Category: General

The National Government, through the National Authority for the Campaign Against Drug Abuse (NACADA), in collaboration with the County of Uasin Gishu, has conducted a training exercise for County Enforcement Officers, together with the members of the National Police Service (NPS), on the fundamental strategies to crack down on illicit alcohol, drug trafficking, and abuse.

The exercise is a follow-up initiative to ensure effective implementation of the key strategies underscored in the County Action Plan on Alcohol and Drug Abuse, unveiled on February 13 during a stakeholders’ engagement forum at Eldoret National Polytechnic.

This follows the President’s Directive through the Joint Communique for Rift Valley on May 29, 2023, which identified alcohol and drug abuse (ADA) as a major challenge to the country’s socioeconomic development.

There was heightened public concern across the counties about the devastating effects of ADA, which cut across all sectors, including health and security.

In an interview with
the press during the enforcement officers training event at the Rift Valley Technical Training Institute (RVTTI), NACADA, North Rift Regional Manager Eunice Arubia said the training exercise was one of the steps towards efficient implementation of the strategies underscored in the County Action Plan, in order to achieve the desired goals on the war against alcohol and drug abuse.

The training of the officers comes barely a week after similar sensitization of the National Government Administrative Officers (NGAOs) took place.

She acknowledged the immense support from partners including REINVENT Kenya, the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS), the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), the Anti-Counterfeit Authority (ACA), and NEMA.

‘We have come-up together with our partners to empower our enforcement officers together with NGAOs so that when we start this mission, we will be working from the point of information since everybody will be aware of their respective roles,’ she noted.

‘We have sensitised the officers to e
nsure they conduct their duties in a proper manner, while cracking down on illicit alcohol and drugs and handling suspects in a lawful manner, from arrest up to the time they are prosecuted, especially for the alcohol and drug abuse offences, and to enable them to cope with other challenges on lawsuits on suspects of alcohol-related offences,’ said the Regional Manager.

Arubia affirmed the Authority’s commitment to playing its co-ordination role and walking together with the County government and partners to ensure the county achieves the desired goals in terms of eradicating the alcohol and drug abuse menace and ensuring people focus on development and nation-building.

She expressed concern over the saddening statistics of the survey findings, which revealed that the youngest who got involved in alcohol and drug abuse is a 5-year-old child.

‘It is quite saddening that the youngest of our studies is a child as young as 5 years old getting involved. This is a child who is still under parental care. This tel
ls us as an Agency that we need to put emphasis on programmes targeting parents on responsible parenthood, because such a child indulging in the use of alcohol and substance abuse is an indication of negligence and poor moral upbringing in our society,’ explained Arubia.

The Regional Manager emphasised the need to sensitise and educate parents to enable them to bring-up the younger generation morally, to keep them in the right direction to ensure a better and healthier future.

‘We have come-up with parenting programmes to sensitise and educate our parents. Even here today, we have given out parenting guides, and we will ensure we do this through all public forums,’ she added.

She alluded that the Authority currently runs a successful life skills programme in some of the primary schools, which has made huge contributions in terms of improving performance and discipline among students as compared to those schools, where it has not yet been rolled-out.

Arubia called for partners’ support to enable the progra
mme to be rolled-out in all primary schools.

The programme is intended to help children of younger age to grow up as people with the ability to make informed decisions in their lives.

‘We are also looking forward to bringing on board religious leaders to enable us to have programmes targeting parents in churches and all other faiths so as to achieve responsible parenting and the moral upbringing of children in our communities,’ she noted.

Noting that some children have been left under the care of teachers and religious leaders, Arubia further said they discovered that the majority of parents do not fulfil their roles as parents in terms of raising up children, hence, the need to come up with programmes to educate and sensitise them on their responsibilities as parents.

County Ag. Director, Enforcement Cosmas Kerich, commended the County Administration and NACADA for organising the training to sensitise and equip them with skills. He said this would enable them to execute their tasks in a proper manner in
accordance with the law and achieve the intended goals in the fight against illicit alcohol and drug abuse in the County.

Kerich said that they have been working closely with the national security team to eradicate alcohol and drug abuse, which has enabled them to achieve significant progress in containing the menace in the County.

‘We have been equipped with skills to tackle the issue of drug abuse and alcohol in accordance with the laws of Kenya. We have an inspection team to ensure all operating outlets have valid licences, and if not, they are closed down and operators are arrested and prosecuted,’ he said.

Source: Kenya News Agency

Addis Ababa: The Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) praised Ethiopia’s commitment to addressing climate challenges.

State Minister of Planning and Development Seyum Mekonnen and GGGI Deputy Director General Helena McLeod, held a bilateral meeting today.

The two sides discuss ways to enhance their strategic partnership in addressing climate change and promoting sustainable economic growth.

On the occasion, the State Minister highlighted the government’s current climate actions and identified key priority areas for investment by development partners.

The Deputy Director General of GGGI, Helena McLeod for her part praised Ethiopia’s commitment to addressing climate challenges and outlined ways in which GGGI could offer support, including sharing its global expertise in climate finance mechanisms such as green bonds and carbon markets.

GGGI, an international organization focused on promoting sustainable economic growth in developing countries, has been working closely with Ethiopia since it became a foun
ding member in 2012.

With an increasing number of member countries, GGGI continues to support Ethiopia in its efforts towards green growth, according to Ministry of Planning and Development

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

The Tharaka Nithi County government, in collaboration with the Kenya National Highway Authority (KeNHA), is set to redesign the notorious Nithi Bridge.

Speaking at the Governor’s office in Chuka, Deputy Governor Nyaga Muisrael said that they have started consultative talks with KeNHA to find a lasting solution to the bridge, a black spot that has claimed many lives and continues posing a threat to motorists plying the Meru-Nairobi highway.

‘We need to find a lasting solution to the Nithi Bridge, which has claimed many lives and continues to pose a threat to motorists,’ he said.

KeNHA Representative Njiru Njue, a land valuer, said they had consultative engagements with the county government to redesign the bridge to reduce road carnage.

On his part, CECM Road Engineer Giti Kijiru noted that the bridge was constructed on a very mountainous area with steep vertical and horizontal curves that were not safe for use by motorists.

While emphasising the importance of redesigning the bridge as a lasting solution,
Kijiru explained that drivers on high speeds were unable to drive on the sharp bend, causing most vehicles to plunge into the river.

‘We have engaged with KeNHA stakeholders to seek a solution to the long-standing carnage on the Nithi Bridge,’ he said.

Source: Kenya News Agency

Addis Ababa: The IGAD Climate Prediction and Applications Centre (ICPAC) has predicted that there will be a higher probability of wetter-than-normal conditions in the upcoming March to May 2024, across most parts of the Greater Horn of Africa.

In its press release sent to ENA, ICPAC said that notably, the areas expected to experience these wetter conditions include Kenya, Somalia, southern Ethiopia, South Sudan, Uganda, Burundi, Rwanda, and north-western Tanzania.

The highest probabilities for wetter than usual conditions are indicated in central to western Kenya and in the cross-border areas of Ethiopia, Kenya, and Uganda.

The expected enhanced rainfall is likely to positively impact agriculture, water resources, and overall livelihoods, according to the center.

The press release also added that an early to normal rainfall onset is expected in several parts of the region.

These include parts of northern Tanzania, eastern Rwanda, Southern and Western Uganda, Western Kenya, South-western Somalia, and pa
rts of South-central Ethiopia.

” Due to the increased rainfall recorded in the October to December 2023 period, along with the forecast of wetter-than-normal conditions from March to May, there is an elevated risk of flooding in areas prone to floods,’ the ICPAC director Dr. Guleid Artan noted.

The director added the forecast underscores the urgency for coordinated action and preparedness, emphasizing the need for proactive measures to mitigate potential impacts and capitalize on the opportunities presented by the forecast rainfall.

He also stressed the need for uniting in our commitment to leveraging climate information for resilient and sustainable development across our region.

Artan further added that, ‘while the food security situation may improve with wetter than usual conditions, it is important to remember the multiple challenges faced by the region, including the historic 2020-2022 drought, conflict in various parts of the region such as Sudan, and the El Nino-induced floods at the end of 2023.

T
his has weakened communities’ coping capacity, making them highly susceptible to food insecurity. The likelihood of flooding during the 2024 MAM season in parts of the region could lead to a deterioration in food security in localized areas.’

The objective temperature forecast indicates an increased likelihood of warmer than normal surface temperatures over the entire region.

Probabilities for warmer than normal temperatures are most enhanced over Sudan, northern South Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia and southern parts of Tanzania.

In line with the World Meteorological Organization’s guidelines and recommendations, ICPAC has adopted an objective seasonal forecast method to generate climate forecasts for the Greater Horn of Africa.

February 2024 initialized seasonal forecasts from nine Global Producing Centres (GPCs) were utilized and processed using three calibration techniques to develop the MAM 2024 seasonal climate outlook

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

A new trend is about to take root in primary schools across Nyeri County, following the introduction of a campaign that will see young learners embrace aquaculture.

The campaign dubbed Eat More Fish, which is jointly funded by the County Department of Agriculture, the Aquaculture Business Development Programme (ABDP), and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), is also aimed at introducing fish as part of the learner’s diet through the school feeding programme.

According to ABDP programme Co-ordinator, Maureen Gathigia, the projects started mid-last year, when four primary schools in the County, were identified and subsequently supplied with fish pond liners, fingerlings, fish feed, and aquaculture support to start-off the project.

Besides Nyeri, ABDP had also started similar projects in 56 other primary schools in the Mount Kenya Region, where the schools are expected to engage the learners in the fish-rearing process, until they are ready for harvesting.

Additionally, they are now ad
vocating for the learners to consume the fish raised and harvested in their schools.

‘The importance of introducing fish farming in schools is that, once you instill these skills and knowledge in a child, they are more likely to practice fish farming as a commercial venture or as an alternative source of livelihood.

We are also advocating for the fish to be consumed in school, which is one way of inculcating a fish-eating culture, so that these children diversify their diet by getting the nutrients found in fish,’ she said.

The County Coordinator was speaking at Gitunduti Primary and Junior Secondary School in Mathira, where seven grade-seven learners, harvested their first school of 300, Tilapia, after rearing the fish for 10 months.

The catch, most of which weighed between 250-300 grammes, was then prepared by the school’s cooks with the help of the fisheries officers before it was served as lunch for the eager learners.

According to the Sub-county fisheries officer, Lazarus Mutiso, the Eat More Fish c
ampaign, will go a long way in overwriting the labels associated with fish for the region that has for a long time steered clear of fish because it is not one of their traditional staple foods. Mutiso said it will also provide a solution for the marketing challenge by ensuring that most of the fish raised and harvested in Nyeri is consumed within the county.

‘Besides inculcating the importance of eating fish for young children by incorporating fish into their school feeding programme, we also want to propose that the schools sell the surplus harvest to the neighbouring community. This way, we will have more people eating fish, and the money raised can be used to support the fish farming project,’ said Mutiso.

Additionally, to ensure a constant supply of fish, Mutiso said that they are in the process of supporting the four schools to set up multiple fish ponds.

The School’s Headmaster, James Mbatia, lauded the initiative. He said the campaign will be instrumental in implementing the Competence-Based Curricu
lum, by imparting some of the key competencies advocated for by the new curriculum.

Mbatia also noted that the project will help mold the next crop of fish-farming ambassadors.

‘This fish farming project has been instrumental in skills and knowledge building of the learners who have been involved in the project since it was launched in May 2023.

The project has not only changed the perception about fish farming and the benefits of eating fish among our learners but it has also inspired them to share this information with their parents back at home.

We are hoping that through this project, we will produce the fish champions, who will take-up fish farming after leaving school,’ said Mbatia.

Source: Kenya News Agency

For the past two years, Beatrice Afande, who lives in the sprawling Ponda Mali estate in Nakuru Town, has known no peace or comfort.

Languishing in misery and poverty, her chest heaves with emotion as she struggles to string together a sentence during a conversation with two neighbours who have just called on her at the single-roomed, mud-walled structure she calls her home.

In February 2023, she was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML), a type of cancer that affects the blood and bone marrow.

The 31-year-old single mother does not have money for treatment, even as her situation becomes worse.

Ms. Afande depends on well-wishers for food, drugs, rent, and even transport for routine hospital visits.

Her narrative mirrors that of thousands of poverty-stricken Kenyans living miserably and isolatedly because of cancer.

It all started in July 2022 when she suspected something was amiss after she initially started experiencing fever, stomach cramps, migraines, and joint pains.

Ms. Afande started managi
ng her condition using painkillers, believing that it was just a normal discomfort and that self-medication would return her to normalcy.

But that was not to be. The agony persisted as she now also felt fatigued and lost weight, significantly pushing the mother of two to the brink of depression as she sought a cure for her ailment.

As the aches got more severe and could not be numbed by painkillers, a neighbour convinced her to seek professional opinion from physicians at the Nakuru Level 5 Teaching and Referral Hospital (NTRH).

She explains that a doctor at NTRH conducted some tests and gave her medication, which he said would work within a week.

And true to his word, the pain disappeared after she completed the dosage he prescribed.

But the doctor suggested a haemogram (or blood count) just as a routine checkup. It was a test on her blood components, including the red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets.

The first test revealed she had a low count of all her blood components. The doctor was
worried about the results and asked her to wait for a week before she took another test. But there was no improvement when she took the second test.

Doctors attributed the possible causes of her low blood cell count to a viral infection, bone marrow cancer, or certain tumours.

‘They took a sample of my bone marrow to test for any of these possibilities, and what came out was the worst revelation in my life ever,’ she recounts ruefully.

According to Ms. Afande, it was after visiting the hospital with hopes of being cured of the ‘mysterious ailment’ that physicians at the Level 5 hospital finally diagnosed the cancer.

‘It was hard. I was shattered, broken, and in shock. I asked God so many questions. Why me? Where did I go wrong? It is the most devastating news that women from low-income settlements like me can receive.’

She wanted to keep the diagnosis a secret from her 14-year-old son Malcolm Otieno and her 11-year-old daughter Elsie Adhiambo, as she was aware of how grave the illness was.

‘I did not wa
nt to break the news to them, but the doctors first took them through counselling and then explained everything to them. It has been hard for my children, who have since both dropped out of school due to lack of fees,’ she laments.

Exactly a year after the diagnosis, Ms. Afande has not started treatment because she has no money. She does not have National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) cover and depends on friends, well-wishers, and relatives.

Due to lack of money, she has also been unable to have another sample of her bone marrow analysed by doctors to determine whether a bone marrow transplant is needed or not.

Managing AML, she adds, is very expensive, especially with the numerous blood transfusions that one needs.

Given the option of health care or food, health has become a luxury in Ms. Afande’s household.

Getting a single meal for the family is already a struggle.

For her son, Master Otieno, who wrote his Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) examination in 2023, he would ordinarily be foc
using on academic matters at Naivasha Boys, where he was scheduled to report for admission to Form-One three weeks ago, but that is not the case as he is yet to be admitted due to lack of school fees.

The 14-year-old who sat his KCPE at Angalo Primary School and scored 308 marks has been juggling between taking care of his younger sibling and fending for his ailing mother.

One can easily tell that life has been tough for the young boy, who is eager to continue with his education and realise his dreams of being a lawyer.

Ms. Afande explains that before she fell sick, she depended on menial jobs to raise money for food and rent, but with her current condition, she cannot afford his fees.

Concerning her condition, Ms. Afande explains that she needs about Sh60,000 on tests alone at the Nakuru Teaching and Referral Hospital, even before the start of chemotherapy.

According to the National Cancer Control Programme, treatment in Kenya ranges from Sh175,000 to Sh800,000, where there is no need for an operation.

W
ith surgery, the charges range from Sh800,000 to Sh1.5 million, depending on the hospital and type of therapy.

Even the Sh3,500 cost of one radiotherapy session at selected public hospitals is prohibitively expensive for poor Kenyans. The lowest chemotherapy regime costs between Sh25,000 to Sh30,000 per circle in public health facilities, with the most expensive ranging from Sh500,000 per circle in private hospitals.

Chemotherapy treatment for Acute Myeloid Leukemia is typically divided into three phases: Induction, which is short and intensive, usually lasts about a month. Consolidation (intensification), which is also intensive, characteristically lasts for a few months, while Maintenance (post-consolidation), which is less intensive, usually lasts for about 2 years.

Master Otieno points out that his sister Adhiambo is the hardest hit. She has been counselled, but she has kept a studious silence and has turned reclusive.

Commenting on his mother’s condition, the teenager says that it is tough since the
medication she requires is very expensive.

For her mother to survive, Master Otieno says that they need a lot of money, which the family can’t afford. He further adds that they can’t afford the chemotherapies and the numerous blood transfusions on which their mother’s life is now pegged.

‘We need almost Sh80,000 a month to manage her condition; one of the tablets she is required to use costs Sh15,000.’

Master Otieno says he hopes to uplift the family, community, and entire country once he is done with schooling.

He appeals to friends, well-wishers, and the government to intervene to ensure he continues with his education.

According to Professor Othieno Abinya, a consultant oncologist, Acute Myeloid Leukemia occurs when the bone marrow, the factory that produces all blood cells, ceases to function properly.

Instead of the normal production and development of white cells (which fight infection), red cells (which transport energy around the body), and platelets (which prevent abnormal bleeding), a wrong ‘s
eedling cell’ which has failed to develop into a functional cell multiplies in large numbers.

The ‘seedling cell’ or stem cell multiplies in large numbers and, while still in an immature state, fills out the bone marrow, eventually spilling out into the blood.

Professor Abinya explains that these abnormal cells eventually phase out normal cellular components of the bone marrow (white cells, red cells, and platelets), and when that happens, the patient will experience symptoms such as tiredness, recurrent infections, and weakness due to marked reduction of white blood cells and bleeding or unexplained bruising due to diminished levels of platelets.

The condition is also called acute myelogenous leukaemia or acute myelocytic leukaemia.

Source: Kenya News Agency