About the Project
The project involved installation of swings and purchasing bean bags, skipping ropes, building blocks, Fisher Price Rock–a-Stack®, and balls, to improve the cognitive, physical, social and emotional well-being of marginalized children of Wings of Hope Education Centre.
Location
Kanamkemer Ward, Lodwar Town, Turkana County, Kenya
Quick Project Stats
| Funding Date | August 2023 – October 2023 |
| Luena Investment | $3,500 |
| CBO Partner | Turkana Community Foundation (TCF) |
| Village | Kanamkemer Ward, Lodwar Town |
| Country | Kenya |
| # of Children Impacted | 150 |
| Community Contribution | manual labor, contribution of locally-available materials (gravel) |
Supplying an Education Centre to Support Literacy and Development
Kanam Child Development Welfare Project was carried out at Kanamkemer ward of Turkana County, which is ranked among the poorest counties in Kenya. Kanam ward has approximately 50,000 people, with the majority being young children. The majority of the residents live a nomadic lifestyle which has led to school dropouts as residents search for pasture for their livestock. They are also are survivors of violence from neighboring communities through raids, and they live through long drought periods. Thus, they can hardly meet their basic physical human needs.
Kanam ward is in an arid region, with too few institutions such as schools and health facilities to serve its population. Many of the local residents strongly believe in the traditional practices such as female genital mutilation and cattle rustling; thus education is not given a priority.
The above challenges have contributed to illiteracy and poverty being passed down from generation to generation, thus contributing to under development in Kanam ward and leading to local residents languishing in extreme poverty. The continuous suffering of the local residents compelled us to establish Wings of Hope Education Centre, and we intend to improve it for effective development and the well-being of local marginalized children.
Play Materials Help Draw Students to School
The donation we received from Luena Foundation was used to procure the proposed playing materials, namely medium size swings, medium size slides, Fisher Price Rock-a-Stack®, and soccer balls. The support was timely and had a profound outcome since the majority of the pupils of Wings of Hope Education Centre are always looking forward to going to school every day. The school enrolment increased from 50 to 100 pupils, with 34 bookings for the year 2024, because of the installed playing materials.
Meet our Partner Community-Based Organization
Turkana Community Foundation is a registered organization in Kenya that is run and managed by marginalized young people with a mission to nurture and economically empower marginalized youth and women to spur their development. We operate in the rural settlements of Kakamega and Turkana.
