Liyavo
Village Community Project (LVCP) is a settlement of approximately
8000 people displaced by ethnic cleansing in the early 1990s. Prior
to ICT's arrival, there was little official recognition that Liyavo
existed as a population centre of displaced people. There were no
water services, shops, transportation, medical services, social
facilities or employment opportunities. Women often had to walk
3km to the nearest shops and would carry water from a swamp about
2km away. The nearest clinic was 10km and public transportation
to it non-existent.
There
are an estimated 2500 infants and children in Liyavo all who need
to be immunised to protect against early infection of preventable
illnesses. Furthermore, women were in need of health or medical
facilities for prenatal care. They had to walk or be carried along
a slippery mud track for 3km to catch a crowded 'matatu' (standing
room only commercial van) at the nearest highway and then walk to
the hospital once they arrived in Kitale.
To
carry out its goals of integrated community development, Liyavo
opened a cheap village general shop, demonstrations plots and training
in organic cultivation, vocational training workshops and a community
clinic with a full time nurse who also attends to the children in
the other centres and the 1000 primary age children from the school
next door. Today, Liyavo Children's Centre has five acres of mixed
vegetables and fruits and about 1000 laying chickens to help feed
the children in all the centres.
The
health needs of women and children are now addressed in Liyavo;
however, although there is a now well at one of the children's centres,
there are further improvements that need to be made so that potable
water is accessible all members of the local community.
Community
health workers (CHWs) have also been trained in malaria and HIV/AIDS
prevention and these CHWs do outreach work in even the most remote
encampments.
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