After one and a half years working in Kenya, we want to show the results we have achieved so far.
Our NGO was recognised in Kenya in April 2024, and was born from learning the real lives of Kenyans while we were on an altitude training camp in Kenya. This preparing for a marathon with Belgian Olympic marathon runners.
As we believe that improving the living conditions of a whole community can bring a durable and sustainable solution to people in Kenya, we had to first choose the community we wanted to help. With the input of our Kenyan founding members, we chose Bonde, a rural community with 20.000 inhabitants, 85 km from Iten, where we have our office.
For all their water, Bonde depends on a contaminated river, where women and children have to fetch the water they need.
About 10% of the children are not attending primary school. For many more parents, it’s not possible to pay the school fees for secondary school.
Three or two meals a day are not possible for many people every day. Especially in the dry season, this problem is growing.
After contacting the Chief of Bonde and the school’s director, we had a meeting with about 25 people. Most of them were the Village Elders, some teachers, and the school director, and also 2 parents of children we started to pay school fees for.
At this meeting, we explained what kind of help we want to organise in Bonde. We explained to them that we will not come with a lot of money, but that we will help them achieve self-reliance.
We told them that we will only reach our goal by working together.
Our first step was to learn more about the people of Bonde. We did it by organising handwork activities for the women by our CEO, Maurine. We not only learning to knit, crochet, and do beadwork, but we also teach them how to save money in small amounts. 220 women now have a savings account at the bank. It could have been more than 400 women, but we do not have the financial means to organise it at this moment.
Items that will be explained at our info sessions scheduled in the Axarquia region:
- About 95% of the donations go to the Kenyans. This is achieved by using Kenyan workers, engineers, and teachers who are needed. Besides paying school fees, we buy local water tanks, gutters, iron sheets to repair roofs, wood for rainwater catchers, …
- How are we selecting the children we are helping with school fees ?
- How did we set up crafting activities for women ?
- How do we define how many boreholes we need to provide, in time, all households with a water tap with drinkable water ?
- How we are building rainwater catchers in the middle of agricultural land to install irrigation systems working on a battery of 9 Volt ?
- We help and teach them to catch rainwater from the roofs of their mudhouses ? Getting more clean water than from the river.
- How will we ensure that they learn the importance of maintaining everything, needed for long, proper functioning ?
- How will we learn them to differentiate their food better by planting different vegetables and learn them the importance of it for their health.
- And more … .
And finally, how all this in time will enable them to stand on their own feet, and they will not need help anymore.
The info sessions will be conducted by our Kenyan CEO, Maurine Nyakara Nyandege, Master in Economics, for the first time outside of Kenya, and Leo Wouters, Chairman of the NGO, a permanent resident of Cómpeta.
Info sessions up to now:
Saturday, 27 September, at 10 am, Expresión, Academia de Español, C. Lantana 1, 29751 – Caleta de Vélez.
Sunday 5 October , at 5 pm, La Carpenteria Bar, Avda. de la Constitución 14, 29754 – Cómpeta.
Thursday, 9 October, at 5 pm, Restaurante Casa Mari, Avda. Carretera, 29752 – Sayalonga. Coordinates : 379835° N, 4.01153° W
For more information, kindly reach us through this email: info@durable-sustainable-initiatives-kenya.org
Check out our website showing the progress on our various projects.
Website : https://durable-sustainable-initiatives-kenya.org
Leo Wouters
Chairman DSIK