links between the children and their communities, which in turn makes re-unification and eventual departure from the project much easier and often preferable.

Between December 2000 and January 2001 a new intake of 26 children was possible as the primary school finishers moved away to either training or secondary school. The current status of children residing at or now sponsored through Liyavo is as follows:

Education Male Female Total Resident
Remedial Classes 7 4 11 11
Nursery School 3 5 8 8
Primary School 82 52 134 130
Secondary School 10 2 12 0
Training 14 3 17 0
College 1 3 4 0
Emergency Placement 2 0 2 1
Special School 1 0 1 1
Awaiting Placement 2 0 2 0
TOTAL 122 69 191 151
NB. Figures as at 19/03/01

All the new placements were given to actual street children with the exception of 4 places taken by village children in particularly difficult circumstances. The new intake, 15 boys and 11 girls, are all attending primary school, nursery school or remedial classes at the project. Their average age is 8 years though six of them are just 5 years old.

Achievements:

1. Child Care:
The period of May 1998 through till April 2001 has seen many changes in the programme some foreseen others not. The most significant being in areas of accommodation, education, selection, emergency placements and awareness for children and guardians alike.

Structural changes include the building of a 76 place dormitory block with showers and toilet facilities adjacent, refurbishment of girls dormitory and shower/toilet units. Renewing some ancient roofs and covering a large veranda. New sceptic tanks, bore well with electric pump and generator supplying overhead tanks and the conversion of unused silos to stores.

Accommodation for all project children has been moved to LVCP which has had some very positive effects on the children while making some of the other changes possible. The projects were previously divided between town and village; the town end reforming street children while the village end handled local refugee children. Although all projects were under ICT-K splits emerged from such innocent things as separate football teams to the projects actually being used in name calling during minor disputes. The final combination of projects and backgrounds caused some initial friction although that quickly passed as the children started attending the same schools, etc.

Educational goals have been gradually moved from what was an almost blind assertion that secondary education was the only way to secure a future to a much more open minded and debated road enhancing vocational skills training as a real option to formal education. It has been a hard struggle that has been accomplished through staff training, meetings and debates with staff and children, and most importantly increased home visits have opened the children's eyes to the realities of life outside. Advice from relatives and peers has also been invaluable. In 1998 all primary school leavers were offered secondary school places even if they had no hope of even maintaining an average grade. In 2000 those who attained the minimum grade for secondary education were offered an informed choice between secondary education and skills training. 3 opted for secondary school while 8 chose training. Nine children completed training, were issued with tool kits and now lead independent lives, follow up home visits enable us to monitor their progress; all are earning a living using the skills they learned with the exception of one who was offered a place at 'Kipsongo Training Centre' as an assistant in the welding department when that opened in April 2001.

Selection for the intake of new children used to be through our Kibos drop-in centre or directly from the Children's Department and courts. Unfortunately mistrust between children's homes, department and individuals made networking between organisations difficult which in some cases lead to double sponsoring and complicated the task of establishing comprehensive case histories for the children. Changes in ICT-K, Children's Department and other organisation's administration has enable a much closer relationship between all stake holders to evolve. Double sponsorship no longer occurs, inter-organisational referral is a reality and the District Children's Advisory Committee is now a active entity and well attended. ICT-K having identified many needy cases on the streets selected the most needy cases to fill it's vacancies and for the first time ever distributed lists of the proposed intake to all other local children's organisations and the Children's Department for their perusal and comment.

Emergency cases are being referred to us on a fairly regular basis averaging about 2 a month. The majority are young children, boys and girls, for whom and for whatever reason the authorities cannot trace their guardians. They are arrested as 'children in need of care and protection' and held in the overcrowded police holding cells along with adult detainees. Most are held briefly until the DCO and ICT are informed and action taken, though in the most tragic of cases so far a 16 year old boy was held for almost 3 months. He is now admitted in hospital, relations have been found though he may never recover full from his ordeal.

Our youngest emergency cases include a 4 month old baby who was found abandoned and a 3 month old boy who was the result of incest and would probably have been killed by his in-laws.

To date we have had a 100% success rate in tracing relatives and so reuniting families who were often separated by misfortune and neglect by authorities. As an organisation we are pushing for the opening of a juvenile remand home in Kitale to take these and other cases out of the adult cells. In the meantime the LVCP Management Committee have agreed to keep 1 male and 1 female place free for emergency cases. We shall continue to trace families and repatriate children although this adds to the overall administrative costs it is preferable and, in the long term cheaper, than keeping children at the project.

Awareness of children and guardians has been enhanced through a series of developments:
Through these means we have established a much greater understanding between all those involved and through this understanding and mutual respect. Some parents and guardians have come forward to take their children back, while others who are now in better situations than previously have accepted their responsibility with little help from ICT. Our aim is that all the children in our care lead as normal life as possible and that the children's home be transitional for as many as possible.

2. Poultry Rearing and Agriculture:

The poultry section continues to produce both eggs and birds for the table which are both supplied to the project or sold at a modest profit. Currently 7 to 8 trays of 30 eggs are produced daily, the children have eggs 2 meals a week and the rest are supplied to paying customers at Ksh 150/- per tray. A new batch of 250 broilers will be ready for the table in about 2 weeks time selling at between Ksh. 180/- and 220/- per bird depending on weight. The price of feeds and stock limits profitability though, but children are directly involved in all aspects of the section which gives them valuable experience for their later lives. A new children's home specifically for orphans has opened nearby called 'Seed of Hope' where they have used our poultry section as a model for their own.

Rabbit rearing briefly ground to a halt as stock became too old and inbred to produce properly. New stock has been bought in and the numbers are already growing. With careful management and the introduction of new males from outside periodically rabbit will once again become a valuable addition to the children's diet.

Agriculture has been concentrated on the crops we know do well on our soil at this altitude. A few experimental plots do remain. The garden produces ample sukuma wiki, suja, Irish potatoes and cooking bananas for the project needs and contributes some tomatoes, beans, carrots, spinach, cabbage and fruits to the hostel. Like the poultry section income is not high but invaluable experience is given the kids in organic farming. Two plots have been fitted with drip irrigation which some of the older kids assisted with the installation, 2 further plots will be similarly fitted to produce sukuma wiki during the dry seasons when prices jump from around Ksh. 200/- to 800/- per bag.

3. Vocational Training:

On site vocational training continues to offer Tailoring and Dressmaking, Building Skills and Mechanics, while informal training is also offered in welding & fabrication, carpentry, plumbing, computer skills and organic agriculture normally as a compliment to outside training. Other courses being followed include Sign Painting and Graphic Design, Hair Dressing, Food and Beverage Production and Presentation, Electrical Installation, Nurse, Community Nurse, Community Health Worker and Mechanical Engineering.

4. Clinic

The clinic is run as a non-profit community service and for the benefit of project children. During the last 3 years the clinic has changed dramatically from being a small yet serviceable entity to a key player in community health and HIV/Aids awareness. Services now available are:
Where not otherwise indicated drugs are sold at just above cost price and consultation is Ksh. 20/-. With the formation of Kapsitwet Liyavo Community Partnership (KAPLIVO) LVCP clinic became directly involved with the training of Community Health Workers (CHWs) to work within the 12 villages that surround Liyavo and Kapsitwet. These CHWs also give advice on HIV and Aids prevention and have identified six cases of child paralysis in Liyavo village alone.

5. Shop:

LVCP ran a small village shop were day to day goods could be purchased at a reasonable price, without having to travel the few kilometres to Namanjalala centre or Kitale town. At the time there were no other shops in Liyavo. Over the years of LVCP's existence the Liyavo settlement has gradually become more stable and gained a sense of permanence. With this villagers have opened their own shops and most items are available within the village. For this reason it was decided to close the LVCP shop to avoid it becoming a competitor with the community rather than a service to that community.

6. Community Development:

LVCP assists in development initiatives already being undertaken by the community. Such projects already completed are:
LVCP staff and management are always available for suggestion and requests and the project vehicle still ferries emergency cases to hospitals in town.

7. Mosquito Eradication:

The proposed Mosquito Eradication Programme has advanced significantly with the second programme of spraying and fogging proceeding from April 1st. Through KAPLIVO and in collaboration with the MoH's wider malaria prevention programme communities have been sensitised to simple and effective ways to reduce mosquito populations in their areas: A total of 12 villages are being treated through local initiatives, cost sharing with the MoH and contributions from ICT-K. The beneficiaries are in their thousands which will become apparent in year 2 when clinic and hospital records of malaria morbidity can be analysed.

8. Staff:

Staff levels have successfully been reduced through a retrenching programme that coincided with the movement of the projects to LVCP. As a planned retrenchment ICT-K was able to afford all retrenchees fairly handsome redundancy packages with which many have started small businesses. Present staffing levels are as follows:

Project Manager, 1, day.
Assistant Manager, 1, day/night.
Project Social Worker, 1, day.
Cook, 1, day.
Child Care, 10, day/night.
Nursery Teacher, 1, day.
Guards, 6, night.
Drivers, 2, day.
Laundry, 3, day.
General Duties, 1, day.
Vocational Instructors/maintenance, 4, day.
Garden/Agriculture, 6, day.
Nurses, 2, day/covering.
Administrator, 1, UK.
Country Director, 1, UK.
Total - 39
Male, 24 NB. All night guards are male.
Female, 15
Local, 37
Expatriate, 2

ICT-K has a policy of employing as many members of the local community as possible in it's projects as a means of uplifting individuals and indirectly whole communities. To this end hands on training should be complimented with formal training of some kind. To this end over the last 2 years staff have taken courses in such divers skills as Project Management, Participatory Action Research, Computer packages, Counselling, Driving, Food Preparation, Advanced Trainers Training, etc. Twelve members of staff have completed training and all local staff will have received some form of formal training of their choice by 2002.

9. Administration:

As part of the rationalising of ICT-K the main office/residence in Kitale has been moved to a smaller and cheaper location still within Kitale town. Two computers have been bought replacing the lap-tops as they wore out or were broken (one was paid for by the insurance company). The office has e-mail, fax and telephone facilities and it is hoped the e-mail will reduce phone bills in the future.

10. Transport:

ICT-K has two ageing Datsun Nissan pick-ups and a Yamaha motor cycle for project and administrative use. The Country Director has his own vehicle in Nairobi.

THE NEXT THREE YEARS.

LVCP will continue offering quality care to children in need. The processes that have been started will be further enhanced with following aims:
While ICT-K aims to: Consider if there is any real hope of the phenomenon of street children disappearing in the foreseeable future. The economic factors that push children onto the streets and keep them there are not confined to local or short term trends but are the result of national and global economics. Thus, perhaps controversially, one must consider the rights of the child to be a street child. That considered means the rights afforded other children have to be extended to street level. ICT-K is trying to do this through new initiatives of drop-in centres providing basic education, skills training, medical attention, food and clothing.

Donors and sponsors in partnership with ICT-K have successfully taken many hundreds of children from abuse, from severe poverty, HIV/Aids orphans, refugees and street children and uplifted their potential, restored dignity and offered them viable futures.

PLEASE CONTRIBUTE.

Barclays Bank of Kenya Ltd. Kitale Branch. Birunda ICT-K account Nº 8428829
ACRONYMS USED IN THIS REPORT/REQUEST

LVCP. Liyavo Village Community Project
ICT International Childcare Trust
ICT-K International Childcare Trust Kenya
MoH Ministry of Health
CHW Community Health Worker
KAPLIVO Kapsitwet Liyavo Community Partnership
STD Sexually Transmitted Disease
Aids Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome
HIV Human Immunodeficiency Virus
BVCP Birunda Village Community Project
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