NDUGU MDOGO
Ndugu Mdogo was founded in 2006 to help rehabilitate street children from Nairobi’s largest slum, Kibera. Inspired by a desire to give hope to children without proper parental care, the programme seeks to cultivate the personal growth of the former street children by developing participatory solutions with them, consequently promoting the rights of all children.
The programme runs two initiatives; a home at Kerarapon and a Rescue Centre in Kibera.
Ndugu Mdogo Home
The Ndugu Mdogo home is located just a few kilometers from Kibera at Kerarapon, off Ngong Road. Situated between the upscale Karen suburb and the more modest Ngong area, the home offers a permanent shelter and a hospitable environment for the most vulnerable children. The Centre currently supports 40 resident children.
Three Kenyan couples, with children of their own, also live at the home, forming a community in which each family takes care of twelve children as if they were their own. This gives the former street children a chance to experience the love and care of a real family.
The children gain access to basic needs and medical services, along with the chance to achieve self awareness and a proper formation. They get to play, explore their talents and attend a nearby public school, while a team at the home guides their growth step by step, all the way from academic progress to the reestablishment of links with their relatives. This ensures that their rehabilitation is complete by the time they are ready to be reintegrated into society.
Rehabilitation Processes
The rehabilitation processes at the Ndugu Mdogo Home involve academic, spiritual and psychosocial formation. The following are the pillars of this three-pronged approach:
- Psychosocial Formation: Individual and group counselling is carried out to enlighten the children about various life issues and to help them overcome different traumas that may have afflicted them in their difficult pasts. The children are also taught their rights and responsibilities as human beings in preparation for their eventually reintegration into society.
- Academic Placement: The children are enrolled into schools in the immediate neighbourhood of the centre and provided with scholastic materials. Social workers make regular follow-ups both with the children and the school authorities to ensure that the children attain a good level of schooling as a stepping stone towards a future profession or vocation.
- Life Skills Training: Each child at Ndugu Mdogo is unique in his or her own way. Apart from facilitating their schooling, social workers at Ndugu Mdogo try to develop the children’s talents and abilities in the arts and crafts. These include artwork, bead making, gardening, drama, music and scouting.
The children are also taught about hygiene, sex education, HIV/AIDS, and drug abuse.
- Spiritual Development: Through catechism, spiritual gatherings and observation of religious celebrations, the children are guided through their spiritual growth. In this process, their individual choices are however respected and facilitated, such that Christians are allowed to join Bible study groups, Catholics can participate in local parish activities and Muslims observe Ramadhan.
- Home Visits: Ndugu Mdogo social workers periodically accompany the children on visits to their parents or guardians.