Hope for Mbita women as Mrs Rachael Ruto launches project

By JAMES OMORO

Homa-Bay, Kenya: Hundreds of jobless women and youth from Mbita in Homa Bay County are set to benefit from a Sh10m Japanese sponsored Economic Empowerment Centre aimed at addressing rampant school dropout rates and poverty in the area. The centre targets women and the youth.

They will benefit from entrepreneurial skills to enable them fight poverty, HIV and Aids and early marriages that have adversely affected girls’ education in the sub county.

 Japanese Ambassador Tatsuhi Terada, Homa Bay Governor Cyprian Awiti and Deputy President Wiliam Ruto’s wife Rachel, presided over the ground breaking ceremony for the training complex last Thursday amid calls to county governments to prioritise women and youth friendly development projects.

 FISHING INDUSTRY

 The Mbita project, implemented by Development  Knowledge Link Africa (Devlink), a local NGO, will provide entrepreneurial  training for poor  women  many of  who have faced  sexual abuse as they  struggled for survival in the male-dominated fishing  industry.

Some of the women to be trained on various craft courses have been victims of the sex-for-fish practice in which women fishmongers  are forced into unprotected sex by some fishermen  before they could be given fish to sell in the markets.

The project will provide 38 sewing machines for training  and will also train women on  weaving, pottery and other craft courses.

“The project will promote entrepreneurship, empower women with skills and confidence for improved income and micro-investment for those in the fishing industry,” said Devlink Chief Executive Esther Soti.

REUSABLE TOWELS

She added: “The project will also promote the right to education for the girl child by providing basic needs like reusable sanitary towels and undergarments to restore confidence to those from poor families.”

Mr Awiti praised the Japanese government for supporting the project, saying Mbita  was hard hit by girl-child problems ,  high school drop out rate and  HIV &  AIDS prevalence because of the its proximity to the fishing beaches  along lake Victoria.

He said his government would ensure projects seeking to uplift the living standards of  women and the youth were  given high budgetary allocations.

“We are a women- and youth-friendly county. We have gone beyond the one-third constitutional requirement on gender parity by appointing more women to senior positions,” said Mr Awiti.

The governor asked the Japanese government and Mrs Ruto to help replicate the project to other sub counties in Homa Bay.

MULTIPLE FACTORS

Mrs Ruto promised to seek  more funds through her office to roll  out  more women empowerment projects  in Homa Bay  county.

“ I am touched by the needs of women  here and I will definitely return,” said  Mrs Ruto.

She said she will seek scholarships to help needy girls in Homa Bay county complete their education. This was after Mr Awiti informed her and Mr Terada that only 5 per cent of  girls  proceed to university  due to a multiplicity of factors.