📝 Detailed information
🏢 About the local organisation
• The group was started in 2009 and later registered under the social services in 2011. It consists of 46 members of which 39 are disabled and 7 are caretakers. Their mission was to build the capacity of the disabled in the community to enable them access their rights
💼 What the programme involves
• Home based care of the disabled
• Care and support of orphans
• Small scale poultry and dairy goat farming
• Basket and bead weaving
• Empowerment on income generating activities that can support the group
• Home visits
• Cultural days for various nationalities
• Topical discussion on the rights of people with disabilities with the local people.
🏠 Accommodation on site
• Volunteers will stay in a homestead with very basic living conditions. Volunteers have an obligation to climb down the level of the people with the aim of exposure to development challenges.
• KVDA will provide foodstuffs and volunteers will cook their own meals in turns. Water is available from springs and it is recommended that drinking water should be boiled or medicated. Mineral water available at supermarkets is also recommended.
• There is no electricity connection at the project but volunteers can charge their electric appliances at the nearest market center.
• However, the Government policy to install ICT in primary schools has seen connectivity to the national power grid for most educational institutions in Kenya and this makes it easy for volunteers to use electric appliances while at the project.
• Furthermore, we invite you to bring typical food, spices, drinks, games and music from your country (for an intercultural evening) – and a lot of motivation!
📍 About the location
Vihiga County's Profile
Vihiga County whose headquarters is in Mbale is Located in the Western Region of Kenya. It boarders Nandi to the East, Kisumu County to the South, Siaya County to the West and KAKAMEGA County to the North. It is one of the four Counties in the former Western Province. Vihiga County has five Constituencies; Luanda, Emuhaya, Hamisi, Sabatia and Vihiga
This year’s theme “Exploring our Cultural Heritage for the social Economic Benefits of our people”
Slogan “The Oasis of Hospitality and Great Talents”
The County’s population stands at 612,000. With an annual population growth rate of 2.51%, the population is projected to be 688,778 by the year 2017. It has an annual fertility rate of 5.1% which explains the high population rise. However, the age distribution is given as 0-14 years (45%), 15-64 years (49%), 65 years and above (6%) with the youth representing 25% of the population.
History and Culture
Vihiga has 4 Major Sub tribes namely; Maragoli people, Banyore People, Tiriki People and the Terik People
Banyore People
Just like all other Bantu and luhya people in particular, the Banyore migrated from the Congo Basin in the 17th and 18th Centuries. They settled in the land which resonates with their name –Bunyore land. They are neighboured by the idakho people at kilingili, the abakisa to the west, Maragoli to the East and the Luo to the south.
Today they live in two sub-counties and constituencies namely Emuhaya and Luanda. They occupy the western part of Vihiga County.They have over 20 clans and occupy two sub-counties of Emuhaya and Luanda. A good number of Abanyole live in the diaspora and quite a number have settled in lugari settlement scheme.
⚠️ Requirements
This is outlined in the detailed info sheet and includes, sleeping bag and mat, toiletries, torch/flashlight, sandals, mosquito net, national flag from your country, among others
ℹ️ Additional information
THEME: The Youth Reproductive Health Challenges in Kenya
• People with disabilities faces a myriad of challenges and most of them are kept in the dark and never discussed. The society out of misinformation choose to segregate them and in some cases denying those basic rights, such as the right to education, right to socialize with other people and the attendant stigma that takes a psychological toll on the victims.
• The current cohort of Kenyan youth is the largest ever. To contribute their full social and economic potential, young people need knowledge and skills to make the rights choices about when to have sex and how to protect themselves from infections and unintended pregnancies.
• The reproductive health challenges Kenyan youth face are similar to those of young people in many other African countries: high rates of teen pregnancy, high and rising rates of HIV infection, early marriage for young girls, malnutrition and harmful traditional practices such as female genital cutting. Increasingly, policy makers are acknowledging the link between better youth reproductive health and other aspects of healthy youth development including livelihoods, mental health and road safety.
• The volunteers will work together with members of the local community to address the issue of stigma and access to basic facilities and the place of children with disabilities in the contemporary world