Angels of Hope Kibera

Hunger is a major problem in Kibera which many children attending AOHK’s centre and their families face on a daily basis. It is identified by AOHK as a priority for hunger affects many aspects of people’s lives, not only their health but also for instance their access to education: one cannot study on an empty stomach.

AOHK provides approximately 40 children attending its centre with two meals a day (breakfast and lunch).

Despite the Kenyan government’s attempts to provide free primary education for all children in age to go to school, many obstacles and side-costs remain: in Kibera, many parents and guardians still struggle to pay admission, tuition and exam fees, as well as feeding programmes, transportation, uniforms, books, pens and other material, etc. As a result, many children of Kibera simply do not go to school.

AOHK provides basic education for children up to 6 years old, and facilitates sponsorship for children aged 7 and above.

• Basic education

AOHK’s primary aim is to give these children a chance to pursue an academic path, while receiving practical and life skills modeling their integrity, good conduct and positive moral values, so that each of them can have a place in society as a proud productive citizen and possibly leader.

AOHK currently provides, with the help of one qualified teacher and two (non qualified) volunteer teachers from our community, basic education for approximately 58 children who are taught basic reading, writing, and maths in English and Kiswahili.

• Sponsorship

Currently, out of 58 children, over 40 are above the age of 7 (which normally is the age of compulsory education).

AOHK looks for sponsors to enable these kids to attend Standard 1 (primary school). In the meantime, it strives to guarantee basic education to them.

HIV/AIDS is unfortunately widespread in Kibera and affects many aspects of people’s lives: health, but also in particular access to education and work. All the children attending the centre are affected in a way or the other by HIV/AIDS: some of them are HIV-positive themselves, or their parents, guardians or relatives are, or their parents died from it, leaving them orphans and sometimes homeless.

Accompaniment

AOHK offers practical and moral (sometimes, where necessary and possible, financial) accompaniment to the children and their parents to ensure their access to health and proper treatment. It ensures that the children are taken to the necessary medical appointments, adhere to their treatment and take their medication on time, etc.

AOHK also provides support to their parents and encourage them to live positively, thereby combating stigma in the community, raising awareness on HIV/AIDS for prevention purposes and promoting tolerance.

Sanitation improvement

AOHK is developing a partnership with Enhancing Revitalization In Kibera (ERIK), a Kibera-based CBO, to work together towards a cleaner and thus healthier environment for the centre’s children and our community as a whole.

     Shelter

AOHK’s volunteer coordinator has opened her own home to 8 total HIV/AIDS orphans who have nowhere else to go nor any relatives to look after them. This being however no sustainable solution, AOHK has been seeking and developing partnerships with other organisations and charities, such as orphanages like Nyumbani and Lea Toto Kibera, in order to find lasting solutions for these children.

• Income Generating Activities (IGA)

AOHK is striving to come up with IGA to help parents gain greater financial independence as well as to ensure the centre’s sustainability.

To that aim, the centre has been consulting the community about possible IGA that the members would like to embark on. It is the centre’s intention to give priority to IGA that can benefit both individual people and the community and centre as a whole. For instance: tailoring can benefit a newly trained parent or guardian while providing an opportunity to sew uniforms potentially for every children of the centre or to sell uniforms within the community, thereby raising funds for the centre to be used for the benefit of the children.

The following projects are currently taking place:

• 3 chickens for eggs production
• Growing vegetables in pots at the centre

 

The following projects are currently under consideration:

• Growing vegetables at a larger scale
• Poultry farming
• Soap-making
• Catering
• Tailoring
• Hairdressing
• Beeds, ornaments