Educating children, combating gender-based violence and forced marriages and ensuring the safety of residents in Mathare and Busia

Local partner

The Legacy Education Center (LEC) is a non-profit institution, established in 2010, dedicated to providing programs for advocacy, gender equality, women and youth empowerment, and educational opportunities for children; the most vulnerable in the Mathare slum community. It is a community-based organization registered with the Government of Kenya.

The LEC has already implemented several projects in Mathare, including school sponsorship programs for children, the “Keep your slum clean” program, a project for the return to school of all girls, a skills development project community entrepreneurial initiative, and a project for the empowerment of children through sport.

The habitat issue has also been addressed by the LEC before. The association notably implemented a housing renovation project for the most vulnerable widows and families in Busia County, in eastern Kenya. During heavy flooding in this same area, temporary reception structures for the victims had also been installed.

Context

Kenya has been experiencing strong economic and demographic growth for nearly a decade, which has been accompanied by significant disparities: nearly half of the population lives below the poverty line and around 2.5 million people live in slums; in extremely precarious and insecure conditions, as in Mathare and Busia.

These two areas are places of decay, pollution, trafficking, violence, and sexual violence, with a laissez-faire attitude from the authorities. A situation that can only harm the sustainable and harmonious development of populations.

The mission

The project consists of preventing and responding to gender-based violence (GBV) and providing quality education and life skills to vulnerable children, young people, and families.

Activities

-Develop safe neighbourhoods for families who are victims of GBV: installation of public solar lighting, for example.

-Improve school education: equipment for pupils and schools, recruitment of qualified teachers, monitoring of performance and attendance of pupils, creation of a parent-teacher association.

-Support the livelihoods of families at risk of GBV: training, development of income-generating activities, support for youth groups.

-Develop a community GBV response network: emergency support, psychosocial support and referral of victims, home visits.

Beneficiaries

300 schoolchildren, 11 teachers, 75 families, 50 young community volunteers and 2,000 community members