Siaya District, Kenya, Africa: |
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SIAYA DISTRICT, KENYA, AFRICA: Siaya District is one of the 12 districts of Nyanza province, located on the Equator in western Kenya, just north of Lake Victoria. The total area of the district is approximately 1,520 km squared. Estimated
population 2008: 520,697 * Refs: Siaya District Development Plan 2002-2008 and National Bureau of Statistics 2007) Most families make less than a dollar a day, which is barely enough to feed one person. Poverty hits hardest in areas facing low rainfall levels and poor soil fertility. Over 80 percent of the population has nothing in terms of monetary income.
The majority of the population are illiterate due to high costs of school. It takes the cost of one cow to educate one child for one year of primary school. In Canadian terms, that would be about $200, a cost the majority of Kenyans can not afford. The cost of textbooks is far beyond the reach of the common person; therefore, most children in school lack the necessary writing materials. Disease incidence rates are high with very high morbidity values. Preventable diseases are taking a toll on the people, with malaria being the leading killer. Making the situation even worse, 20 percent of the population in the district is infected with HIV/AIDS, vastly compromising their abilities to fight off infection. Due to HIV/AIDS, most children are orphaned, and mothers, widowed or sickly. Diseases such as typhoid, tuberculosis, cholera and measles are still very common. Many can't afford treatment and die. Due to famine and drought, 80 percent of the population is malnourished, with the children suffering the most.
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YOGO VILLAGE IN ALEGO - Yogo - General Information: Yogo Village is small community in the Alego Siaya District near the west border of Kenya. The village has approximately 500 to 600 people with the majority being women and children. The main occupation is sustenance farming with the main crop being corn. Other crops include market vegetables – tomatoes, onions, kale, cabbages all done on small scale. Families live in homesteads that include extended families. However there are situations where the grandmother is without adult children and housing is required for here and several (5-10) grandchildren. So far 9 houses (800 square feet) have been constructed which provide two rooms – a common living area and bedroom/storage area. Many are still needed. For satellite images of this area,
please visit our Yogo
Village - Satellite Maps page. Yogo is not unique in its needs, but is unique in that it has a few interested people who have benefited from a helping hand and now want to pay back. The establishment of the Yogo Community Based Organization (YCBO) in late 2008 was based on a self-help group that had been working in the village since 2005. YCBO is first addressing the needs of Yogo and then has plans to branch out to help other communities. The immediate needs identified in 2008 were a need to establish a sustainable food source – crops and meat through animal husbandry. Other needs identified include clean water, nursery school, primary school, high school and a medical facility. Additional projects include women empowerment and the eventual establishment of centres of higher learning. Not only is YCBO working on the physical needs of its people, it is also encouraging a community of faith with morals and integrity. The vision of YCBO is ambitious and is based on a hand up and not a hand out.
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'You Feed Them'
is a ministry of Trinity
Bible Church of Ottawa