Get News & Updates
Sign up to our newsletter to receive the latest news, upcoming event information, service updates and more.
CASA Projects in Kenya
Improving the quality of life of people with disabilities.It is estimated that there are three million people living with disabilities in Kenya. While organisations exist to promote the rights of people with disabilities in Kenya, in everyday life they still experience many challenges.
Partnership
Development Pamoja
Development Pamoja is a small charity working in Kenya’s Rift Valley, in the districts of Mogotio and Rongai. In Mogotio there are many people living with disabilities, and in many cases these people are hidden from the public.
Some people in Kenyan society see those living with disabilities as a burden, some even see them as a curse. In August 2012, following a visit from CASA members in Ireland, Development Pamoja entered into a partnership with CASA to assist those living with disabilities in the Mogotio district.
Projects
CASA Projects in Kenya
Medical Care & Transportation
In October 2012, CASA entered into partnership with Development Pamoja to assist disabled people in four villages in the Rongai and Mogotio districts. We assist approximately thirty disabled people.
This assistance takes the form of facilitating transport costs to various hospitals in Kenya, covering the costs of medical care and actually assisting people to receive care in hospitals.
Monthly Social Events
Apart from assisting members of the program with medical care we also run monthly social events in each of the program villages. These social events are mirrored on those run in Ireland. We invite disabled children and adults to the social events and cook them a hot meal.
We also invite a volunteer to accompany the disabled person. At the socials we encourage interaction between the volunteers and the disabled persons. The socials are a good way for people to get together to share experiences and have a proper meal.
Individual Assistive Projects
Finally, we also implement small projects for individuals within the program. For instance in October 2012 we purchased a water tank for the family of a boy who suffers from cerebral palsy and in November we provided the capital for another member of the program to start a small bicycle repair shop.
A Growing Impact
Changing Perceptions and Empowering Lives
The project is still in its infancy but has so far proved successful. We are constantly identifying new disabled cases, where families originally did not wish to take part in the program but now see the benefits of attending the socials. The program is not just assisting the disabled in the Mogotio district; it is also helping to change how the community perceives people living with disabilities.