The Narok Community Outreach Program provides essentials like food, counseling, and mentorship to orphaned and vulnerable Maasai children and their families living in Narok County. This remote region of Kenya is often overlooked, and most families lack the resources to provide the most basic of care to children. Malnutrition rates are high and educational opportunity is limited. As the initiative grows, educational and agricultural programs will be added.
In 2019, Orphan Outreach, along with its Kenyan partner NGO, Yatima Outreach, identified the need to establish an education program for orphaned and vulnerable children in Naisoya, a village located in Narok County in Kenya. The community was identified by the Archbishop of the Anglican Church of Kenya, Jackson Ole Sapit, who knew of its overwhelming need and lack of resources.
Plans were designed for the launch of the program; however, the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated a pivot so that emergency care could be first provided to the children and families. Food became the priority for a community isolated and alone.
“That holistic care has continued, and in 2021, the local Yatima team has expanded ministry to preschool aged children in weekly activities that will lay the foundation for education and each child's emotional well-being. At the weekly gatherings, the young children are provided breakfast and lunch.”
The goals of the program include expansion of educational support to older children, many of whom aren’t currently able to attend school due to lack of access and necessary supplies. And an Agribusiness venture will be launched, providing a way for families to produce their own food while also providing for the care of others. It is estimated that, by the fall of 2021, at least 30 families will have opportunity to learn how to grow their own crops on their land and provide income for themselves.