CARE community search was inspired by a training that Emma Salako went to with LIA (Life in Abundance) in Nairobi, Kenya. Every Tuesday our staff go out into the community in groups of two. They are searching the town for children working or playing when they should be in school. Once they find a child they ask some questions and then see if the child will take them to their home. Once our staff reach the home they do their best to assess the child’s well being and if CARE Africa needs to intervene. Sometimes it is very simple and they discover that the child is in school but the parents just are late in paying school fees and will pay soon. Other times we find the child hasn’t been in school for several months due to the care giver being sick, out of work or just not caring. In these circumstances we give the care giver a voucher to come to the CARE center to pick a free form for the child to apply to CARE Africa. Sometimes these care givers will show up and collect the form and sometimes they will not.
Our staff take a picture of the child and record in their CCS book all the details of the child then the last week of every month is follow up week. Our staff follow up on anyone who has not come to the center and collected a form. During our follow up at the home we will investigate further on why the care giver is not coming to collect the form. If we feel like the child is being neglected or abused we will contact Women’s Affairs and have them intervene.
Here are just a few pictures of children that we have been able to locate through this search. Sponsorship of these children is only $35 a month so they can go to school, receive all school supplies, medical, small provisions and food packages and participate in all our CARE center programs. To sponsor any of these children please email me at Patrice.Miles@sim.org so we can give you more details.
