I have experienced first-hand how poverty can define the path for an individual, from the type of education they have access to, the type of opportunities, their standard of living and even access to some of the most basic things such as food, water, shelter and clothing.
According to the World Bank “around 700 million people live on less than $2.15 per day, the extreme poverty line. Extreme poverty remains concentrated in parts of Sub-Saharan Africa, fragile and conflict-affected areas, and rural areas.”
Access to opportunities
I began working with communities immediately after university. The first non-profit I worked with granted me the opportunity to work with amazing girls rescued from early marriage and FGM in West Pokot Kenya. This experience was one for the books and one that shaped my desire to play a small part in creating opportunities for others. While working here, I was faced with the realities that the larger community was facing, access to drinking water was an issue for most of the community members and they would have to walk long distances to access a basic need. You can imagine the education situation.
In comparison to other locations in Kenya, where you can find schools near each other, you could travel several kilometers here before locating one. The standards of living were the most basic for most households and coming from a place where I had access to most of these things without a struggle, I could only be grateful for the opportunities I had. The program we were running here was a skills training program for girls rescued from early marriages and FGM. It was also a sponsored program that only hosted 100 girls meaning that there were a lot more girls and young people who did not have access to these types of opportunities.
When I started working in Kakamega, I also saw how poverty alienated children from accessing opportunities. The program I was working on with LatitudeZero Opportunities was also fully funded. We held workshops at the orphanage we were working at. Kids from the larger community had access to this home and would occasionally show up. They showed lots of interest in our programs, our resources, however, were stretched and it was hard to accommodate each of them. Throughout our time at this place, some of them who were consistent got a few lessons from my designated assistant facilitators, I would often catch them admiring the things they made while others learnt how to use computers for the first time. In the future, I hope to get to a place where I can easily provide these services to more kids and young people for free.
Growing up, I remember going to school without a proper school bag and shoes. I would do most of my homework during the breaks between the class sessions. This was because we did not have electricity at home and by 8 P.M, my mum would ask us to go to bed so we could save on paraffin for the next day. By the time I was in eighth grade, I would wake up by 5:30 A.M, shower, and head to school. By 6:15 AM, I would be seated in class doing some extra reading because there was electricity in our classes. I was always first to arrive in our class and by the time other students arrived, I had done so much. Let’s just say I excelled while at it and was always the best student in our class. My biggest wish as a kid growing up was that some of these basic needs would have been accessible. I learnt however to make do with what was available. Call me a survivor if you will. I learnt from a young age that I needed to work twice as hard. In grade 5, I vividly remember one of my teachers who used to give me extra English lessons, she told me these exact words “Elenah, you have to work extra hard, you are the hope of your family.” She saw something in me, a potential I had not unlocked or even thought of. These words pushed me out of my comfort zone. These words have echoed over the years and reminded me that I was meant for greatness. Her encouragement played a big role in my securing a fully sponsored high school education at a prestigious national school. Had it not been for such an opportunity, maybe I would not have gotten the opportunities that followed.
Untapped potential
A lot of children and young people have been locked out from accessing educational opportunities, employment opportunities and the ability to have their voices heard because of their backgrounds.
For some children, they have never seen the four corners of a classroom or a teacher to remind them of their potential. These kids will never know how much they could have changed the little corner of their world. They never get to unlock their dreams and the depth of what could have been.
For the young people locked out of accessing relevant education, skills training and employment opportunities, they may never fully be able to live to their full potential, live fulfilling lives where they can fend for themselves, and their families and even contribute to the economic growth of communities they come from.
In my line of work, I have come across different organizations trying to address these issues. I have seen children and young people accessing opportunities they wouldn’t have had access to, due to these efforts. It warms my heart to see the change, experience the change and be part of the change.
However, a lot more needs to be done to change these narratives. The need for all stakeholders to work together to address these issues is more important now, especially for concerned governments.
The impact of aid in poverty alienation.
Humanitarian aid has been key in enabling last mile communities’ access educational, economic, health and other opportunities. With the recent closure of the USAID, a lot of communities are bound to be affected negatively, and the question remains “what next for them and how do we fill such gaps?”
Poverty alienates but it doesn’t have to define outcomes for people if we employ the right measures to address this.
Thanks for reading,
