Project name: Ng’onzini primary School

July 2023   

Code: KVDA/STV/07D 

Dates: 10th -31st July 2023 

Orientation: 10th July 2023

Travel to the Project: 11th July 2023 

Project closure: 30th July 2023 

Travel from the project: 31st July 2023 

Location: Kwale County 

Theme: Gender Sensitivity: Girl Child Education Project overview 

Ng’onzini primary school was started in the year 1964 by the  Mwachinga villagers. The main purpose was to bring learning services  near the community. The school was built using local materials till the  year 2000 when born free foundation came to build seven permanent  classrooms and an office. 

The school is a government school ran by T.S.C Teachers and P.T.A  Teachers. The school has an active Wildlife club which initiated a  wildlife area (elerock nature trail) near the school environment.  Children are made conversant with conservation activities day by day  out. Other clubs include Debate, Choir and Drama.  

 Apart from the government we have NGOs which do support  Ng’onzini School. These include JICA (KEMRI), Plan Kenya, born  free Foundation, Camp Kenya. K.W.S also constructed one classroom  and the school is managed by committee of parents. 

Vision: To educate both boys and girls. 

Mission: To develop talent of every pupil for faster development of the  nation 

School objectives 

• Bring education near the community 
• Educate both boys and girls 
• Develop talents of every child 

ACTIVITIES  

• Teaching students.
•  Playing games (football, netball, volleyball, and hockey). ∙ Creating awareness in conservation.
• Keeping and maintaining tree nursery.
• Guiding visitors in the elerock nature trail.
• Keeping the school environment clean.
• Guiding and counseling students.

NETWORKING  

The school is working under the ministry of education.  ∙ It is linked with KNUT, K.W.S, Colobus Conservation, Plan in Kenya,  Jica, Kemri, Bamburi Green School Project, wildlife clubs of Kenya.  ∙ It is also connected with the local CBO called Nuru. 

FINANCIAL SOURCES 

• The group depends entirely on government to fund the free primary  education as well as TSC (teachers’ salaries).  
• Parents pay money for PTA teachers’ water bulls and cooks. The  school receives money from the sale of Aloe vera soaps and tree  seedling from the school tree nursery. 

STRENGTHS 

• Since establishment the school has been getting strong support from  Mwachinga villagers.  
• The Kenya government has been funding teachers to teach in the  government school. Apart from the government the school is  connected with NGOs and parental boards e.g. Plan Kenya, Kenya  Wildlife Service, Born Free Foundation and JICA, KEMRI. 
• The School infrastructure is relatively endowed with administration  and classrooms 
• We have a solar panel which gives lights to our class 8 boarders also  the school is connected with rural electrification.

CHALLENGES  

• Lack of hardware infrastructure like computers and photocopier  machines to enhance operations.  
• High poverty levels among the parents within the community and this  hampers aspirations for higher education 
• Lack of opportunities to enhance exchange program with other  institutions in order to provide the platform for exposure to  challenges of development. 

FUTURE GROWTH STRATEGY  

• The school aims at bringing international volunteering programs so  as to bring in new ideas, enhance the capacities of the host  community to tackle development challenges 
• Our children will have to work with the international community in  order to widen their horizons on cultural diversity, hone  communication skills with enhanced capacities.

Project activities  

AGE: Volunteers have to be at least 18 years old to participate in the work  camp. There is no upper age limit. 

TYPE OF WORK CAMP: Manu/CHIL/EDUC 

Volunteers will work for six hours daily from Monday to Friday. Manual work and Intercultural activities:  

•  Social work 
• Teaching  
• Playing games (football, netball, volleyball, and hockey). ∙ Creating awareness in conservation.  
• Keeping and maintaining tree nursery 
• Guiding visitors in the elerock nature trail 
• Keeping the school environment clean 
• Guiding and counseling students.

PROJECT PARTICIPANTS: Maximum 20 volunteers from Kenya and  the international community 

What to carry? 

This is outlined in the detailed info sheet and includes, sleeping bag and mat,  toiletries, torch/flashlight, sandals, mosquito net, national flag from your  country, among others 

DONATION AND GIFTS:  

• These are usually symbolic gestures to enhance the solidarity of  volunteers and the hosting community.  
• Kindly contact KVDA for details in case you are willing to support a  worthy cause in the community either by offering a donation or long term intervention on the project. 

THEME: Gender Sensitivity: Girl Child Education  

• It is common practice for School girls to be forcefully married to elderly  men in exchange of dowry and most of the cases involve primary school  children. 
• “It is unfortunate that while other communities are discarding  traditions that drag down their socio-economic development, this  repugnant cultural practice has refused to die exposing communities  to ridicule. It is something that should be stopped because it denies the  girl child the right to education.” 
•  After realizing that the Kenyan government was taking stringent  measures on parents engaging their children in forced marriages, some  members of the community often cross into neighboring Tanzania  where they perform the marriage rituals before crossing back to Kenya.  
• The Kenya government has outlawed FGM and its attendant practices  and its perpetrators risk being jailed. What makes teenage marriages  especially appalling is that it burdens the young girls with  responsibilities that they are ill-prepared for. This includes child  bearing and the concomitant hustles of taking care of children. 
• The culture has been a detriment to the girl child and as a result few  girls have the urge to continue with their education as they will be  married off before they complete their education. 
• The future of the girl child is therefore threatened and concerted efforts  must be made to reverse the worrying trend. 
• Poverty is a broad-term that describes many circumstances where  people lack resources such as money, housing, food, clothing, jobs, and  suffer physically, socially, and emotionally from this material  deprivation.  
• Poverty describes a standard of living where a person is unable to  afford even a basic diet. International definitions of poverty rely on the  classification of the poverty level, which is a level of income below  which a person cannot afford to buy all the resources required to live. 
• Poverty eradication encompasses the will and strategies to stop all  people from living in poverty. 
• The focus will be on education, training and gender sensitivity. Inter  cultural exchange is aimed at enabling people to put global awareness  and intercultural learning into practice.  
• This is enhanced through creating awareness through learning themes  on global issues.  
• In so doing it will strengthen participants’ skills in working in  community-based organizations actively involved in efforts to alleviate  poverty. 

Orientation: Will be done on 10th July 2023 at Nairobi South YMCA  Hostel in Nairobi and the team will leave for the project on the morning of  11th July 2023.  

Airport pick-up services: 

• The port of entry to Kenya is Jomo Kenyatta International  Airport in Nairobi 
• Airport pick up will be done on provision of full flight details.  
• Volunteers will stay at Nairobi South YMCA Hostel at a subsidized  fees ahead of their project placement. 

Participation FEES  

The project participation fees that is all-inclusive for the 3-week work camp  is Euro 300

What is not included in the project participation fees: Transport to  and from the project will be paid by the volunteers themselves.  

INSURANCE: KVDA does not provide insurance and volunteers should obtain  travel insurance cover. It is a good idea to get medicine you are used to from  your home country and seek advice from your personal doctor. 

WHAT DOES THE PARTICIPATION FEES COVER? 

Project preparation cycle, return transfers from the airport, KVDA  administration, orientation, certificate of participation, project coordination,  facilitation, evaluation and monitoring 

WHAT IS NOT COVERED? 

Excursion activities, transport to and from the project, local travel, personal  effects, needs and wants. 

EDUCATIONAL TOURS  

KVDA offers educational tours to spectacular sites including the renowned  Maasai Mara Game Reserve at separate fees. Please contact us for specific  tour information.  

ACCOMMODATION AND MEALS 

• Volunteers will stay in a house provided by the local people with very  basic living conditions.  
• Volunteers have an obligation to climb down the level of the people  with the aim of exposure to development challenges.  
• KVDA will provide foodstuffs and volunteers will cook their own meals  in turns.  
• Water is available from springs and it is recommended that drinking  water should be boiled or medicated. Mineral water available at  supermarkets is also recommended.  
• The Government policy to install ICT in primary schools has seen  connectivity to the national power grid for most educational  institutions in Kenya and this makes it easy for volunteers to use  electric appliances while at the project. 
• Furthermore, we invite you to bring typical food, spices, drinks, games  and music from your country (for an intercultural evening) – and a lot  of motivation! 

LANGUAGE: English is the language of the work camp. There will be a  possibility of learning Kiswahili and other international and local languages  as cultural diversity is a major component in international service 

EMERGENCY CONTACTS: 

Below are the emergency contacts for Kenya Voluntary Development  Association: 

KVDA Administration: +254721 650 357 

PROJECT DETAILED INFO SHEET: Will be sent to the volunteer sending  organization as soon as the application is accepted by KVDA 

CONFIRMATION DEADLINE: Should be done via e-mail at least one month  before the start of the project.