Kenya to construct factory for devices of special needs learners

Kenya Institute of Special Education(KISE) in Nairobi on Tuesday, April  26, 2022. [Boniface Okendo, Standard]

Kenya Institute of Special Education(KISE) is poised to launch the construction of the first-of-its-kind factory dedicated to producing, assembling, and repairing assistive devices.

The project, estimated to cost Sh500 million, promises to ease the burden of access to crucial tools and position Kenya as a regional powerhouse in supporting special needs education.

The Standard has established that the Kenya Institute of Special Education will float a tender for the construction of a factory that will produce, assemble, and repair devices for special needs learners this week.

Assistive devices and services are products or services designed to enable greater independence for People With Disabilities.

They include wheelchairs, crutches, hearing aids, calipers, surgical boots, and prosthetic arms or legs.

KISE director, Norman Kiogora, on Wednesday revealed that the project will cost Sh500 million and will be constructed in Mavoko and is expected to be ready by 2025.

He further revealed that the funds for the construction have already been provided and the project groundbreaking is set to begin later this year.

“The factory design has been designed by the Kenya School of TVET under a government-to-government deal and we will be floating the construction tender this week,” Kiogoria said in an interview with The Standard.

Initially, there was a hiccup in the plan as the land designated for the factory had been encroached.

However, Kiogora, said that the government has already secured the land through the assistance of the National Youth Service and vacated all who had encroached on the piece of land.

Kiogora said the factory will greatly reduce the cost of the devices if they are made locally.

“Majority of the assistive devices cannot be found in the local marketplace like exercise books rulers, pens, wheelchairs, a white cane, a magnifying glass and a hearing aid,” Kiogora said.

He said the factory, once operational, will also anchor Kenya’s position in providing support for special needs learners in the region.

“Other countries in the region will depend on Kenya to source the devices and this will create a regional powerhouse in supporting learners with special needs,” Kiogora said.

The factory, he said, will also be helpful in the repair, and maintenance of already existing special needs assistive devices.

The lack of assistive devices has seen learners shun education and even confine themselves in the house.

The development comes at a time, the government has centralised the purchase and distribution of assistive devices.

The distribution is presently done by the Kenya Institute of Special Education.

Early this week, the institute oversaw the distribution of the devices to special needs schools.

According to the Census results, 918,270 people aged five years and above had a disability.

More females (523,883) than males (394,330) had disabilities. A total of 9,729 persons had albinism.

In 2021, a report dubbed Status Report on Disability Inclusion in Kenya recommended for development of a national policy to guide technology and innovation for assistive devices through public participation.

The policy would be developed by the Ministry of Public Service, Gender, Senior Citizens Affairs & Special Programmes with support from the Ministry of Health.