Who would have thought that elderly people in rural Kenya, incredibly poor and isolated, could rise to the challenge of becoming self-sustainable?
"Just give us the chance," they said, and so we did.
The Funyula Division of the Samia District in western Kenya is bisected by a major truck route leading from Uganda into Kenya, and when AIDS came over the border, it decimated an entire generation of parents in this area, leaving thousands of AIDS orphans in its wake, a situation that continues to this day.
Grandparents found themselves taking into their homes anywhere from one to fourteen grandchildren to feed, clothe, raise and educate. A seemingly impossible task until The Ember Grandparents Empowerment Project began in 2006.
The major benefit that The Ember Project brought to the grandparents of Funyula was to show them that by working together instead of living in isolation they could create economic opportunities for themselves and their grandchildren. The plan was this:
Year one: Recruit rural grandparent families into the project. It was not difficult. When word spread of this new project, more than 2,000 families came forward. Rigorous screening was done and about 900 families with almost 4,000 AIDS orphans were enrolled. Initial community-building was begun and the grandparents were given assistence to choose what small businesses they might wish to pursue.
Year two: Implementation of grandparent businesses was started through the issuing of microloans backed by the grandparent community to which each family now belonged. Many chose agricultural projects such as planting and harvesting groundnuts, maize, and other crops along with raising goats and/or pigs. Others purchased raw products such as sugar cane or fish to process and resell at a higher price.
Year three: The goal from the beginning was that the Ember Project would become self-sustainable by the end of year three. While many small grandparent businesses succeeded, some failed, most notably soap making and peanut butter manufacturing due to the lack of a local market, and the sewing of much needed school uniforms as this could not be made cost effective. |
At the end of the third year, the U.S. Advisory Board did a thorough evaluation of The Ember Kenya Grandparents Empowerment Project. The sense of community is solid and we have every reason to believe that this will continue into the future. The grandparent families are scattered throughout a large rural area and by dividing themselves into seven local geographic groups with smaller groups contained within them, they continue to work together for the betterment of each family therein. Further, grandparent families that were not a part of the original Ember Project are seeing what Ember is doing and are beginning to work together along the model that Ember has set.
There is no question that the struggle to end poverty in Kenya and elsewhere goes on; it won't end anytime soon. Nevertheless, these grandparents and these AIDS orphans have been given a chance to make a better future for themselves and others by working together. Many of the children are becoming adolescents on their way to adulthood. Individuals who have been supporters of this project are evaluating additional ways to help the children in the Funyula area to become self-sufficient, independent adults.
The U.S. Advisory Board has officially dissolved with the confidence that the Ember model of working in community for the benefit of the individuals within it will continue.
For more information on The Ember Kenya Grandparents Empowerment Project please contact Executive Director Dr. Robert Barasa. |
