More than 500 orphaned or vulnerable children provided with direct community support

WVP Kenya is working with 16 community-based organisations to provide holistic support and care to the many orphaned or vulnerable children in Nyanza and Western Provinces, areas of Kenya worst hit by poverty and HIV/AIDS. In the first half of this year in Nyanza Province alone, more than 200 children were able to attend school through school fee payments made by the community organisations, and a total of 329 children were provided with school uniform and other items (including text books) as well as with medical assistance in a number of cases. In the same period, 225 adults attended 14 days of training on a range of topics including parenting, child rights and project management, and 224 children attended two days of training on child rights and responsibilities.

A Child Protection Unit known as KAGO was founded following support from WVP in October 2012 across the four communities of Akoko, Gombe, Magak, and Nyamwanga. KAGO has 28 members working on a voluntary basis, all of whom received 14 days of training in the area of child rights and protection.  This year, KAGO has been working closely with church and other community groups to ensure all children are being adequately and appropriately cared for in the communities, and has identified and dealt with a number of difficult cases. This work is supported across all WVP communities by our Child Protection Ambassadors, who work on a part-time basis to ensure the safety and security of their communities’ children, reporting difficult or concerning cases to WVP staff.                           

Thirteen WVP scholars who graduated from secondary school in 2011 and 2012 will be heading to university later this year. Having received their marks in March, the scholars have only recently found out where they are heading and what they will be studying, so now the excitement and planning can really begin! They will be reading a wide range of subjects, including eco-tourism, economics, medicine, biochemistry, architecture, and mathematics. In May 2013, a further three secondary school graduates began college courses in teacher training, electrical engineering, and business administration. In total, WVP continues to support 486 children through full cycles of primary, secondary and tertiary education. 

WVP has also continued to support to the most vulnerable of our scholars’ families, and has provided more than 50 small business grants this year. The businesses started range from small food stalls at the local markets to selling clothes and fried fish, and empower parents and guardians to provide for their children’s needs at home enabling the children to focus on succeeding at school.