The Lemolo community was displaced during the Mau forest evacuation which is the main source of water in Kenya. The families lived in transitional camps on the roadside for 5 years before the Kenya government resettled them on their current land. There are 1,096 families resettled on Lemolo Farm. Each household was allocated 2 acres of land for farming and a quarter acre to build their home. Within the total 3,200 acres of Lemolo land, there were absolutely no social amenities such as school, health center, water and other basic human amenities
Students from Lemolo A pose in front of their new school.
VICDA’s Initial Involvement
After VICDA and her donors provided social amenties to GIWA Farm community in Rongai Constituency, Nakuru County, the organisation moved to Lemolo community in Rongai constituency, Nakuru County. Here they have been working to provide social amenities to Lemolo community such as construction of a complete primary school from class 1 to class 8, toilet blocks and administration blocks, fully funded by World Teacher Aid (WTA) in Canada. Now the Lemolo A children have access to the education and the school has 357 kids so far. The Kenyan government has been good enough to provide enough teachers. WTA in Canada has also been kind enough to fund the buying of text books and school desks. From Lemolo A we are now moving to Lemolo B to build another primary school.
Early Childhood Education & Feeding ProgramsLemolo students show off their new sweaters, thanks to Caring for the Children of Africa.
An Early Childhood Education Development school for children from 3 years to 7 years of age is generously Funded by Caring for Children of Africa in Australia. This has been followed by school feeding programs in both Lemolo A and B which has also been fully funded by Caring for Children of Africa. It has been very difficult for the families to provide meals for themselves because they have not yet settled and they have no source of income within the area. Their only source of income is through farming where they hope to have their first harvest in six years – projected in October 2014.
Caring for the Children of Africa has also provided sweaters for children in the Early Childhood Education program. Sweaters were provided before winter arrived to Kenya and now littles ones will remain warm in school.
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Water project
VICDA has also been able to provide water for this community through piping of water from a source 9 kilometers distance away. This project has been fully funded by Global Volunteer Network Foundation in New Zealand.. The project will be completed in early July 2014. At that time both lemolo A and B community will have access to water.
Residents from Lemolo Camps are cared for during a recent medical camp.
Medical Camp
Lemolo community A and B community are 13 and 17 kilometers away, respectfully, from the nearest health facility. In the month of June ,2014 VICDA provided a two week medical camp to both Lemolo A and B. The government provided medical practationers and VICDA volunteers from Mexico joined them for two weeks to assist. The health situation within this community is very fragile and still in need alot of attention.
We are very excited to begin construction on yet another school today! The 378 school-aged children who live in Lemolo, a community resettlement farm in Rongai near Nakuru, have been attending school outside, under the shade of a couple of trees and a makeshift shed shelter. Currently the nearest school is 6 kilometers away, making it a 12 kilometer walk – much too far for these small children, especially during the rains.
The current classroom in Lemolo.
VICDA is, once again, partnering with World Teacher Aid, the Canadian organization behind Shalom Primary School and Springs High School to construct 2 new schools in Lemolo. Like the residents of the Giwa IDP resettlement camp, these children have gone without proper education since their displacement at the end of 2007. Many of them have never experienced an actual school and this addition to the area will be a big step forward in the Lemolo community.
Students at Springs High School celebrate the opening of their new school.
After taking on the project of Shalom Primary School in Rongai and visiting the community, World Teacher Aid recognized a need for a high school in the area. This area, an IDP resettlement camp, had no day school available for low income families and, as a result, students were forced to stop their education after class 8.
Opening day celebrations at Springs High School!
By again partnering with VICDA, World Teacher Aid raised funds for the construction of a high school and we are very happy to announce that on October 10th of this year Springs High School opened its doors! The school is starting small with only a freshman class of about 70 students from the Giwa area as well as other students who travel into the village to attend. The next freshman class will be admitted in January, at the beginning of the 2014 school year. Springs High School has 2 streams in each class with a total of 8 classrooms, 3 laboratories, 3 toilet blocks and the construction of an administration block will be starting soon.
Once again, thank you to World Teacher Aid for their continued work in improving the lives of the needy people of Kenya. Thousands of children and several generations will surely benefit from your good and devoted work!
VICDA 