Feed 30 malnourished young children in Kenyan slum

The Kiandutu slum is characterized by poorly build houses, no proper drainage system, inadequate latrines and no system to dispose of waste materials. The residents, living in these circumstances without knowledge of hygiene, nutrition or health, are suffering from illnesses impacting their lives. Parents are incapable of sustainable work and therefore unable to support their children. Children are not developing well and cannot attend school. Poor hygiene and lack of knowledge leads to life effecting situations when young mums get complications at birth or do not know how to take care of their newborn baby. Macheo social workers identify children and parents or guardians (to be) in need and admit them into one of their four Health Programs. Each of the programs provides information on hygiene, nutrition, medical care, or facilitates access to medical care and psychosocial support.

Macheo US funds one of these programs, along with donors from the Netherlands: Malnourished Children Program

The Malnourished Children Program serves children under the age of 5 in the Kiandutu slum. The children are identified by Macheo’s fieldworkers and are cared for at KOP (Kiandutu Outreach Project). At any given time, the program help 30 children. The children are fed with nutritious food so that they attain normal nutritional status. The guardians of these children are trained on various topics which help them to sustain good health of their children. The topics include child development, health and hygiene, nutrition, budgeting and other relevant topics.

A story of recipient Joseph, as reported from Macheo

Joseph is the second born in the family of two children. His elder sister Teresia is 5 years old. According to the mother to Joseph the husband was not providing for the family. When Joseph was one year old the parents separated and the mother ran away leaving the child with his father who didn’t care at all. Poor Joseph, the breastfeeding was cut off and no alternative was provided for his survival.

When the mother came back after several months Joseph was in a bad state. He was identified and assessed and found to be moderately malnourished. He weighed 16 lbs at an age of 1 year and 5 months and suffered from delayed milestone, that is he could not crawl and was only sitting. Joseph was enrolled in the Malnourished Children Program.

Joseph's parent was cooperative and was attending seminars at all times. Joseph progressed well and within 3 months he recovered from the delayed milestone and his nutrition status. He was exited from the program within 5 months, having attained a normal nutrition status, could walk and was weighing 21 lbs. The parent was grateful to Macheo for the support and even to see her child in good health and walking.      

Macheo is so grateful for the impact Macheo US is having on the funding to lift these children out of their desperate situations. Know that your donations are effecting young lives every day.

With Thanks,

Anne Thompson

President Macheo US

Links:

• Latest news on Macheo website

Due to your generous support Macheo US has been able to continue the underlying financial stream for the Macheo Malnourished Children's Program in Thika, Kenya into 2016. This program feeds and  brings good health for up to 30 little children, who otherwise would go hungry.

Poverty, poor health, nutrition and scarce healthcare, derail the potential for cognitive development of about 200 million children under age 5 in developing countries. This negatively affects school performance, thus lowering adult incomes, which in turn has negative implications for national development, communities and the quality of life for familes.

In Kenya, malnourished children are many, especially among poor populations in urban slums and rural areas. The government of Kenya together with NGO's strive to help the affected children and their families.

The Macheo Children’s Centre, works with malnourished children in the Kiandutu slum in Thika. The children are identified by Macheo’s fieldworkers and are cared for daily at the KOP centre. During their stay in our program the  children are fed with highly nutritious food. Anthropometric measures of height and weight and also regular health checks are used to monitor each child's progress. The guardians of these children are trained on topics related to nutrition and child development.

Meet Else –A child helped by the Macheo Malnourished Children’s Program.

Baby Else is the second child of the family and has an 8 year old sister Chrissencia. The parents lived in Mombasa but the mother separated from her husband after an abusive relationship and his plan of exchanging his older child for money. She moved to the Kiandutu slum in Thika, pregnant with Else, to be with her sister. Life was very difficult for the mother as she was not earning money and her sister had her own family to care for, hence during her pregnancy she was feeding poorly and only had one meal a day. After she gave birth to Else her breast milk was not enough and contributed to the baby being underweight.

Macheo’s counselors assessed Else, found her to be severely malnourished, only weighing 15 pounds at 9 months and was only just sitting. The child was enrolled in the Macheo program and the mother attended the seminars and counseling sessions. Else benefited from the malnourished program for 6 months, having morning porridge, a balanced lunch along with fruit and milk and stimulating play and attention. She exited from the program at normal weight and recovered from the delayed milestones. Her mother is very happy that she is in good health again and very grateful for the help of the Macheo Children's Centre and all who support them.

That support was given by our donors here at Macheo US!! People such as you!

Many, many thanks for your support and consideration in helping feed these little ones.

The Macheo US Outreach Team

Anne, Lindy and Lisanne

Links:

• Macheo Website