🔶Kenya Field Report🔶 - The Bond Between Parent and Child Bears Fruit! Eufie's Journey Toward Her Dream

The FLOWER project, which has been implemented in Suba Sub-county, Homa Bay County, Republic of Kenya, since April 2020 as a JICA Grassroots Cooperation Project, has entered its fourth year.

This region is semi-arid with only one rainy season suitable for cultivation per year, but rain fell in the latter half of March, and the mothers participating in the project seem to be feeling more motivated.

This time, we would like to introduce you to the story of Eufie, who is participating in this project!

A 15-year-old girl aiming to become a teacher

Eufie is a 15-year-old girl who lives in Kisui village, Kenya, and attends secondary school. She lost her father and lives with her mother and three siblings.

Eufie has a dream of becoming a teacher after she graduates from university.

What is the FLOWER project that Eufie is participating in?

The FLOWER project that Eufie is participating in has two main support programs.

One is livelihood improvement support, which aims to increase income through agriculture that combines indigenous vegetables and trees.

The other program is life planning support, which aims to help children think positively about their future through counseling.

By providing regular counseling by specialists to both children and their guardians, guardians learn how to support their children's studies and communication methods that encourage growth and development while being attentive to their children's feelings.

For the children, we conduct activities such as picture book reading sessions and 'career talk' activities where they listen to stories from adults who are working and active in the community, so that they can think positively about their future.

Changes through the project

Through counseling and picture book reading, Eufie told us, I can now read fluently and am able to read picture books confidently in front of my classmates.

Also, by reading picture books aloud, she developed a reading habit, and whenever she has free time, she reads as many books as she can.
As a result, she has become more fluent in English compared to before she joined the program, and her spelling has also improved.

Ufy's mother is very happy about her growth through the program.

Having achieved good results in her final exams, Ufy is confident that her dream will come true and that her mother and family will no longer have to live the difficult life they once did.

Ufy expressed her gratitude, saying,“My mother is my greatest support and source of motivation. Even during the times when our life was difficult, she made sure I did my homework.”.

By participating in the life planning support, Ufy has been able to get much closer to her dream of becoming a teacher.

We look forward to the day she achieves her dream.

Thank you for reading this far.

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