Thank you for giving me legs
“Thank you for giving me legs, I’m praying for you,” Says Sabina Lobei after receiving a tricycle donated by CBM through the Association of the Physically Disabled of Kenya (APDK).
“Now I can get to where food is being distributed with ease” she adds. Sabina fell down when she was young, and could not walk again. Her parents treated her the best way they knew how by using herbal medicine that didn’t work for her.
Unfortunately, Sabina did not recover from the fall. She is now living with a disability and has to use a wheelchair for mobility. Sabina is one of the beneficiaries of the mobility aids that was donated to identified persons with disability in Lodwar, Turkana district.
Efforts towards mainstreaming disability
CBM together with the Kenya Red Cross (KRC) and CBM’s long term partner APDK visited the area after an assessment was carried out by APDK on drought and famine in Turkana and the challenges faced by people living with disability in the area.
The visit coincided with the launch of the tripartite agreement between CBM, KRC and APDK, in mainstreaming disability within KRC operations in northern and north-east regions of Kenya. The event was held on the 25 November 2011.
During the assessment, a team consisting of an orthopaedic technologist, an occupational therapist and staff experienced in Community Based Rehabilitation (CBR) from APDK moved from house to house with the logistical support of KRC to identify families with people with disabilities. A total of 91 persons with disabilities were identified who needed assistance either due to worn out mobility appliances or use of faulty appliances leading to further complications. CBM supported APDK in the production of the mobility aids which included wheelchairs, tricycles, special wheelchairs and crutches.
Challenges in accessing food relief
Accessing food relief is always more challenging for persons with disabilities. Sabina is now 80 years old and lives in Lodwar with two of her grandchildren. She is currently dependent on government relief food facilitated by the Kenya Red Cross. Whenever there is food distribution, she would send her grandchildren and neighbours to get the food for her.
KRC has been supporting people in Northern Kenya for years due to recurrent drought and famine in the region. The weather conditions coupled by insecurity due to inter/intra clan conflicts have caused the people of Turkana to suffer from much hunger, famine and sluggish development.
Devices facilitate access to food distribution
The Kenya Red Cross supplies them with milk and a highly nutritious corn flour to supplement their food needs known as the CSB mix a mixture of corn and soy beans.The food is distributed to schools, relief organisations and the community as a whole frequently.
The tripartite agreement will see more persons with disabilities assisted through the concerted effort of the three organizations to maximise the access of persons with disabilities to the activities implemented in response to the food crisis. The programme will also increase and support their access to existing specialised services. The agreement and the implementation of the program is expected to take one year.