Kili fundraisers visit lives set to change thanks to fundraising efforts

We hosted our second visit of the week from UK partners AbleChildAfrica on Saturday, after a group of the fundraising climbers came to meet some of the people who will benefit from their efforts. AbleChildAfrica organised the climb to raise money for its life-changing work with disabled children and young people which has been hit by the world's financial crisis.
 

The climbers enjoy a break

Board member Vimal Shah led the group of fundraisers visiting its Kenyan partners ANDY and Little Rock Early Childhood Development Centre. Our own executive director Fredrick Ouko and Kibera’s Little Rock’s founder and director Lily Oyare had joined them on the Mt Kilimanjaro climb.

Fredrick explained ANDY’s unique range of work and programmes, which give more young people with disabilities the chance to achieve economic independence, to have a voice in the decision-making process and to lead healthier, active lives.

They were then able to visit some of the people whose lives our programmes – and the funds they raise – are helping to transform. 

Lizper in her home

One person they met is Lizper, a 22-year-old young person living in Kibera. She is a bright and sociable young woman who works braiding hair in a salon near her home.
Lizper’s life changed when she lost a leg ten years ago after a train hit her on her way to school in Kibera. Now she faced a new set of barriers; society’s expectations and response to her changed overnight, she had less access to rehabilitation, to healthcare, to information, to equipment to help her move around, to education and ultimately to the ability to be able to support herself financially.

Her life changed again when a worker from a different NGO knocked on the door and told her about the availability of prosthetic limbs, and then when ANDY’s programmes started to overcome those barriers to inclusion in mainstream life.

The group visited Lizper in her home and discussed the challenges she faces as a young person with a disability,and how she has been given the opportunity to lead a healthier, more active life through ANDY’s sports programme and awareness sessions around health, HIV and AIDS. Lizper also hopes to qualify for a small loan through ANDY’s programme for entrepreneurs to help open her own salon next year.

Mary Ann Mhina, Executive Director of AbleChildAfrca said:

"ANDY and Little Rock are helping to give young disabled Africans like Lizper the opportunities they deserve. But it's been a really tough time for them financially and I've noticed that many larger International NGOs and corporations have dumped local partners to aid their own survival.

"The aim of the climb is two-fold.  We want to raise awareness of the fact that 52 million disabled young people in Africa are denied their rights on a daily basis.  95% do not complete their primary education and less than 2% are employed thereafter.  And we also want to raise much needed funds for Fredrick and Lily's work. 

“Disabled young people have the right to be independent, included and make their own choices.  To learn what they want to learn and choose a career and lifestyle for themselves. Each of the young people climbing Kilimanjaro has chosen to join us on this journey, going the extraordinary mile to celebrate their empowerment.”

Fredrick Ouko, Director of ANDY, said:

“I decided as person with a disability to climb Mt.Kilimanjaro to demonstrate that what all of us need is just an

opportunity and support to make it in life. There are tens of people supported me in different ways. That is why I am where I am today and this is my opportunity to support my peers to make it in life.

“Sometimes official funding is hard to come by and as a person interested in what I am doing because I can see its impact, I am no longer going to sit in the comfort of my office but rather go out there to seek this support that will enable ANDY reach thousands of young disabled people in Kenya.”

You can make a donation online at www.justgiving.com/Fredrick-Ouko

ANDY celebrates UN International Day of Persons with Disabilities

We have placed our programmes to give young disabled people control of their own lives under the spotlight this week in the build-up to today’s United Nations International Day of Persons with Disabilities.

ANDY held a stall at the national launch of the week’s events, hosted by the National Council for Persons With Disabilities (NCPWD) at its office compound in Westlands, Nairobi.

We were honoured to join people with a range of disabilities, and other organisations working to help empower them, on a procession down Waiyaki Way from the NCPWD to the DC office. We were ably accompanied by the traffic police band, so we certainly got noticed and hope the waiting traffic and passers-by got the message!



The procession down Wayaiki Way 



We held a stall at the event, where we were able to discuss the range of programmes we run by and for young people with disabilites to a range of distinguished guests, beneficiaries, partners and old friends.

Hon Khalfan Barwani is a shining example that disability and differences are not a barrier to success. The MP continues to pursue his dream despite admitting that he fears for his life due to the prejudice which leads some to hunt and kill Albinos in his country.

Our own Executive Director has also been inspiring others this week, joining a group of other disabled young people from across the continent to climb Mt Kilimanjaro.

The climb, organised by ANDY’s major partners, the UK-based charity Able Child Africa,, aims to challenge perceptions of what young people with disabilites can achieve, and to raise money for ANDY’s life-changing work. Regular readers will know that Fredrick did the climb despite losing the use of both his legs to polio as a child. For more information click here.

An exhausted Fred taking a rest during the climb

Its been a great week for celebrating our successes with Able Child Africa. Trustee Judy Oder has visited our offices, and her colleagues will be coming to meet ANDY’s staff and some of the beneficiaries of our partnership tomorrow (Saturday 4 December).

ANDY can reflect on some great successes in the past 12 months, including securing funding for a very important national human rights and advocacy programme which will gather momentum in the new year.

We need to do everything we can to help the estimated 520,000 young Kenyans with disabilities to overcome the additional challenges they face to access services and climb out of poverty. Stigmatisation, limited education opportunities, inadequate access to economic opportunities and the labour market mean 80% of Kenyans with disabilities live in informal settlements at the edge of cities or under very poor conditions in rural areas.

Over the next year ANDY will continue to work with the government, donors and most importantly young people with disabilities to continue developing programmes will help Kenya’s young disabled people to show their talents, achieve economic independence, challenge discrimination, have a voice in the decision-making process and to lead healthier, active lives.



Able Child Africa Trustee Visit

Geoffrey,Judy and Joshua

Action Network for the Disabled (ANDY) was honoured to receive a visitor from our UK-based partners, Able Child Africa, yesterday. Our guest was Judy Oder, a trustee of the charity which advocates for and supports disabled children and young people in Africa. 

ANDY is one of only five partner organisations Able Child Africa supports to carry out work which is genuinely life-changing for children and young people with disabilities. Able Child Africa uses our experiences and learning to campaign for more widespread change in attitudes and practice.

We had a very positive conversation with Judy, who is a lawyer working for Interights in London, about our human rights and advocacy programme. We were also able to discuss the very successful programmes which our partnership with Able Child Africa has helped to develop in two key areas; helping young people with disabilities to achieve economic empowerment through employment, and access to regular, high quality sports and recreation.

All our programmes are led by and fully involve young people with disabilities, providing real empowerment and helping them to take control of their own lives.

The sports programme has given over 100 young people with a full range of disabilities the chance to show their talents and participate in social and healthy activities with other people with disabilities.

We trained eight coaches from ANDY’s beneficiaries to provide training for others in wheelchair basketball, volleyball for the deaf, swimming and table tennis.  The programme has had a major impact, providing new opportunities to 100 young people with disabilities and helping to raise their self-esteem, social skills and transform their overall health and fitness. 

Thanks to the Access to Work project, around 30 young people with disabilities have now secured permanent jobs or gained valuable experience through an internship.

Again, the project was delivered by young people with disabilities for young people with disabilities. They were trained to provide 60 others with one-month training on life skills, entrepreneurship and computers. The group were given support to write CV`s, do job searches and applications. We also provided a basic computer training programme and ran job clinics; including job seeking skills, interview skills, and communication and employee legal rights.

Developing young people with disabilities for the world of work is the easy part; they are like every other young person in the world. Give them the encouragement, education and training that they often cannot access and their talent will flourish.

The harder part is working with employers to convince them that young people with disabilities can do the job as well as anyone else. We have had great successes meeting employers from across the public, private and charity sectors. We know have people with a range of disabilities working in jobs as varied as Graphic Design Assistant, French Teacher, Radio Presenter and Advocacy and Networking Assistant.

The organisations which supported our project and gained all the benefits of hard-working and skilled young people with disabilities (including some of the tax benefits available) deserve a mention. They are Kenya Institute of Special Education (KISE), Community Eye Services Organization (CESO), Kilimani Primary School, Kencall EPZ Limited, Technology Today, Ministry of Youth Affairs, Global Deaf Connection (GDC), Coast General Hospital, Mombasa, Ministry of Transport & Communications, Mbaga Mixed Secondary school, Siaya, Masinde Muliro University of Science & Tech, Pamoja FM radio station, Ministry of Livestock Development and Kenya Society for the Blind.

One thing we discussed with Judy is the increasing pressure on funds caused by the global recession. We need to find more donors, sponsors and raise funds in more innovative and creative ways if we are to give more young people with disabilities the chance to benefit from our programmes. That’s why ANDY’s Executive Director Fredrick Ouko has just climbed Mt Kilimanjaro, despite losing the use of both legs to polio in his childhood. Support him by clicking here.

Competition for funds will increase over time and some successful programmes may fail under the pressure. Our challenge is to make sure that young people with disabilities have a voice in the development movement and are still able to benefit from programmes which help them overcome all the barriers - poverty, accessibility issues, lack of opportunities and cultural stigmas - and take control of their own lives and achieve their potential.

We are delighted that some of Judy’s colleagues will be visiting this weekend to meet some of our beneficiaries and see for themselves the very real difference our partnership with Able Child Africa is making to their lives.

Gareth Wilce

Partnerships and communications adviser

Action Network for the Disabled