Community

Kenya Kanga Collection and AMREF Women’s Projects

AMREF Dagoretti project and Kenya Kanga Collection partnered to provide training and skills to young or single mothers in an area of low income. Kenya Kanga Collection provides a tailoring tutor who teaches basic skills to the women and helps maintain the quality of the work done. The mothers come to the workshop twice a week where they work on selected items, and each mother is paid for all the work do.

AMREF provides a space, which is equipped with machines and offers lunch to the working mothers and their babies, as well as training sessions in parenting and SRH. Besides training in tailoring, Kenya Kanga Collection provides toys for the children to play with as their mothers work.

The project has helped young mothers achieve economic empowerment and training in life skills.

Economic empowerment

The young mothers make products such as cushion covers, hair bands, make up bags, wrapped kangas depending on the demand from Kenya Kanga Collection as well as the local market. The money earned helps the mothers pay rent, buy food and pay for their children’s day care. One young mother was even able to help pay for her nephew’s education. “It was only Ksh 500 but my sister really appreciated this gesture” she said.

Life skills training

The project also aims to equip the young mothers with life skills that will help them cope with life’s challenges and make the best choices in life. The majority of the mothers have one or two children not out of their choice but due to varying circumstances that resulted in them becoming pregnant, so these life skills make a significant and lasting impact.