Here's Life Community Based Organization

An Overview of the Organization

Here is life C.B.O is a registered Community Based Organization which is committed to developing, initiating and executing of personalized livelihood and support programs to those affected and infected with HIV and AIDS within Mathare and Soweto slums.

Here’s Life c.b.o is located in Mathare slums three kilometers, 1.6 area in sq away from Nairobi city centre and it one of the largest slums surrounding Nairobi, the capital city of Kenya and its population is estimated over 87,097 male 47,113, female 39,984 and a house holds of 31,426 according to 2009 Kenya population and housing population. The valley used to be a stone quarry, which is still visible in the morphology of the area, owned by Indian businessmen during colonial times and it was sold to several real estate-cooperatives around 1964. The effects of poverty and HIV/AIDS epidemic are readily apparent in Mathare, evidenced by the number of widows, orphans and child-headed households. For a young person growing up in Mathare, gangs, illicit brewed alcohol and prostitution are all coping mechanisms to survive. Economic and health development in these communities are crippled by a lack of infrastructure, clean water and healthcare.

Mission

The CBO is committed to developing, initiating and executing of personalized livelihood and support programs to those affected and infected with HIV and AIDS.

VISION

To give a redefined approach to HIV and AIDS Care, Treatment, Support and any other vulnerable member of the society.

Core Values

• Capacity Building
• Gender equity
• Collaboration and Partnership
• Transparency and Accountability
• Non-discriminatory

• Sustainability
• Holistic Approach
• Professional competence
• Flexibility
• Non Political

Goals

• Improved economic status of the community.
• Better managed environment and natural resources.
• Reduced effects of HIV/AIDS and emerging health issues.

OBJECTIVES:

1. To promote education and supporting sustainable needs of the orphans and the vulnerable children within Mathare slums.
2. To support PLWHAS through provision with counseling services, material support and undertaking outreach services within the slum areas of Mathare.
3. To capacity build vulnerable persons living within the slum areas to practice urban agriculture as alternative livelihood.
4. To advocate for better water and sanitation within slum areas for improved health.
5. To establish a resource Centre as a “safe Haven” and educational/information centre for children living within the slum area of Mathare.
6. To partner and network with other like minded organizations, individuals and state organs to create conducive environment for the vulnerable members of the society.

PROGRAMMES AND ACTIVTIES

Here’s Life C.B.O’s strategy is to organize its resources into tailored programs that will have a positive impact on every person.

1. 1. EDUCATION SUPPORT PROJECT

Due to lack of proper education amongst the community of Mathare Slums in Nairobi County, illiteracy and poverty level increased tremendously. Here is Life CBO saw the need of establishing an Educational support Project to bring light in the form of knowledge and education to the vast slum of Mathare. This project supports needy children with an opportunity to access education, by providing them with school fees, uniforms, all inclusive. It is important to note that in a bid to change the life of the orphans and vulnerable children in slums; educational support has to be ensured while packaging the components of this project.

Here’s life is at the moment running the following centers

Eve day support center in Dandora slums envision equipping a slum child with education as a tool to fight poverty, with main objective of eliminating poverty through quality education. The school has 120 children, 80 of them are girls and 40 are boys. We provide free sanitary towels to girls every month, offer nutritious porridge at break time and lunch everyday .Having realized that the children needed food more than anything else, it was important to come up with a technique of providing food for them in the school as a means of enticement .When they realized that there was free food in the school, they could come to wait for the food in the meantime undertaking their elementary classes. We make sure that all our children stay in school and well taken care of. The methodology for undertaking the school expenses is through internal finance generation for the school maintenance cost. Emanuel learning center in Soweto slums, schools 100 children, 65 girls and 35 boys. . We provide free sanitary towels to girls every month, offer nutritious porridge at break time and lunch every day .This Centre host 48 vulnerable children who are HIV positive, the remaining 52 are orphans. We welcome any support that would help in changing the desperate lifestyle of these children however small it is. The impact of this initiative is easily measurable through taking a closer look at the lives of these children before and after they have joined this program .HERE IS LIFE trains vulnerable young girls on production of low cost but high quality-hygienic sanitary pads. This need had been developed through observation that most women in low income households lack access to this valuable commodity and in some instance they have been using old blankets or old socks!

1. 2. VULNERABLE CHILDREN AND ORPHANS

Most children who are infected and affected by HIV and AIDS yet live in the Slums are faced with constant hunger. They are also vulnerable to numerous infections due to their feeding tendencies. Here is life will offer care and support services to 450 vulnerable children (OVCs) and orphans with high quality care, counseling and other support services for HIV positive children with their families. In this programme we also offer HIV prevention intervention, which is done by initiating youth behavior change projects and having a prevention of mother to child transmission (PMTCT). The high rate of HIV continues to put pressure on the already stretched health facilities in Kenya. The current ART enrollment in the district hospital indicates that majority of clients enrolled in ART are adults over 25yrs with very few youths taking-up VCT. Over 50% of the Kenyan population is made up of the youth with a large number engaging in high risk behaviors. Reports from HERE IS LIFE base line interviews indicated a major gap in the availability of quality youth friendly services as a key contributing factor hindering accessibility to prevention, care , treatment and support services for youth people in Mathare and other regions of Kenya. HIV project aims at mobilizing youth as key partners in the fight against AIDS by promoting prevention and behavior change greater access to ART programs.

Goal - Reduction of HIV/ STI infection among youths.

Objectives

1. Improve capacity of service providers to deliver youth friendly care and support services
2. Increase access to youth friendly services (mainly, VCT, ART, RH, FP, counseling and referral)
3. Increase the number of youth engaged in meaningful livelihood

Youth Activities

1. Mobile VCT services to reach marginalized youth
2. Capacity building skill transfer training e.g., on peer educators. behavior change, referral and support of youth
3. Psychosocial support for HIV + youth
4. Leadership and Entrepreneurship training
5. Recreational and sporting events#

1. 3. HEALTH SUPPORT AND CARE

Here is life provides home based care and other services to 800 family members and 450 children.In order to contribute effectively on the reduction of the number of Orphaned Vulnerable Children (OVCs), Suffering in slum areas, it will be worth it to undertake this intervention by providing medical care to the beneficiaries to keep them in good health. Here is Life creates awareness and sensitize the community on health matters of great concern to their wellbeing. In our outreach programs, we do door to door to provide information on health programs such as free medical camps or clinic, Nutritional support to malnourished children, Polio vaccinations, free treatment for children under 5 years,Pre-natal and Antenatal care , TNA Jubilee Government pledge for free maternity care in all Public Hospitals, and free cancer scan for women.

1. 4. Youth Information and Resource Centre

Currently HERE IS LIFE established a youth friendly information & resource center

with the overall objective to build the capacity of young people in Nairobi to respond to the challenges of development, HIV/AIDS and reproductive health effectively. The Centre will host a haven of community outreach and onsite activities. The Resource Centre consists of a Cyber Café connected with full internet enabling the youths to access diverse information hosted in the World Wide Web. Library stocked with local news papers for reference on health issues affecting the youth. DVD’s /Videos on HIV/AIDS, Reproductive Health, Hygiene and Sexually Transmitted Infections, Human Rights are kept for use in the Centre Administrative offices used for all administrative matters like safe custody of centre records, financial records and other sensitive documents for the organization. Board Room used during capacity building activities to its members and partners; the room holds a minimum of 10 youth with enough space for PowerPoint presentation at any given activity and also serves as a meeting place for groups that have no physical offices. Consultancy Services for groups

1. 5. WATER AND SANITATION

Here is Life envisions improved knowledge, attitude and practice in environment, health, hygiene and sanitation in community level in Mathare. We are motivated by our belief that a clean environment promotes the growth of the natural ecosystem. This includes all forms of life, from trees to tree dwelling animals. The continuation of species is something many people are deeply concerned with, especially considering the cost that our lifestyle accrues to the environment already. Waste dumped in rural areas often leads to injuries and deaths. A clean environment also promotes good health. Areas of filth can be rife with disease, and people who are forced to live impoverished in slums often become ill and die due to dirty conditions. A clean environment is essential for disease prevention, and it is important that newborn children especially avoid living in dirty conditions. Our outreach program has bore more fruits since within our targeted surrounding we have Hand wash campaign awareness where we teach people simple lessons of washing your hands before eating, cooking ,feeding your baby and after eating, visiting the toilets etc.

6.Women Empowerment

Our efforts are geared toward providing lasting solutions to curb hunger and poverty for good. Women living in abject poverty are equipped with skills and knowledge in income-generating activities.

Here’s Life CBO has been bringing women together and helping them start sustainable projects for self-sustainability. Most women had endured scourging poverty. They had depended for years on handouts and begging in the streets. They lived and waited for someone somewhere to come and help them with a dream that never came to be.

Here’s Life CBO came in and worked to help them change their mindset.

The women discovered that they are the people; there is a problem - and they are the solution. What they needed was a paradigm shift.

It's then that we started a micro-finance program from some hard-earned coins, and it’s with those coins that they have been able to start several projects, which earn them some money and provide food to their families. This has happened without any external funds and only through group and personal initiatives.

With small parcels of land and using roadsides reserves they are adopting small-scale farming, growing papaya (pawpaw) trees, tomatoes, sukuma weeki and arrowroot. Some have been able to start grocery shops and roadside food stalls.

Many of them come from sprawling slums in Nairobi. Several of them are living with HIV/AIDS, and many are widows, yet they have overcome all odds to tenaciously fight poverty.

If women living in abject poverty are equipped with skills and can access funds to start income-generating activities, handouts will be a thing of the past.

PROFILE INFORMATION

Date of Registration: Novembers 13^th 2012

Registration Number: KAS/CBO/5/4/2012/133

Physical Location: Mathare slums, Nairobi County, Kenya

BANK: Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB)

A/C No: 1138202584

A/C Name: Here’s Life CBO

Branch: Kariobangi

Swift Code: KCBLKENX

Clearing Code 01260

Safaricom Pay bill No. 987150

CONTACT INFORMATION

P.O.Box: 10955 - 00100

Cell: Office (+254) 2699758

Email: hereislifecbo@gmail.com

CONTACT PERSON

Mr. Godfrey Were

Email: khalonyere@gmail.com

Tel: +254-722903062