Discover Kenya
The first things that come to mind when you think of Kenya are lions, zebras and leopards. However, this beautiful country has so much more to offer. With 40 reserves and national parks, Kenya has almost every landscape and activity you can imagine. Safaris, savannahs, snow-capped equatorial mountains, palm trees kissing the Indian Ocean, thousands of colorful welcoming villages, and amazing orange sunsets will remain in your heart forever.
Why do we like Kenya?
Because it literally trapped us! Our founder, Monica, volunteered for a month on the island of Lamu, and that changed her life. On her return, she left her job in finance to work for a year as a volunteer coordinator. From this experience, Tumaini was born! Since then, we have been back several times, but it never ceases to amaze us: its ancestral culture, its natural and ethnic richness, its wildlife, and, above all, its people and their endless smiles.
Childhood in Kenya
Being a child is not easy in Kenya. The under-five mortality rate is 73% (UNICEF data from 2012). Although there has been great progress in education, the primary school attendance rate is still not ideal (it is 72% for boys and 75% for girls) and that figure plummets when they move on to secondary school! On the other hand, the lack of resources means that many children have to work. This is the case for 25.9 %. Also, still 43.41 % of the population lives below the poverty line (i.e. living on less than 1.25 $ per day).
We are currently working with a NGO in Mombasa The centre is responsible for rehabilitating and training children living on the streets of this area on the Kenyan coast. The centre provides shelter and care, family tracing and reunification (where possible), educational support, training in different areas, and support when they need medical care or psychosocial support. At the moment, it is not possible to collaborate in this project.
We also support an organisation working with children in two areas of Kenya:
- Nairobi: have two orphanages. In the first one, The work is with children from a slum (fabela) in the city and baby care. The children range in age from newborn to 14 years old. The second is very close to the first one and welcomes children from 3 to 16 years of age.
- Malindi: This centre cares for children from 3 to 16 years old. It is not an orphanage, it is a temporary centre because their families are going through a difficult situation and cannot take care of them. In this centre they are cared for and education is provided for their reintegration into the community.
Finally, we collaborate with a center formativo of girls in the heart of the Rift Valley and are currently in charge of some thirty girls between the ages of 2 and 15 years old who have gone through very difficult situations. The project was set up in 2007 and works in several areas: a drop-in centre, a nursery and an empowerment centre.
If, on the other hand, you would like to get to know the country in an immersive and authentic way and do it in a group, you can join the solidarity travel with responsible tourism. In this case, you will also get to know our solidarity projects and incredible corners of Kenya. You will be accompanied by our coordinator in Tumaini, so you don't need to be fluent in English. We have several dates throughout the year, if you want to know a different Kenya, do not miss this opportunity 😀.
CAPITAL: Nairobi
POPULATION: 46.5 Million
HOURLY USE: EAT (UTC + 3)
CURRENCY: Kenyan Shilling
OFFICIAL LANGUAGES: Swahili and English
