Emoit is one of the 1,500 boys and girls, from Busia County in Kenya who are Child Rights Club members, and beneficiaries of life skills intervention offered by JOFA Project.
A 15-year-old Emoit* is the last-born child in a family of seven, living in a small village in Busia County, at the border of Kenya and Uganda. The family lost their father in the year 2014. Due to family wrangles, and the fact that their mother was unable to take care of her children, she opted to stay with a well-wisher on condition that she does not move in with her children, leaving Emoit under the care of his paternal uncle.
At his uncle’s place, there was a nurturing environment since they could take three meals per day, play with other children at the nearby playground, and access medical services. Emoit’s character stood out at school and his teachers loved him because of his discipline and sterling academic performance.
However, the greatest challenge he confronted was walking for long distances, about 7 kilometres to access his school. Furthermore, his uncle was very abusive, subjecting him to difficult household chores. This situation became unbearable, forcing him to seek refuge at his grandmother’s house. He was enrolled in Grade five to a nearby Primary School, about 800 metres from his grandmother’s home.
Life became more complicated for Emoit since his grandmother could not afford his basic needs such as clothing, balanced diets, school fees, or even medication. Emoit had to capitulate to peer influence by engaging in sand harvesting over the weekends, where he was paid 0.25 euros (KES 30) in a day. Sand harvesting gradually became more enticing and lucrative to him compared to school.
Since his grandmother would not monitor his movements, Emoit started missing school to “make money”. He would spend the money he earned from sand harvesting on leisure activities such as playing video games and buying snacks at the shopping centre. This affected his concentration and performance in school. He failed to sit his end-of-year examinations, forcing him to repeat Grade five.
During rainy seasons, when sand harvesting became difficult, Emoit and his friends shifted to alternative means of getting money by pickpocketing. In February 2020, he attempted to steal from a trader at the shopping centre, but he was caught by an angry mob which almost killed him.
A businessman at the shopping centre who had participated in the Joining Forces for Africa (JOFA) Child Protection and Violence Against Children training spotted Emoit and rescued him from the agitated crowd. He pleaded with the mob not to kill him, and hurriedly took him to the nearby Sub-County Hospital to receive urgent medical attention. Thereafter, he escorted Emoit to the Department of Children’s Services (DCS) where a case plan was developed.
The DCS referred Emoit to a Child Protection Volunteer (CPV) who connected him to the Medical Social Worker weekly for guiding and counselling sessions. Moreover, Emoit was put under the care of his mother.
In the year 2020, Emoit was admitted to his former primary school and introduced to the Child Rights Club (CRC) – a school-based interactive forum that promotes child participation, children rights and responsibilities, building their capacity to become great leaders, and encouraging them to become active change agents. Emoit is among 1,544, 681 boys and 863 girls, from Busia County who are CRC members, and beneficiaries of life skills intervention offered by JOFA Project.
He has also been receiving emotional support from the peer network groups thus enhancing his self-confidence. As a CRC member, he has also been involved in income generating activities among them gardening, and poultry rearing.
“As a child, JOFA has made me understand my rights and responsibilities, and enabled me to gain confidence to help other children defend their rights from being violated.” He noted.
Due to his family’s economic situation, the CRC patron requested the school administration to allow him to be enrolled in the school feeding program. To ensure his retention in school and transition to another class, the school exempted him from paying school fees worth 50 euros (Ksh. 6,000) annually and other school levies, including the lunch program, which is charged at 24 kilograms of maize and 18 kilograms of beans annually.
JOFA project also enrolled his mother in Parenting without Violence (PwV) common approach which has enabled her to better relate with her children, enabling them to resolve problems together and prevent Emoit from experiencing physical and humiliating punishment while at home. The project also partnered with state and non-state actors in their area to link his mother to social-economic interventions enabling her to have a source of income to meet the needs of her household.
As a result of the JOFA project interventions, Emoit was integrated back into learning. His performance in school has significantly improved. In the last exams in July 2022, he scored 312 marks out of a possible 500. The teachers are optimistic that Emoit will record better grades in his final Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) later this year.
The school administration has already applied for the M-PESA Foundation Scholarship on his behalf to ensure a seamless transition to Secondary School.
“JOFA project and other stakeholders have empowered me and other children from my community. Today, I am inspired to study hard to become a doctor so that I can help vulnerable members in the community.” Emoit said happily.
Emoit’s daily routine has changed, his confidence has gradually improved, and in his free time, he no longer engages in risky activities. The school administrator and JOFA Project team are constantly following up with his mother to ensure that he doesn’t engage in harmful activities.
Keep up to date on the progress of the project by signing up to JOFA’s quarterly newsletter
Get the latest news, case studies, learning briefs, voices of children, and more.
This publication was produced with the financial support of the European Union.
Its contents are the sole responsibility of Joining Forces and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.