********************************************************************

APAMO B WOMENS GROUP

WIDOWS AND ORPHANS SENSITIZATION

WOMEN DEVELOPMENT (CBO)

MRS. TABITHA APUKO, CHAIRPERSON

P.O. BOX 30

KANDIEGE, KENYA

CELL:0725-377670

MR. GEORGE YAMO, COORDINATOR

CELL: 0728-895297

BACKGROUND

The Apamo B Womens Group was established in 1998 with the goal of  economic empowerment of  its members, raising the standard of living, and integrating the social classes of the community.  It is a community based organization situated in Kanyongo and the Wadhgone- Nyongo sublocations of the west Kavachuonyo Division of  the Rachuonyo District.  The group is registered with the Ministry of Culture and Social Services in the Rachuonyo District.

Members of the group rely on subsistence farming dependent on rainfall.  During drought years, they experience famine and poverty.  The community has also been affected by high rates of HIV/AIDS which has increased the number of widows, orphans and other vulnerable children. 

In spite of the limited financial resources of the group, it has made some progress in the community.  Land  donated to the group by a deceased individual  has been successfully farmed by members.  A small poultry project was begun in 2005.  Both enterprises have increased the members’ income and assisted orphans and HIV+ persons in the service area. The group has actively advocated for HIV+ persons and have helped rehabilitate them by providing personal care and food.  Trained members also provide home-based care for terminally ill persons.  The group has assisted 8 orphans between 2005 and 2006 by providing scholastic assistance and uniforms.  Three of them have lost both parents and five of them have lost one parent.  Assistance totaled 99,900 ksh.

The Group presently has 21 female and 8 male members whose names are available under separate cover.

IMPLEMENTATION PLAN

Amidst a background of poverty and the concomitant scourge of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, the Apamo B Womens Group would like to expand its services to more orphans and single parent families and to PLWHAs (Persons Living With HIV and AIDS).  Besides generating more income from its farm, the community is in need of  clean water particularly during drought times.  Its 400 households presently have only a 10,000 liter rain catchment tank attached to the Siburi Seventh Day Adventist Church.  Most of the families depend on pond water located about four kilometers away.  The Siburi pond is shared by people and animals and is contaminated.  Drinking this water has led to contraction of waterborne diseases.  The hours consumed by seeking and carrying water also takes away from women and girls educational and economic development time.

To cope with the HIV/AIDS problem, the group needs to take action on these objectives:

1. Mobilize the community to provide more support to PLWHA through education and example;

2. Provide more counseling and education on HIV/AIDS to caregivers, youth, PLWHAs, orphans and vulnerable children in the community;

3. Identify and expand the pool of funds to care for orphans, vulnerable children and PLWHAs.

4. Expand farming operations by obtaining supplies and equipment;  plant more crops and undertake livestock raising for food security;

5. Promote activities relevant to the development of women;

6. Organize further the PLWHAs in Wadhgone-Nyongo which now has 22 members into another self-help group.

In addition to these objectives, the group needs to expand and improve its home based care activities for  terminally ill PLWHAs.  The NGO, MildMay, which used to provide medicines for opportunistic diseases terminated its services in December, 2005.  The two distributing centers for ARVs are also distant from many of the villages.  The lack of  transportation further aggravates the problem of accessing medication.  These centers are in Gandia in the north and Homa Bay in the south.  As a result, there has been an increase of deaths because of inconsistent taking of necessary drugs.

The group needs a reliable, gas efficient vehicle such as a motorcycle with a trailer  to transport the sick to health facilities and to obtain medication for other ill members.  Bicycles with carrying baskets will also be needed to transport food, meds and needed items to the terminally ill who live shorter distances away.  The village roads particularly away from the main roads are often rutted and eroded.  They become very muddy and nearly impassable for larger vehicles during the rainy season.

An accessible health clinic should also be constructed and staffed in the interior of the area.  This would cut the time and distance to attend to the critically ill.  An agricultural and veterinary center would also be needed to support farming and livestock raising in the service area.  These service facilities would assist farmers by teaching them how to grow better crops, prevent erosion, and care better for their livestock.

The district has more orphans who also need to be educated, fed, given health care, and parented.   More income generating projects and donations must be sought to accomplish this.  There are 26 orphans and those with one surviving parent who have been identified besides the ones who received help last year.  They are listed below:

BUDGETS

ESTIMATES TO SUPPORT 26 ORPHANS AND CHILDREN OF SINGLE PARENTS FOR A SCHOOL YEAR

ESTIMATES FOR HOME BASED CARE PROGRAM FOR A YEAR

The Apamo B Womens Group has an account with BIDH Savings under the Post Bank of the Homa Bay Branch.