Help 50 Maasai girls get education, not husbands

Peris is 7 years old and the brightest student in her class at Nenkashe Early Childhood Development (ECD).  When I visited the Nenkashe’s pre-primary school, I waited at the office to allow Ann, the teacher, to administer an exam for the children.  Peris was the first pupil to finish the exam and she was allowed to leave the classroom.  She went straight to the swings, but being alone, she just sat on the swing, patiently waiting for her friends to finish the exam and come out to play. 

I found out from her teacher that Peris is normally a jovial girl and she enjoys helping other kids with class assignments.  She loves to play football and to build houses out of stones. 

Her teacher also told me that Peris stays with her uncle and that she comes from a single parent family.  Her mother is working far away from her daughter and that is why Peris has to stay with her uncle. 

Nenkashe Education Centre is helping Peris prepare for entry into primary school. She can already read 3 letter words and simple sentences.  She is also being taught addition and take away (subtraction) as her introduction to math. 

With 20 children in pre-primary now, Nenkashe Education Centre must plan for an additional teacher next year because there will be three classes, instead of the current two.  Your gifts to our programs are enabling young children get a much needed head start in their educational journey.  Thank you for your support.

Nancy, is a young 12 year-old orphan who hails from Piliwa village in Kajiado County.  She has 6 siblings; 2 older sisters and 4 younger brothers. Her two older sisters found sponsors to fund their education but Nancy did not and as a result, she was in and out of school for lack of school fees.  

At her young and vulnerable age, she had to take up the role of ‘mother’ to her younger siblings.  In the community where she comes from, it is not unusual to assign children work duties to the severe detriment of their education and development.  Child labour is not frowned upon so Nancy was trying to balance school work, household chores, and parenting responsibilities for siblings.  The load was just too heavy for her to bear.  Her grades at school started dropping and soon she dropped out of school altogether.   

In 2016 Nenkashe Education Centre received information about Nancy’s plight and prepared to make a home visit.  Shortly after the visit, Nancy was enrolled into the sponsorship programme and has been studying continuously for the past one year at AIC Primary School.  She is now in class 6 and her grades are improving.  She has made new friends and her favorite subjects in school are social studies and Kiswahili. 

Her aspiration is to become a judge.  When I asked last week how she plans to become a judge, she said, she’ll become one “through hard work and staying away from bad company”.  A few months ago, Nancy was one of our 17 girls who attended a 2-week life skills training course conducted by the Kajiado County Nutritionist who is a keen supporter and past beneficiary of Nenkashe Education Centre. 

Your support of our programs are helping young people like Nancy to build self-esteem, make commitment to wholesome values and meet the challenges of adolescence. 

Thank you for your support!