Health is wealth

At ACLAD, we recognize that the value of health cannot be measured, that is why we strive to enable children, their families and communities to experience good nutrition, sanitation and healthcare. Our work in ensuring that we take care of the health of those we interact with in the sponsored households includes enhancing access to clean water, sanitation and nutrition, impacting fistula survivors and adolescent girls through our partnership with Gynocare Women’s and Fistula hospital and the reintegration program. Our work also includes creating safe spaces for dialogue on issues pertaining to sexual and reproductive health, distribution of sanitary towels to vulnerable girls as we promote menstrual health and hygiene and building of latrines so as to discourage open defecation which leads to illnesses that threaten the health of community members. We help caregivers to improve their own health as well as that of their family members through family-based health promotion, education, and nutrition interventions.

Towards improving sanitation, ACLAD in February 2020 built 10 latrines at Bishop Sulumeti Girls High School in Kakamega County as well as other sponsored households in Kilifi County. This is because inadequate sanitation and hygiene facilities can pose a major obstacle to women and girls. The additional latrines at Bishop Sulumeti Girls High School have made a difference in the lives of the over 750 girls in the school. In addition to building latrines, we also extended existing pipelines to reach our sponsored households in Ganze, Kilifi County to ensure access to safe and clean drinking water.

In August, we partnered with Gynocare Women’s and Fistula hospital and the Reintegration Program in Eldoret-Kenya to conduct a training of trainers program under our Chagua Maisha mentorship program. These trainers, who are social workers, will become mentors to fistula survivors and adolescent girls at the facility and beyond, and to empower them with life skills and have sessions on sexual and reproductive health. In September, our team in Kakamega County undertook a training of trainers for 25 adolescent girls in Lumakanda area which was welcomed by parents, local religious and community leaders alike. The sessions that will be carried out by the trained trainers will go a long way in creating safe spaces for dialogue on issues sexual and reproductive health, drug and substance abuse, peer pressure, self-worth and personal choices among adolescents.

In October, ACLAD distributed menstrual hygiene products to vulnerable girls in the 17 plus villages in Mahusi and Namushiya sub locations in Kakamega County. The distribution of sanitary towels to these girls was also in a bid to discourage sex for sanitary towels and play a role in reducing unplanned teenage pregnancies in the area. The coronavirus pandemic and the closure of schools has adversely affected many teenager girls who relied on the free sanitary towels provided by the government. During this time, some men have taken advantage of schoolgirls, luring them into sex in exchange for money to buy sanitary pads and underwear. A majority of girls -especially in the rural areas- have no education on sexual and reproductive health or menstrual health and don’t know how to prevent pregnancy.

We are grateful to the local administration and the village elders for their support as we did what we could to make a difference one child at a time through the distribution of sanitary products to the vulnerable girls. With your support and partnership, we can play a bigger role in curbing unplanned teenage pregnancies and ensure that households have access to clean and safe water and sanitation facilities. Contact our team through info@aclad-hq.org .

For our supporters based in the USA, our partner Africa’s Kidz is a 401 (c3) organization. Your donation is tax deductible (in the USA)

To support health related intervention, just mail a check to:

Africa’s Kidz

312 Maberry Loop

LYNDEN, WA 98264

Catherine Muteithia ACLAD Media Consultant