by Yvonne Sampoda, Kenya, July 1997
THEME = HEALTH
Every day, after helping her parents with the farmwork, Jemimah Kemunto devotes the afternoon to attending a group meeting where she is a member. She completed her secondary education two years ago, graduating with a low Grade C. Because of this, she was unable to find any employment. In mid -1995, she heard that some girls who had left school were going to form a group, in order to do something about earning money. The group, based near Tombe market in the district of Nyamira, are all girls aged 13 to 15. There are 19 of them. They meet daily in a room they manage to rent at the cost of Ksh 300 (about 6 US dollars), from where they assist each other in acquiring skills in dress-making, knitting, embroidery and other skills. They sell their products in the nearest market.
The efforts of this group to better themselves, so impressed the Locational Social Development Assistant (CDA), that it was decided to link the group with a pilot project on Socio-Economic and Reproductive Health, run by the Africa Medical Research Foundation (AMREF).
The project is funded by the Swedish International Development Agency and aims at improving and sustaining the welfare of young people, through addressing their critical socio-economic and health needs. It initiates and supports viable socio-economic activities, increases socio-economic and reproductive health information, with the aim of reducing incidence of unintended pregnancies, abortions and sexually transmitted diseases.
The primary focus of the project, is on young people who are not in school, between the ages of 10-25, single or married, resident on the project sites. The secondary focus is on increasing parental, church, community and peer involvement, in enhancing a change in attitude towards reproductive health practices.
In Nyamira district, the project has 2 intervention sites: at Kiogutwa in Manga division and Nyabisimba in Nyamira division. The control sites are in Nyankoba sub-location in Rigoma Division and Boisanga II in Ekerenyo Division.
In the various locations, parents, community opinion leaders and church leaders are fully involved in the locational steering committees, where they give valuable contribution in terms of offering advice to the young people. They also have counsellors (educators) based at the locational headquarters who act as information resource persons.
According to Mr Josephat Nyagero, the district project manager, an initial survey provided data on the socio-economic and reproductive health status of the young people. The specific data covered such aspects as: socio-demographic characteristics, sexual preferences and practices, pregnancy levels, pregnancy prevention, sexually transmitted diseases (knowledge of and prevalence), HIV/AIDS awareness.
The data revealed that 90.5% of the 613 young people (in the 10-25 age group) interviewed, had had previous sexual experiences. This revealed a high percentage of AIDS victims. The survey also revealed that while the young people were quite prepared to discuss their reproductive health problems with their peers and friends, they were extremely reluctant to do the same with fellow church members and their own parents.
In the survey, the young people expressed the need for financial and material support, employment, project management and technical skills including guidance and counselling on sexual matters.
Since the project was started 2 years ago, 26 youth groups have so far received material support amounting to ksh 440,000 (about 8,800 US dollars). The support has been given in the form of recreational material, indoor games, material for drama and music. Also machines for farming and agricultural activities and skills- training. There is a lot of dialogue and sharing of information among members, guidance and counselling.
Mr.Nyagero says the project has adopted a multi-sectoral participatory approach, where all the stake-holders, government, Churches, parents and the whole community plus the young people, participate fully.
Dr Minou Fulesang, is the Swedish International Development Agency's consultant. She visited the project after two years of its operation. She said that the whole set-up was unique, as many non- governmental organisations tended to lose out by "going it alone", without the involvement of the government and grassroots communities. It is a project that has made rapid progress and achieved programme schedules within the planned time.
She said that the project's outstanding features included stability and continuity amongst the staff managing the project. She was also surprised and encouraged to learn that most of the technical and expert support was drawn from the various government department resource persons, based at the district headquarters. This has greatly reduced the project's operational costs in terms of payments to expatriate experts.
Now the young people try to focus on the future, when all will be able to realise profits from their activities and every member will be able to start up their own business.
END