Kiberia, Nairobi, Kenya
Kiberia
Kiberia is a slum area of 2.5sq kms in Nairobi, Kenya which is home to 800,000+ people. Houses are sheds with corrugated iron roofs, roads are tracks strewn with litter, sanitation is non existent and raw sewage spills over the pathways.
The stench is overpowering and disease is rife. Some 20% of children die before their fifth birthday and close to 60% of people living in Kiberia have HIV/AIDS. Few have jobs. Lives are short and high in misery, yet many people retain a sense of dignity and a desire to make something of their lives.
Solar D Light Project
The Foundation particularly liked the Solar Light Project which has a marked benefit for the children both educationally and in terms of heath improvement, working with another NGO we are supporting families using technology. We have provided funds to purchase Solar Lamps. These lamps sustainability improve living conditions for the Kiberia families. Many people in Kiberia rely for light on dangerous kerosene lamps which are a fire risk, aggravate respiratory illness and give little light. Others tap into illegal electricity. Children often cannot do their homework because of insufficient light.
The Kiberia scheme supplies the lamps on hire purchase which the residents pay off over 26 weeks. The funds recouped will be recycled so that more lamps can be bought. The local team were inundated with requests for the lamps. The weekly cost of the lamps are less than the cost of kerosene used each week. Our investment will be recycled many times in the future and should support an additional 200 families each year.
Football
Children in the area love to play and as you would expect Football is at the heart of it, we have therefore extended our support to Kiberia and are now sponsoring a children's football team within Kiberia, we are providing two sets of football kits.
