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COVER STORY

www.safaricomfoundation.org

The Great Equaliser

Education

MsingiI S S U E 1 7 - 2 0 1 2

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COVER STORY

Published by the Safaricom Foundation, Msingi is the official magazine of the Safaricom Foundation.It is distributed free of charge.

Views expressed in this publication do not necessarily represent the official Safaricom Foundation viewpoints.

Please address all correspondence to:The ManagerThe Safaricom FoundationP.O. Box 66827, 00800Nairobi, Kenya.Tel: +254 722 001111Email: thefoundation@safaricom.co.ke Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Safaricom Foundation

Twitter: @SafaricomFDN

CREDITS:

EDITORIAL BOARD: Nzioka Waita, Wangari Murugu,

Sanda Ojiambo, Caroline Gichuru & Chris Muthama

MANAGING EDITOR: Sanda Ojiambo

CONTRIBUTING EDITORS: Biko Jackson, Cecillah Kimuyu,

DESIGN AND LAYOUT: Redsky

PRINTER: Colour Print

PHOTOGRAPHY: Gina Din Corporate Communications

I S S U E 1 6 - 2 0 1 2

Chairman’s message 4

COVer sTOrY 6

FOUnDaTiOn neWs 8

ThemaTiC FeaTUres

EducaTion 1oHEalTH 15

EconoMic EMPoWERMEnT 16EnViRonMEnT & SPoRTS 17

PiCTOriaL 18

FOUnDaTiOn PrOJeCT ParTners 21

sTaFF ParTiCiPaTiOn 21/22

CONTENT13

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COVER STORY

Chairman’s Message

It has been yet another fulfilling quarter at the Safaricom Foundation.

We visited Turkana and Wajir in March this year, and this was a

real eye-opening experience. In Turkana, we spent some time in

Loreng’elup a community that is 40 kilometers east of Lodwar. The

foundation had donated Ksh 1.8 million for the construction of a

maternity clinic, in partnership with the Turkana Basin Institute, which

is the brainchild of Richard Leakey. The clinic is a six-bed- one-nurse

maternity clinic that will serve the entire community of over 40,000

people.

Before the opening of the clinic, the situation was especially dire for

expectant women. If a woman had complications and couldn’t give

birth at home, as was the cultural norm, she would have to travel in a

pick up or even very desperate situations, in a wheelbarrow to Lodwar,

to seek medical attention. Apart from being logistically difficult, it just

wasn’t safe or dignified for these women. And so our partnership with

the Turkana Basin Institute to set up the maternity clinic was much

needed and very timely.

We were able to improve the accommodation for the only nurse

located at the clinic, for the fairly modern maternity unit, which included

her accommodation (previously she was sleeping in a manyatta). In

addition, Turkana Basin Institute has since extended water supply to

the facility, piping it from some four kilometres away. This project is

important for us here at The Foundation because it’s a first, never have

we put up a maternity clinic in such a vastly rural area.

Our Wajir visit also yielded some interesting results. In conjunction

with Kenya Red Cross Society we implemented a Ksh. 13.8 million

integrated water and agriculture project, consisting of three shallow

wells, solar pumps, water storage tanks, a water kiosk and six

greenhouses on a 10-hectare land. Interestingly, the water table in that

area is very low and it doesn’t take a lot of digging to hit water, and the

soil is quite fertile as well.

Still in Wajir, we also built two classrooms at Dashek Primary School.

The school is located about 40 kilometers from the Somali border.

We chose to fund this project as part of our commitment to improving

access to education even in the most marginalized areas of the country.

Moving on to our people, the past phase of World Of Difference

involved four Safaricom staff, and we also included three university

students who took to it like fish to water. In the interim, we introduced

a short term and flexible variant of World of Difference, called Making

a Difference about Leadership World of Difference, which entailed

senior staff partnering to undertake management/leadership level

assignments for short periods of time.

In July, we will be launching World of Difference Three, and we will

open it up to the public, taking up to ten people to work with the

Foundation’s project partners. This engagement with the public will

take our partnerships to a new level.

Going forward, we are constantly looking at fresh innovative ways on

how we can use technology to improve lives, and to do good. We

will be implementing “Mobiles for Good” projects and through this, we

will be exploring ways in which we can use mobile phones in various

sectors like health, education and economic empowerment.

Lastly, it’s our common knowledge that it is not just enough to

give grants to projects, particularly if the organization is lacking in

organizational capacity or business acumen. We have plans to

engage third parties to work alongside some of our project partners

is areas like administration, finance and marketing in order to improve

their prospects of success and sustainability.

We are enthusiastic about this new quarter; it has a promise of great

things.

Happy reading.

les Baillie, chairman

ChaiRman’S mESSagE

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MAJI NA UHAIChanging the landscape of water and food security

in the arid and semi-arid areas of Kenya.

If there is a cliché that begs not to be repeated it must be, “water is life.” And in Kenya’s arid and semi arid areas, this

is not just a cliché, it’s a matter of fact. It’s a matter of life. And Safaricom Foundation though its various partners have invested millions of shillings in water security in these regions, by implementing large-scale community projects. Through its “Maji na Uhai” (water is life) partnership with Action Aid International Kenya and the Kenya Red Cross Society, the Safaricom Foundation has provided integrated water solutions to thousands of Kenyans.

Most recently, the partnership commissioned the Abbas Farm Integrated Water and Agriculture Project in Wajir East, Wajir County. This is a place known for its short rains and high temperatures. Its droughts usually drag on for very long, scorching the earth and creating harsh living conditions.

The Abbas Farm community was highly

food and water insecure, with an estimated one-third of the population living off food aid. Morbidity and mortality rates were on the rise due to inadequate water supply. The trickle-down effect? Diminished individual incomes and subsequently, an adverse effect on some 5,000 livelihoods. And so Maji na Uhai set to work digging three shallow wells, complete with pumps, solar panel and storage tanks. Apart from also constructed a water dispensing kiosk and a cattle trough, they trained 15 community committee members in the operation and maintenance of the water system.

Also, six green houses with drip irrigation systems and collapsible water tanks were set up, and 30 community members were trained in irrigation, water management and crop husbandry through the efforts by Amiran-Kenya and the Ministry

of Agriculture, so as to help the community be in step with modern irrigation methods.Yusuf Artan of Action Aid says of the Maji

na Uhai programme, “The impact that water offers to these local communities can’t be understated because the reality on the ground in those areas is that without water facilities, life as you would know it literally grinds to a halt, and communities are basically rendered powerless in the face of this adversity.”

To date, the Safaricom Foundation has donated Kshs. 75 million towards ‘Maji na Uhai’ projects that include the rehabilitation of water infrastructure, construction of new water infrastructure, integration of health, education and hygiene, and training communities for sustainability.

These funds have been spread among several projects across the country, in areas such as Mombasa, Kibwezi, Nyeri East, Wajir, Machakos, Transmara, Makueni and Garbatulla.

In Mwingi, the communities of Nthunguni and Mukanda Villages in Nzaui District

benefited from Ksh 16.6 million grant to the Kenya Red Cross Society to fund a water project aimed at reducing the disease burden. These areas struggle with dwindling rainfall patterns all year long.The integrated water project has benefited an estimated 8 500 people, who no longer have to walk 15 kilometres to draw water from the Tyaa River.

One lingering issue is the question of how communities may have to change their cultural practices in order to adopt new livelihoods, like farming. Ayaz Manji, Kenya Red Cross’s Water and Sanitation Advisor says it’s been a challenge, but one that has been gradually accepted and welcomed. “Yes, we experienced small pockets of cultural challenges especially in strongly pastoral communities, and we have had to do quite a bit of sensitization to change perceptions. But largely it hasn’t been complicated because it’s a

question of survival: we offer something where there was nothing.”

Ayaz adds that it has been extensively documented that pastoralism is not going to be sustainable in the near future due to the drastic global environmental and climate changes. The results of the Maji na Uhai integrated water projects have been phenomenal. Since 2012, the areas dominated by pastoralist communities have now adopted agriculture and drip irrigation technology. “Many communities now plant tomatoes, pumpkins and maize for domestic use, and also have surplus enough to sell in the nearby market.”

Reflecting back to the Abbas Farm project, Ayaz says that the community has created new livelihood opportunities by providing sustainable access to safe drinking water, improving food security and providing sanitation facilities while also improving

knowledge, attitude and practice for those communities. Ayaz admits that initially there were some security concerns in the area, but all this has now stabilized and the community project is now a model of development in the area. “What we have seen is a desperate situation turned into a success story. Wajir is an area that such level of success previously seemed impossible. But with innovation and our Maji na Uhai partnerships, we have seen how much can be done.”On top of these successes, these projects go into contributing to the realization of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the national targets for Economic Recovery Strategy for Wealth and Employment Creation (ERS- WEC).

But even more importantly, they improve the quality of lives of people in these areas. They save lives.

A member of the Abass Community inspects water melons at the Abass Farm Project in Wajir.

ABBAS FARM PROJECTAYAZ MANJI Kenya Red Cross Society, Water and Sanitation Advisor

Safaricom Foundation partnered with the Kenya Red Cross Society through the Maji na Uhai Initiative to

improve food security through increasing access to safe water in Wajir East.

To this end, a water system to enable efficient irrigation and sufficient water supply for the community was constructed. Also, three shallow wells were dug and equipped with pumps, solar panel and storage tanks. A total of six green houses were set up and installed with drip irrigation lines and collapsible water tanks. What this has done to the 5,000 community members is that it has seen a predominantly pastoralist community adopt an alternative livelihood through the use of drip irrigation technology and increase their general livelihood.

We spoke to ayaz, the water and sanitation advisor at Kenya Red Cross Society about the project.

How was the idea born?It’s simple really; here was a community living in relatively harsh conditions, a people who didn’t have access to clean safe water and whose standard of living was greatly affected by these conditions. But the area which they lived – Wajir East had the potential to be economically productive given the shallow water level. The solution was right before us.

What are some of the challenges you experienced with this project?There were some initial delays related to the identification and selection of a contractor, but this was soon resolved. There was also a significant concern around the level of insecurity in the region. But perhaps the worst tragedy we experienced during that time was having the Chairman of the project shot dead in the farm. That scared off farmers and we shut down operations for a month. In my experience this has never happened before, but the presence of Kenya Army helped restore back the levels of security

and confidence within the community to continue with the project.

How has this project impacted in your life personally?Working on this project has been phenomenal. It’s been an eye opener for me. Seeing lives and livelihoods be transformed is inspiring. For many of the community members, their fate lay in waiting for relief food deliveries, but now, they are able to grow their own food, and are empowered. This is deeply humbling.

On a very personal level, I’m a father to one son and my involvement in this is setting a good example to him. I want to leave a legacy, something he can see and maybe learn from. We are on earth for a purpose and our contribution to society is a duty. Through this project, both Kenya Red Cross Society and the Safaricom Foundation have forged deep relationships with the community.

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THEY CAME TO KENYA TO SMILEThey travelled many days to get

to the camp, a Level 5 hospital in Meru. They came from as far

as close to the Somalia border Somalia and their hope lay in the Operation Smile Mission in Kenya.

One of them was Hassan Ibrahim, and his daughter Fetouma, had come all the way from Mandera, travelling for two days to reach Wajir, where a chartered bus took them to Meru. A 24-hour journey. Hassan, having been teased his whole life, stayed away from school thus never completed his education. He was lucky to meet and marry, in spite of his cleft lip and soon they had a child.

But when his child was born, his worst

fear was realized; she too was born with a cleft lip. Of course he never knew a cleft lip was treatable, and attempts by his family to dissuade him from making the very long journey to Meru for the operation fell on deaf ears. “You will be cursed,” they told him.

Two hours after they had gone under the knife, daughter and father emerged with smiles. For the first time in their lives they smiled genuinely.

All this was made possible by a team of 49 medical and non-medical volunteers from Kenya, Ireland, South Africa and USA who worked alongside many locals’ medical professionals to screen and provide surgery to children and adults. Of the

178 patients screened in the one-week operation, 103 received reconstructive surgical care.

This mission, organized by Operation Smile in conjunction with American Heart Association and co-sponsored by Safaricom Foundation, that was a roaring success.

In the end, the combination of experience and effort of the Operation Smile volunteers, the commitment of Meru’s many volunteers, and the generosity and hospitality of the local community made a huge difference in lives like those of Hassan and his daughter.

fOUnDaTiOn nEWS

MaKinG a diFFEREncEMake a Difference (MAD) about Leadership World of Difference ProgrammeThis is a unique programme that has given Safaricom staff the opportunity to volunteer their time at specific Safaricom Foundation partner projects within a flexible time frame. Sixteen staff competitively won a place to work with partner projects of their choice undertaking management and leadership level assignments mutually agreed upon between the secondee and their project partner.

The volunteer period can last anything from a few days to weeks depending on the needs of the organization and the specific assignment. Make A Difference About Leadership (MAD) will promote community work and volunteerism amongst the Safaricom Staff, enhance knowledge and skills in community based programming and will support programme implementation within the partner organisations.

We spoke to some of the participants of MAD World of Difference

BOB COLLYMOREProject Partner: Kenya Diabetes Management & Information Centre:

The Kenya Diabetes Management & Information Centre (DMI) is a not-for-profit registered medical charity founded in May 1999, whose aim is to educate the public about diabetes.

ROLE: RESOURCE MOBILZATION

Why MAD?MAD is a derivative of the World of Difference, and it has elicited great amounts of interest within the company. MAD provides the opportunity to involve staff interested in management and leadership challenges. It’s a great way to lead by example.

What were your personal motivations in selecting to partner with DMI?Health is important - good health to be precise. Diabetes is a major problem in Kenya, and globally, especially with urban lifestyles. I chose to participate in MAD WOD to be part of a change Personally participation meant being a part of a change, part of helping sensitize people on the dangers of this disease and hopefully save lives.

What skill set are you bringing to the table?Well, mostly it’s strategic thinking. The way the board of DMI is constituted is that it is full of doctors - but doctors are meant to treat and heal- and the DMI board does a tremendous job. What I bring to the table is a different skill set to augment their skills, and perhaps a different way at looking at issues, and solving problems. We are also hoping to use media differently to create even more awareness and raise funds to support DMIs programmes.

What have you learnt from participating in this programme?I have learned that we cannot take our lives for granted and that we need to take better care of our bodies. Working with DMI is a sobering reminder that we treat our cars better than we treat our bodies. We service our cars every three or so months, but how often do we go for medical check-ups?

BETTY MWANGIProject Partner: Kenya Diabetes Management & Information Centre:

ROLE: MEDIA AWARENESS

What informed your decision to participate in this programme?I feel I have always been too busy to take time away from work to participate in World of Difference as a full time secondment. However, when I learned that under the MAD WOD programme, I could work with a project partner in a flexible way so that I could still attend to my job, and also give me the opportunity to incorporate learnings from my day to day responsibilities, I was thrilled and rose to the challenge.

What skill sets are you offering the organization?I feel a true resonance because what I do in my role at Safaricom, and what I especially love about my role is the opportunity to find ways to impact Kenyan lives positively. I have significant experience in strategic thinking, innovation and project management, and I will be using these skills to help DMI to raise awareness about their programmes.

How often do you “visit” them and how does work with your role at Safaricom?We have our official committee meetings at least once a month but in the interim there are some tactical actions that need my attention. I give these actions at least an hour’s time every week, either during my lunch break or in the evenings as I wind down from my work routine

Have you seen any results? It is early days but what I see is a lot of synergies and appreciation for our input, especially with regards to defining a clear strategy and breaking this into achievable milestones to ensure the best utilization of DMIs limited resource base.

Has the experience changed you personally and professionally? I am learning a lot about the impact of diabetes on Kenyans, and its economic impact. Most importantly, the disease has now been demystified to me. I now know that the disease is preventable, and is also manageable.

PETER ARINAGeneral Manager, Consumer Business UnitProject Partner: Kenyan Paraplegic Organisation:

Role: Fundraiser

The Kenyan Paraplegic Organisation is a non-profit organisation formed to see that all people living with a form of spinal cord injury can lead an independent and meaningful life with dignity and worthiness for self-reliance.We spoke to Peter about his short term secondment to KPO and his experiences.

“I joined Safaricom in 2004. Through my time here, I have had the pleasure of interacting with people passionate about Corporate Social Investment, in particular the former CEO, Michael Joseph and Safaricom Foundation Chairman, Les Baillie. When World of Difference was launched I had been in Safaricom for eight year, and I had seen Michael and Les participate actively in numerous projects – but I hadn’t done so myself.

Kenya Paraplegic Organization seemed like a great place to start. I had a meeting with the Executive Director of KPO, Tim Wanyonyi, and one of the things that emerged as we discussion the organisation and its needs was that KPO desperately needed to raise funds. My role at Safaricom Ltd is largely to drive sales and profits, and getting involved in KPO in a way that was so different from my day-to-day job, was an exciting challenge. .

The question was: how do we raise money in an innovative and compelling way? I called in some of my team members – Sarah, Peter and Raymond and shared the idea and challenge with them. They were all excited about the opportunity.

So, we developed a fundraising solution based on the concept where you can dial *555# and you get a prompt on subscription offers so that you can donate amounts starting at Ksh 1 to Ksh 10 daily. The funds would go into constructing a Ksh 250 million rehabilitation centre for spinal injury patients.

I then invited all media CEOs for a breakfast meeting and sold them the idea of supporting this project. They were enthusiastic about it, and offered to run the ads in the media for free.

And then we met Zack- a brave and selfless man who volunteered to be the face and rallying cry of the fundraising campaign. Zack took on the challenge of travelling to South Africa on his wheelchair to create awareness, and raise Ksh 250 million.

This campaign is coming along great. Better than I expected actually, and it has been a real eye opener for me. It has taught me that even the smallest of actions can impact lives in a significant way. We didn’t have to invest huge amounts of time in developing and executing the concept, but it has worked. My message to all is “get involved”.

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“The girl child faces additional disadvantages as she often bears the burden of domestic chores while at the same time facing a high risk of sexual

exploitation and abuse. Parents have various responsibilities over their children but providing them with education tops the list. Education is the best gift a parent can give to a child, be it a boy or girl. Let’s take our children to school without any bias,” Mama Dorca and other speakers urged parents and other community members present.

Addressing the audience, Les Baillie, the Chairman of the Safaricom Foundation said education is a right for every child and is key to transforming individual and community lives, particularly in the case of the girl-child.

“Without education, girls are denied the opportunity to develop their full potential and to play a productive and equal role in their families, their societies, their country and their world,” he said.

The donation was part of Safaricom Foundation’s commitment to support the government’s efforts to ensure all pupils access affordable education regardless of their economic and social backgrounds.

A Ksh 4.7m hostel construction hopes

to help girls in Ratta stay in school.

The school dropout rate for secondary school girls in Nyanza Province estimated is at a shocking 50%. Safaricom Foundation recently constructed a dormitory for Ratta Mixed Secondary School in Kisumu Rural Constituency in order to avert the crisis that is largely attributed to teenage pregnancy and poverty.

The 40 capacity hostel was spearheaded by 92 year old Mama Dorca Nyong’o, a well respected member of the Ratta Community. For several years, Mama Dorca has nurtured the dream of seeing the girl child reach her full potential through access to quality education. And distressed by the school dropout rates within the province,

she shared her dream with fellow members of Ratta Mothers’ Union, the women’s social welfare and economic development arm of the Anglican Church of Kenya.

The members at first, in their individual capacities, provided shelter to some of the disadvantaged children, giving them a rare opportunity to access education with minimal interruption. However, they realized that this was not adequate to address the problem and it was a not a sustainable solution.

A fundraising initiative to ensure sustainability of the project was then started and involved mobilizing donations from individuals, corporate organizations, donors and government in order to build a girls’ hostel, as a first step to ensure security and a safe

learning environment for the girls.

Let’s take our children to schoolThe project received a major boost from Safaricom Foundation through a grant of Ksh 4.7m that saw the completion of the hostel that opened its doors in February 2012. Plans are also underway to expand the facility to accommodate approximately 140 girls who study in the 15- year old Ratta Secondary School.

Speaking during the handover event, Mama Dorca noted that the number of orphans and vulnerable children has increased dramatically in the past two decades, especially due to the HIV and AIDS pandemic resulting in many children either being raised by poor ageing grandparents, or by fellow children.

EDUCATION

SAFARICOM FOUNDATION KEEPS THE GIRL CHILD IN SCHOOL

The project received a major boost from Safaricom Foundation through a grant of Ksh 4.7m that saw the completion of the hostel that opened its doors in February 2012. Plans are also underway to expand the facility to accommodate approximately 140 girls who study in the 15 year old Ratta Secondary School.

The Safaricom Foundation funded the consturction of a girls’ hostel at the school

Mama Dorca Nyongo and Safaricom Foundation Chairman Les Baillie commission the Ratta Girls Hostel.

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EDUCATION

Safaricom Foundation joined the rest of the world to commemorate International Women’s Day (2012), by distributing re-usable sanitary pads to three primary

schools in Nyanza Province.

The sanitary towels were presented today to a total of 472 girls from Masumbi Primary School in Gem District, Siaya Township and Awelo Primary School in Siaya Districts. The pads were also disseminated to Fafi Girls, the only girls’ secondary school in Fafi

District in North Eastern Province, under the Huru re-usable Sanitary Pad Project, a Micato Safaris initiative.

The Project has been funded by the Foundation at a cost of KShs. 1.5 million and helped mitigate against the rising school drop-out rates within the province partly blamed on poverty. Unlike the commonly used sanitary towels, ‘Huru’ pads can are re-usable and can be used for a maximum of one year while still giving the pupils the much-needed comfort during menstruation.

Over 100 disadvantaged students from Brucewood Education Centre located in Komarock Estate, Nairobi now have a reason to smile after Safaricom Foundation

equipped the Centre’s science laboratory.

The pupils, most of who come from neighbouring slums of Dandora

and Kayole received Kshs. 500,000 worth of packed chemicals and apparatus from the Foundation recently. The donation by the Foundation comes in the wake of a common believe among students that science and technology – related subjects are difficult.

Safaricom Foundation handed over books to Ebuboko Primary School in Kisumu at the beginning of this year. Established in 1982, the school has an enrolment of 400

students, 215 boys and 185 girls; and received a grant of Kshs

550,000 to purchase the books.

The Foundation funds a range of projects in the education sector and is

interested in supporting the provision of learning environments that will

allow students to thrive and succeed. Education is one of the strategic

directions that the Foundation has supported since its inception in

2003.

Winners of 2012-second Junior Achievement (JA) Kenya’s University Innovation Boot Camp were announced at an

event held at Citibank, Upperhill, Nairobi.

Junior Achievement Worldwide (JA) is the world’s largest non-profit organization founded in 1919 in the United States of America and is also a member of JA Worldwide, launched its operations in Kenya in 1999.

The three-day camp, partly funded by Safaricom Foundation, brought together over 100 students from various universities who underwent business challenge simulations and mentor speaker series in order to unlock their creative capability while building their work readiness competencies.

Participants were drawn from various tertiary institutions that include Maseno University, Masinde Muliro University, Mombasa Polytechnic, Strathmore University, Daystar University, Catholic University, University of Nairobi, St. Paul’s University, Moi University, Egerton University, Africa Nazarene University and Machakos Institute.

Since 2006, Safaricom Foundation has committed KShs. 16.5 million to support various JA education projects with last years’ funding amounting to KShs. 5 million. Other partners for the camp include Coca-Cola Central, East and West Africa, Citi Bank and Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA).

JA Kenya has since its inception impacted 270,000 young people with an impressive impact reach of 50,000 young people in schools, universities and communities nationwide in the year ended 2011.

Safaricom Foundation’s International Women’s Day Gift for Girls

Safaricom Foundation Equips School’s Science LaboratorySafaricom Foundation Donates books to Ebuboko Primary School

Students Recognized for their innovation prowessEncouraging responsible living - the Safaricom Foundation supports Huru International in its sanitary kit.

Students demonstrate the use of equipment donated by the Safaricom Foundation

Ebukoko Primary School - an enthusiastic welcome for the Safaricom Foundation Team

Ebukoko Primary School- Safaricom Foundation Trustee Nzioka Waita and a pupil after handing over of books

Ebukoko Primary School - students entertaining the guests during the handover of books to the school library

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EDUCATION HEALTH

Hon. Samuel Poghisio, Minister for Information and Communications opened a boy’s dormitory for Asilong Primary School in Kacheliba Constituency that has been

partly funded by the Safaricom Foundation.

The Kshs. 2.1 million worth boarding facility was funded by the

Foundation at Kshs. 1.6 million and a Kshs. 500,000 donation from

Kacheliba Constituency Development Fund (CDF).

The Foundation supports education and health projects in recognition

that there are disparities in accessing education and health care facilities

by disadvantaged communities. The two sectors are key in promoting

Kenya’s development as outlined in the Vision 2030 blue print.

Safaricom Foundation partnered with Turkana Basin Institute, a research based institution, to construct a maternity clinic in the remote village of Loreng’elup in Turkana Central

Constituency.

Loreng’elup Maternity Clinic, funded at a cost of Kshs. 1.8 million by the Foundation will serve an estimated population of 7,000 people who for years have been subjected to long walking distances to the nearest public health facility.

According to Ms. Ikal Ang’elei, Turkana Basin Institute’s Programme Coordinator, Lodwar District Hospital is the nearby hospital that provides maternity services and it is 40 kilometers away. Globally, it is estimated that up to 358, 000 women die each year in pregnancy and childbirth. The World Health Organization (WHO) also estimates that 7.6 million children under five died in 2010. Between1960-1990, child mortality in developing regions was halved to one child in 10 dying before age five.

Kinungi Primary School in Naivasha District is the recent beneficiary of Safaricom Foundation funding that has seen the provision of desks and chairs through the Foundation’s

donation of Ksh 602,000 to the school.

The school’s high student population of 1,100 students is as a result of

combined factors of a school-feeding programme funded by the African

Inland Church (AIC) and the government’s introduction of free primary

education initiative in 2002 that has seen thousands of children from

various parts of the country join and complete their basic education.

The high enrolment rates witnessed over the past ten years have put

strain on the available learning structures, facilities and even furniture in

school. At the introduction of the program in 2002, there were 5.9 million

pupils in primary schools compared to 8.6 million currently meaning that

a lot of support is required to see these pupils acquire quality education.

Hundreds of children benefited from this year’s Youth Diabetes Medical

Camp in Ruiru, Kiambu County. The three-day camp, which was held

at the Bible Translation and Literacy (BLT) Conference Centre, was

jointly been sponsored by the Safaricom Foundation and the Diabetes

Management and Information Centre (DMI Centre).

Over 50 children living with diabetes received useful information on how

to manage their condition and also received treatment and medication.

Asilong Primary School gets new dormitory New Maternity Clinic for Turkana Residents

Kinungi Primary School Receives New Furniture

Children benefit from Free Medical Camp in Ruiru, Kiambu County

The Safaricom Foundation funded the construction of a boys dormitory for Asilong Primary School

Officially commissioning the Loreng’elup Maternity Wing sponsored by the Safaricom Foundation

A young participant at the Safaricom Foundation sponsored Diabetes Childrens Camp

The Loreng’elup Maternity Wing that was sponsored by the Safaricom Foundation

Kinungi Primary School- new desks donated by the Safaricom Foundation

Students at Kinungi Primary School benefitted from a donation of desks from the Safaricom Foundation

Students of Kinungi Primary School sitting on new desks donated by the Safaricom Foundation

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A Ksh 4.7m hostel construction hopes to help girls in Ratta stay

in school.

The school dropout rate for secondary school girls in Nyanza Province estimated is at a shocking 50%. Safaricom Foundation recently constructed a dormitory for Ratta Mixed Secondary School in Kisumu Rural Constituency in order to avert the crisis that is largely attributed to teenage pregnancy and poverty.

The 40 capacity hostel was spearheaded by 92 year old Mama Dorca Nyong’o, a well respected member of the Ratta Community. For several years, Mama Dorca has nurtured the dream of seeing the girl child reach her full potential through access to quality education. And distressed by the school dropout rates within the province, she shared her dream with fellow members of Ratta Mothers’ Union, the women’s social welfare and economic development arm of the Anglican Church of Kenya.

The members at first, in their individual capacities, provided shelter to some of the disadvantaged children, giving them a rare opportunity to access education with minimal interruption. However, they realized that this was not adequate to address the problem and it was a not a sustainable solution.

A fundraising initiative to ensure sustainability of the project was then started and involved mobilizing donations from individuals, corporate organizations, donors and government in order to build

a girls’ hostel, as a first step to ensure security and a safe learning environment for the girls.

Let’s take our children to schoolThe project received a major boost from Safaricom Foundation through a grant of Ksh 4.7m that saw the completion of the hostel that opened its doors in February 2012. Plans are also underway to expand the facility to accommodate approximately 140 girls who study in the 15- year old Ratta Secondary School.

Speaking during the handover event, Mama Dorca noted that the number of orphans and vulnerable children has increased dramatically in the past two decades, especially due to the HIV and AIDS pandemic resulting in many children either being raised by poor ageing grandparents, or by fellow children.

Safaricom Foundation extended a Kshs. 155 million grant to Rhino Ark Charitable Trust to support a four-year conservation

project of the Mau Eburu Forest and its wider ecosystem.

The forest, within one of Kenya’s five main water towers has over the past two decades experienced severe destruction partly due to increased demand for agricultural land as a result of increasing population. This has in turn affected the hydrological cycle in the water tower and resulted in water shortages across the country. Mau Eburu Forest is one of the 22 forest blocks within the Mau Eco-system.The new project will support, among other activities, the completion of a 50 kilometre electric fence around the Mau Eburu Forest to help mitigate against human wildlife conflict; restoration of areas degraded by unsolicited encroachment through tree planting; protection of the forest’s considerable biodiversity and particularly its outstanding

birdlife and threatened wildlife, as well as engagement in a forest rehabilitation partnership schemes with forest edge communities. Currently, Kenya’s forest cover is less than 3 per cent compared to the internationally recommended 10 per cent. To address the challenge, Kenya’s Vision 2030 goals for the environment sector are to increase current forest cover by 50 per cent and fully protect all wildlife ecosystems in order to sustain the anticipated high growth rate of the tourism sector.

The partnership comes just after the Foundation extended a donation of Kshs. 43 million to Nairobi Greenline Project to support the latter’s efforts to preserve the Nairobi National Park from further encroachment and environmental degradation caused by urbanization.

Foundation commissions a dairy project at Dreams Children’s Home, Ngong.

Safaricom Foundation, Rhino Ark Partner to Conserve Mau Eburu Forest

Moving the goalposts

ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT ENVIRONMENT

SPORTS

The Safaricom Foundation purchased cows for a zero grazing project and a 10 litre water tank.

MTG staff show Safaricom Foundation Trustee Josephine Ndambuki what they do

Thank you Safaricom Foundation!

Safaricom Foundation Trustee Josephine Ndambuki with one of the students at Moving the Goal Posts Kilifi

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1. A member of the Abass Community inspects water melons at the Abass Farm Project in Wajir. Through the ‘Maji na Uhai’ Initiative, the Foundation granted Ksh. 13,871,000 for the sinking of three shallow wells equipped with pumps, solar panel and storage tanks; the setting up 6 green houses installed with drip irrigation lines and collapsible water tanks; and the construction of three eco-friendly toilets (Ecosan) at each water point.

2. Pupils of Dashek Primary School in Wajir study in the new classrooms constructed through Safaricom Foundation’s grant of Ksh. 1,465,170. Enrollment rates in the school increased by 9%, from 282 pupils to 310 pupils, after construction of two classrooms.

3. Chuka residents celebrate when the Foundation handed over hospital equipment worth KSH 250,000 to Kambandi Dispensary in Chuka.

4. The Safaricom Foundation Chairman, Les Baillie, and Goodwill Ambassador, Hon Dr. Moody Awori, hand over a cheque of Ksh 155,440,000 to Rhino Ark Charitable Trust Chairman Colin Church. Looking on is Forestry PS, Mohammed Wa Mwachai, and Mau Interim Coordinating Secretariat Chairman Hassan Noor Hassan. The funds go towards the setting up of a 50km fence around the Mau Eburu Forest Complex.

5. Safaricom Board Member Nancy Macharia poses with some of the students at the Reverend Muhoro

School for the Deaf. The Foundation constructed and equipped a vocational training centre at the cost of Ksh. 5,784,000.

6. Gaikundo Secondary School students use computers during a lesson in the computer laboratory. The Foundation donated 40 computers to Ngura Primary and Gaikundo Secondary schools in Mukurwe-ini and also funded paintworks at the computer laboratory at Ngura Primary School.

7. Even the young search for more knowledge at Sipili Community Library. The Foundation granted Ksh 1,871,835 towards the construction of the community library in Sipili, 230 km from Nairobi, which has seen 1008 users since completion.

8. Safaricom staff volunteer their time at the Diabetes Youth Camp at BTL Centre Ruiru where 62 children from all over the country with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) were trained on how to manage the condition.

9. Pupils of Ebuboko Primary School in Butere celebrate during the handover of 2500 textbooks. The Foundation granted Ksh 550,000 to school for the purchase of the textbooks through the Pamoja Initiative. Pamoja is a matched funding scheme where the Foundation grants 90% and the Safaricom Staff gives 10% towards a project of the staff’s choice. The school benefited through Bramwel Luchera of theCorporate Affairs Division.

10. A German volunteer smiles with the

future generation as she offers them hope at Dream Children’s Home in Matasia. The Foundation granted Ksh 497,420 towards the purchase of 3 fresian cows, construction of a cow shed, purchase and installation of a 10,000 litre water tank to start up a dairy income generating project.

11. Director of Resources and Safaricom Foundation Trustee Joseph Ogutu, hands over a cheque of Ksh 1,485,000 to Kenyatta National Hospital Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Richard Lesiyampe during the International Mothers’ Day celebrations. The Foundation donated Ksh 1.485 million towards clearing pending bills for an estimated 50 mothers at the hospital’s maternity wing.

12. Alex Siboe, Senior Manager – Projects from the Executive Business Office of Safaricom Limited, reminisces the days when he was a student at Milelee Primary School in Kitale during the handover of desks and chairs. The Foundation granted Ksh 550,000 for the purchase of 175 desks and chairs through the pamoja initiative. The school benefited through Alex Siboe

13. Lameck Amoro and Wairimu Mugo, Safaricom staff from the Customer Care Division, plant trees in Ragia Forest at Sasumua Dam during the World Environment Day celebrations. 41 Safaricom staff planted 5000 trees at the forest contributing to the goal of achieving 10% forest cover.

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fOUnDaTiOn PROjECT PaRTnERS

Two years ago we got funding from the Safaricom Foundation for a water project in Tewa Training

Centre, Kilifi. The funds were used to sink a borehole and install an irrigation system. In addition, a greenhouse was installed and staff trained. The entire project was implemented for the Training Centre so that the Training Centre farm could have sufficient water for farming as an income generating activity and as an instrument to teach agricultural techniques for rural women in the school’s outreach program.

Implementation of this project has enabled the Training Centre reduce its running expenses on food items as the farm produces fruits and vegetables for use during training, and consumption. The income obtained from the farm products,

which are sold to clients outside the school, has been invested in scholarships for the girls at the Tewa Training Centre. The farm has also been beneficial to the rural women, as they have learnt the latest agricultural techniques in order to improve food production in their homes as well as provide balanced diets. Many women have learnt how to grow vegetables which they have never grown in their communities, such as tomatoes, green pepper, okra and brinjals.

In addition, in 2011 Kianda Foundation was amongst the projects that benefitted from the World of Difference Phase II. This was fantastic venture which enabled us improve our operations within many of the Kianda Foundation projects. For instance we had software developed for a payroll

system which was previously worked on manually, and also had accounting software installed for use in our projects. We also had capacity building sessions for staff in different Kianda Foundation projects and learned how to improve the branding and positioning of the Kianda Foundation. These initiatives have improved our operational efficiency, have created more awareness about the Kianda Foundation and its projects and have increased the networking opportunities with our partners.

Suffice it to say, Safaricom Foundation has had a direct impact in our projects and how we run our businesses. This has been a truly beneficial partnership.

EVELYN TIREN - KIANDA FOUNDATION

TONNY TUGEESenior Manager, Corporate Sales and Retention- Enterprise Business Unit

Tonny Tugee was one of the participants of Pamoja Foundation initiative where staff is encouraged to come up with fundraising initiatives which the Foundation can support on a cost-sharing basis of a 90-10% basis.

Tonny picked Kaptama Primary School in Mt Elgon, Bungoma County as his project of choice.

Do you have any personal attachment to this school?Indeed. I come from Mt Elgon, a truly marginalized region of the country. It’s an area that has been cut off from every civilization. Our infrastructure is in a dire straits; road network is deplorable and it’s a place that has pretty much been ignored by the government. Mt Elgon has little exposure to the outside world and growing up there is a true hardship because chances of you getting out of that environment is very slim if you haven’t grown up in a family that has the capability to get you out through education. I’m just lucky I did.

So education is the only way out?Pretty much. But also the quality of education in

this area is wanting, as you would expect. But a school like Kaptama Primary School for instance is overcrowded as it were. The population stands at 1,200 kids, which translates to about 70 kids per class. The ratio of one child to a book stands something at 5:1!

Something had to give, yes?Yes, I thought the one tool that can give these kids a shot at life is this school and yet it’s not equipped well to help them. So I approached the Foundation with a proposal to fund their library. With a contribution of Ksh 55,000, the Foundation matched this by funding the school with books worth Ksh 550,000 to go into buying books.

How was the response?Phenomenal! The hope in the eyes of these kids said it all. They were genuinely thrilled at the donation and they understood that their chances of making it, their chances of making something out of their lives had shifted. Just seeing the joy in their yes, their jubilation made everything worthwhile.

Have you done more for the school since?Of course. For me it was not just a one-off endeavor, I mean, after all those are my roots. I’m in touch with what’s going on back there

and what challenges they are facing. After that donation, I went back and realized that although they had books, the children also needed a better learning environment because they learned in a squeezed environment with children cramped up in small and broken desks. They desperately needed furniture in form of desks, chairs and tables in their classrooms. Safaricom Foundation was gracious enough to release some Ksh 1.2m to go towards making the furniture, which is now half way done. Once this project is complete, it will go a long way in making learning more comfortable in the school.

Do you plan to do more for the school?I’m always going to find ways of improving the learning conditions in the school. But also, I started a program where the top three students in class 8 are brought to Nairobi as a reward. I recently hosted two girls and one boy over the holidays. Over their stay they had a chance to visit sites like KICC, the Parliament (in session), University of Nairobi, the EPZ and JKIA as a way of exposing them to a different world.

What has this taught you?That we can create change for almost nothing. That Ksh 30,000 can turn around someone’s life. Literally.

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COVER STORY

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Josephine Kamanthe NdambukiDepartment: Network and Services Operations Department, Technology division.Designation: Senior Transmission

osephine describes herself as a lady with two sides of a coin: her engineering and her passion for social development. We spoke to her about her passion for social development. What does giving back to society mean for you?I believe that people have the ability to transform their lives by themselves. By using the little resources available, they can influence change and they can completely change the course of their destiny. I am the co-founder of the League of Young Professionals of Kenya; a Rotarian of Good standing in the Rotary Club of Nairobi North; a Trustee of The Safaricom Foundation and an advisory member of the International Centre for Women Leadership in Canada. In these various roles, I endeavor to give of myself to influence change.

Tell us about your participation in the World of Difference.I had an opportunity to participate in inaugural World of Difference Programme in 2010, and I was seconded to Moving the Goal Posts in Kilifi. I had the opportunity to work with over 3,000 girls in one of the neediest districts in Kenya.

As a Woman in Technology, my objective was to increase the capacity of the organisation and for staff and the girls to embrace technology as a tool for effective operations and communication.

I set up a working LAN with Internet provided by Safaricom Wimax and, Internet was implemented

on both the LAN and wireless platforms. It was a pleasure to find the organisation still using the services when I went back to officially hand over the Resource Centre close to 1.5 years later.

I was also to do extensive public relations for the organisation. I organised interviews at Kiss FM, and the BBC radio and all major dailies. During that time, I saw the organisation send 16 girls to South Africa for the 2010 World Cup, where they participated in one of subsidiary matches organised for the World Cup known as ‘Football for Hope’.

I learned a lot of lessons with I was there. I learned first-hand the challenges faced by girls who are forced to trade in their education for early marriages, and then make the decision to chart a better life for themselves.

Tell us about the Global Change Leaders’ ProgrammeEarlier this year, along with 16 other women, I had the very unique opportunity to participate in a leadership education programme funded by the Canadian International Development Agency, CIDA in collaboration with the Coady International Institute in Nova Scotia Canada.

The training programme was geared towards developing the skills of emerging women leaders and to equip them with the tools necessary to take their initiatives to the global platform. It was a combination of in class training, reflections, exposure, placement, mentorship and online platform support function.

As I left my country, I thought I was going a regular training, followed by my graduation and return to work. But I was pleasantly surprised. I

was taken through the most incredible leadership development training opportunity, with practical tough questions to reflect about, opportunities to engage amazing highly successful men and women leaders at an international level.

I had an opportunity to work for two months with an entrepreneurial development organisation in South Africa, and finally concluded by hosting a forum to practise what we had been learned.

What lessons did you leave with?The program was all about leadership and leading change. We embarked on a journey of self-leadership, asking questions as basic as who am I? And as complicated as “leadership for what?” or “Why anyone should be led by me?” Then organisational effective leadership, innovation, power and power relations, building strategic partnerships, citizen led development advocacy, negotiations and conflict mediation, creating a powerful social presence and powerful presentations.

Way forward?I not only developed the leadership skills, I also developed a multitude of partners to help me in achieving the objective. I was also lucky to be assigned a mentor, a COO of an International company who is mentoring me to ensure I deliver on our agreed objectives and grow to become a global change leader.

I came back full of energy, clarity of thought, purpose and determination to continue with the work I am doing.

The experience is helping me work in both my role as an Engineer and as an agent of change.

Josephine Kamanthe NdambukiDepartment: Network and Services Operations Department, Technology division.Designation: Senior Transmission

Mercy insists that she isn’t disabled; she is physically challenged. But she doesn’t say it like it’s a challenge or a liability, she simply states it.

“I’ve been physically challenged since I was 10 years old,” she says. “And being physically challenged presents many problems, especially when you live in an environment where people who aren’t live in.”

Her passion to defend the physically challenged was born young when she saw how insensitively the physically challenged were treated.

In her former school in rural Meru, St Joseph Egoli, for instance, the facilities that catered

for the physically challenged were simply non- existent, even though the school was meant to be an integrated school. “The toilets for instance, offered a challenge to us because they were those pit latrines that were practically impossible to use.”

And so it follows that when she graduated from Kenyatta University - with a bachelors in Literature and English – and joined Safaricom, she wrote a proposal for funding to build toilets in her former school.

The Safaricom Foundation obliged and gave a grant of Ksh 520,000 towards the construction of special toilets for the physically challenged. “This was a big deal for me, to see the conditions of those students change. Now they are better equipped to compete with the rest of the students because they have one less thing to worry about.” “The problem is never disability,” she says, “ the

problem is adjusting to the environment to suit persons with disability.”

But over and above that, Mercy who was the student leader of the physically challenged status in campus, now offers more than user friendly toilets to these students, she, together with other physically challenged Safaricom staff offer mentorship programmes to them. “ We are making them see that having a physical disability shouldn’t be a reason not to make it in life,” she enthused, “ we are telling them that they can be whoever they choose to be.”

At the time of writing this, Mercy had just returned from South Africa where she was attending a training program for human rights monitoring through the UN Convention.

“I’m the wearer of the shoes,” she said simply, “ I know where it pinches.”

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COVER STORY