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your username is your first and last name together in lowercase

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your username is your first and last name together in lowercase

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STATUS OF WILDLIFE CONSERVANCIES IN KENYA | KWCA

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Over one hundred conservancies are registered under KWCA. They includes private, group and community-based conservancies spread across 28 counties.

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STATUS OF WILDLIFE CONSERVANCIES IN KENYA | KWCA

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Over one hundred conservancies are registered under KWCA. They includes private, group and community-based conservancies spread across 28 counties.

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Educational Technology: How Technology Is Changing Teaching-Infographic

Educational technology comes in many forms including websites, apps, and online courses, and is effective when used both inside the classroom alongside other teaching methods and at home for self-study. Educational technology has many benefits in teaching and overcomes many of the boundaries that traditional methods of teaching present to us, such as large classroom sizes and lack of funding. Technology is now being used more and more in schools and at home for education purposes and, as technology advances in the future, the teaching resources that we have access to also become better and more advanced.

Personalized Learning

One of the reasons educational technology is so effective is that it can often emulate the one-to-one teaching style that can be difficult to achieve in a classroom environment. In a classroom, students struggling to understand aspects of the curriculum may quickly be left behind and it can be challenging to present information in a way that appeals to all the learning preferences of different students. EdTech on the other hand often uses Artificial Intelligence to measure the performance of students and identify the weaknesses and their abilities. The platform will then produce content that's adapted to help specifically with what they struggle with. This kind of personalized learning has been proven to be very effective in education and is something difficult to achieve in a classroom environment.

Reaching To All Learning Preferences

Technology has also massively expanded the range of teaching and learning resources we have access to and we now have more types of resources for all learning styles instead of just book learning. For example, visual learners might benefit from video content, kinaesthetic learners might benefit from interactive content, auditory learners might find video podcasts to be helpful, and there are countless online resources for those who learn from reading.

Instant Feedback

eLearning is also beneficial because it has the capacity to provide instant feedback to the user. Instant feedback has been proven to help students have more meaningful interactions with their work. Work completed in a classroom might take a few weeks to be marked and graded, and by the time they receive their feedback, a student's interest in the work might have dwindled and they're less likely to take a proactive approach to the feedback. Instantaneous feedback, on the other hand, is much more motivating and helps students develop personal goals toward their work.

Benefits For Teachers

Not only is eLearning beneficial to students but it's helpful for teachers, too. eLearning also helps relieve some of the heavy bureaucracy in terms of marking and lesson planning that teachers have to face. This means that teachers can spend more time focusing on the aspects of their job that are more beneficial to students such as creating more effective lesson content.

The Role Of Technology

The interpersonal learning that you receive in a classroom is still invaluable but can be much more effective when combined with the benefits of eLearning. Technology has revolutionized the ways students learn and engage with course content and is being used more and more in schools and universities to assist with learning. As a result, More money is being invested in the technology brought into schools, and students are more technology-literate than ever. It's likely that in the future, technology will become a bigger part of learning and the way that students engage with educational content.

This infographic looks at current issues with the education system such as large classroom sizes, lack of funding, and the mental health of students and how educational technology can help us tackle these issues. It also looks at the reasons why educational technology is so effective, and how it can be combined with classroom learning to help improve the standards of teaching in schools and higher education.

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Technology In Education - e-Learning Infographics

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Educational technology comes in many forms including websites, apps, and online courses, and is effective when used both inside the classroom alongside other teaching methods and at home for self-study. Educational technology has many benefits in teaching and overcomes many of the boundaries that traditional methods of teaching present to us, such as large classroom sizes and lack of funding.

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Giraffe & Lion Conservation in Kenya | Projects Abroad

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Travel to Africa and do conservation volunteer work in Kenya. You’ll do research to protect endangered savannah animals, like the Rothschild’s Giraffe

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Internews Data Dredger : Politics of health - Mapping Kenyan doctors

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Intense rainfall has affected various regions in Kenya, including the Coastal area, Central areas including Nairobi, the Western Highlands, Rift Valley, Lake Victoria Basin, South-eastern lowlands and North-eastern regions.

Since the onset of the March-April-May (MAM) rains, multiple counties have felt its effects, resulting in households being affected, displacements, establishment of displacement camps, submerged arable land, impacted businesses and livestock deaths.

The Kenya Red Cross Society has proactively prepared for these challenges by ensuring prompt emergency responses, conducting search and rescue missions, prepositioning shelter kits and distributing essential supplies.

The Kenya Red Cross has also actively engaged in risk communication efforts to raise public awareness and promote preparedness.

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Floods Impact and Interventions, 2024, as of 07.05.24 - Kenya

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Infographic in English on Kenya about Food and Nutrition, Shelter and Non-Food Items, Flash Flood, Flood and more; published on 7 May 2024 by Kenya Red Cross

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The Importance Of Technology In Education Infographic - e-Learning Infographics

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Need Of School Management Software The Best Learning Management Systems based on Customer Experience [Infographic 2021] The Best Learning Management Systems Based On User Experience Technology in the field of education can be a powerful tool. The Importance Of Technology In Education Infographic presents 5 benefits of technology in education: Future Oriented: The future is all about technology and multi-screening.

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The Importance Of Technology In Education Infographic - e-Learning Infographics

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Need Of School Management Software The Best Learning Management Systems based on Customer Experience [Infographic 2021] The Best Learning Management Systems Based On User Experience Technology in the field of education can be a powerful tool. The Importance Of Technology In Education Infographic presents 5 benefits of technology in education: Future Oriented: The future is all about technology and multi-screening.

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Educational Technology: How Technology Is Changing Teaching-Infographic

Educational technology comes in many forms including websites, apps, and online courses, and is effective when used both inside the classroom alongside other teaching methods and at home for self-study. Educational technology has many benefits in teaching and overcomes many of the boundaries that traditional methods of teaching present to us, such as large classroom sizes and lack of funding. Technology is now being used more and more in schools and at home for education purposes and, as technology advances in the future, the teaching resources that we have access to also become better and more advanced.

Personalized Learning

One of the reasons educational technology is so effective is that it can often emulate the one-to-one teaching style that can be difficult to achieve in a classroom environment. In a classroom, students struggling to understand aspects of the curriculum may quickly be left behind and it can be challenging to present information in a way that appeals to all the learning preferences of different students. EdTech on the other hand often uses Artificial Intelligence to measure the performance of students and identify the weaknesses and their abilities. The platform will then produce content that's adapted to help specifically with what they struggle with. This kind of personalized learning has been proven to be very effective in education and is something difficult to achieve in a classroom environment.

Reaching To All Learning Preferences

Technology has also massively expanded the range of teaching and learning resources we have access to and we now have more types of resources for all learning styles instead of just book learning. For example, visual learners might benefit from video content, kinaesthetic learners might benefit from interactive content, auditory learners might find video podcasts to be helpful, and there are countless online resources for those who learn from reading.

Instant Feedback

eLearning is also beneficial because it has the capacity to provide instant feedback to the user. Instant feedback has been proven to help students have more meaningful interactions with their work. Work completed in a classroom might take a few weeks to be marked and graded, and by the time they receive their feedback, a student's interest in the work might have dwindled and they're less likely to take a proactive approach to the feedback. Instantaneous feedback, on the other hand, is much more motivating and helps students develop personal goals toward their work.

Benefits For Teachers

Not only is eLearning beneficial to students but it's helpful for teachers, too. eLearning also helps relieve some of the heavy bureaucracy in terms of marking and lesson planning that teachers have to face. This means that teachers can spend more time focusing on the aspects of their job that are more beneficial to students such as creating more effective lesson content.

The Role Of Technology

The interpersonal learning that you receive in a classroom is still invaluable but can be much more effective when combined with the benefits of eLearning. Technology has revolutionized the ways students learn and engage with course content and is being used more and more in schools and universities to assist with learning. As a result, More money is being invested in the technology brought into schools, and students are more technology-literate than ever. It's likely that in the future, technology will become a bigger part of learning and the way that students engage with educational content.

This infographic looks at current issues with the education system such as large classroom sizes, lack of funding, and the mental health of students and how educational technology can help us tackle these issues. It also looks at the reasons why educational technology is so effective, and how it can be combined with classroom learning to help improve the standards of teaching in schools and higher education.

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Technology In Education - e-Learning Infographics

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Educational technology comes in many forms including websites, apps, and online courses, and is effective when used both inside the classroom alongside other teaching methods and at home for self-study. Educational technology has many benefits in teaching and overcomes many of the boundaries that traditional methods of teaching present to us, such as large classroom sizes and lack of funding.

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21st Century Educational Technology Classroom Infographic - e-Learning Infographics

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At the Components of a 21st Century Classroom Infographic you will learn about some of the key advancements in the 21st century classroom.

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The Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) is teaming up with ReliefWeb to explain the science behind its projections of acute food insecurity and share resources related to the multi-faceted inputs that go into FEWS NET analyses.
Recent deadly floods in Kenya were forecast months ahead of time, according to scientists with the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET), who explained that abnormally heavy and potentially dangerous rains are expected to continue through the end of the year.

FEWS NET uses sophisticated computer models to forecast climate extremes to help warn governments and aid organizations of possible food emergencies. These extreme, yet often predictable, events can threaten lives, destroy homes, and ravage communities.

In an October alert, FEWS NET warned of above-average rainfall across the Horn of Africa as a result of climate drivers including the ongoing strong El Niño and positive Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) conditions.

While heavy rainfall is expected to help many parts of the region overcome the effects of a recent multi-year drought, FEWS NET also warned that damaging floods would likely occur in certain areas.

In early November, those concerning forecasts became a reality.

"Everything was on track, especially related to the climate drivers. They kept getting stronger and stronger as we had anticipated," FEWS NET Regional Scientist for East Africa Gideon Galu said about the Kenya floods.

According to Galu, the main tropical rainfall system was slightly delayed as it moved southward through Ethiopia and Somalia in early October, causing concern among Kenyans that heavy rains would not materialize as expected.

However, by November 14, the Kenya Red Cross confirmed that 46 people across at least 19 counties had died as a result of flooding that began earlier in the month. As of November 29, that number climbed to at least 120 deaths.

As El Niño continues into early 2024, Galu explained that Kenyans should be prepared for more heavy rains.

"It's still early in the season, and we're likely to see more rains coming through," Galu noted. "We expect that the adverse impacts will be higher than what we've seen so far."

Worst-affected areas in north-eastern coastal and central Kenya have already received two-to-three times the normal amount of rainfall for this time of year. In regions hit hardest by recent flooding, the Kenya Red Cross estimates that 58,000 people have been displaced and widespread property and livestock losses are being assessed.

Although above-average rainfall is expected to benefit agricultural productivity and water resources, Galu explained that it would take more than one or two seasons of heavy rains to fully recover from recent record-breaking consecutive droughts.

"The new norm is extreme events, especially longer severe droughts and short recovery periods," Galu said.

To help Kenyans prepare for heavy rains in the coming weeks and months, FEWS NET scientists are working with the Kenya Meteorological Department to combine data from a variety of ground- and satellite-based observational networks and provide daily updates to forecasts.

"More observations mean better monitoring and effective forecasting," Galu remarked. "We are lucky in Kenya, there is increasing information exchanged. Every week, the Kenya Met Department provides advisories on areas where they're likely to see heavy rains and the period that it is likely to happen in."

A new tool produced by FEWS NET science partners with the University of California, Santa Barbara Climate Hazards Center, provides daily-updated snippets that bring together satellite data and information from 15-day forecasts to identify areas of concern.

"In terms of information for early warning or forecasting, when we have strong climate drivers like El Niño and positive IOD, we don't have a problem at all," Galu said. "We have a lot of resources and we are working with the right people from the Kenya Met Department on the county level."
Hannah Button is communications lead, FEWS NET Learning and Data Hub To access decades of data related to acute food insecurity, climate, markets and trade, livelihoods, and more, sign up for a FEWS NET Data Explorer account and subscribe to receive FEWS NET reports directly in your inbox and follow FEWS NET on Twitter and Facebook for the latest updates.

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Strong early warning systems helped to predict deadly Kenya floods

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We all want our kids to be happy and healthy, right?! But research tells us that right now, our children are actually more stressed than ever. They are living in a world that expects more of them than it ever has. And it shows. Difficulties like depression, anxiety, ADHD and behaviour problems are on the rise. Our children are struggling.

But meditation can help. And this Thursday May 21st is World Meditation Day. So what better time is there to talk about meditation for children (and its amazing benefits)?!

What are the benefits? Well, studies suggest that meditation can help children develop a range of pro social behaviours. Things like improved empathy, better self control, less aggression and improved attention. It's also been found to help with difficulties such as anxiety, depression, stress, ADHD, and low self esteem. Sounds like the perfect antidote doesn't it?!

Yeah. It is! So let's talk about why your child should be meditating and how to get started.

Types of Meditation

But first, let's dispel some meditation myths. Because I often hear people talking about their frustrations with meditation. They tell me things like, "I just can't stop my thoughts!" Or, "I don't know how to clear my mind!"

So here's some good news. Meditation doesn't require you to do either of those things. In fact, meditation is simply about awareness. It's about noticing your thoughts, not trying to get rid of them all! And there are three main types of meditation that are suitable for kids.

1. Guided Meditation

Guided meditation for children involves an adult (or guide) using visualisation techniques to help kids imagine relaxing places or events. These visualisations often use images as well as smells, sounds or textures, to take the child on a journey via their own imagination. They may visit the beach, or a beautiful rainforest, or a lovely lush garden. They are taken out of the current moment and into another, more peaceful one, in order to relax their bodies and minds.

If you'd like to try some guided meditations with your kids you'll find some quick 5 minute audio files for ages 5-8 or ages 9-12 on the website now!

2. Mantra Meditation

Mantra meditation teaches children to repeat a word or phrase that helps them to relax and focus their attention. As they repeat their mantra, children are able to calm their body and mind. They then learn to replace thoughts that do not serve them in the moment, or that may cause them to react in unhelpful ways, with more helpful ones. These mantras can be spoken, chanted or sung and can help "train' the brain to respond in a certain way.

Want to try some fun mantras with your kids during meditation? Check out our range of affirmation cards for kids here.

3. Mindfulness Meditation

Mindfulness meditation teaches children to be fully present in the moment. This kind of meditation is about using the senses to pay attention to the environment as well as internal experiences like thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations within the body. Mindfulness meditation may involve a focus on the breath, or it may include movement, play, craft, music, yoga, or even everyday activities like hand washing or eating! Just about anything can be done mindfully.

If you're interested in learning more about mindfulness meditation, check out my Mindfulness Activity Book for Kids. It's jam packed full of fun mindfulness exercises and meditations for kids aged 6-12.

But how does meditation work?

Studies show that meditation increases the density of grey matter in the brain and strengthens the prefrontal cortex. The prefrontal cortex is responsible for reasoning, planning, problem solving and other important executive functions.

At the same time, meditation also shrinks the amygdala, which is the part of the brain responsible for the stress response. This part of the brain is responsible for triggering our "fight or flight" response.

So when we strengthen the prefrontal cortex, or the "thinking brain", we are better able to regulate our emotions, feel empathy, and are not as easily triggered by fears or stressors. A well developed prefrontal cortex helps us to be less emotionally reactive by physically making the emotional control centre of the brain smaller.

What does this mean for our kids? It means when we introduce them to meditation from a young age, we can help mould the actual physical structure of their young brains. We can set them up to be better learners. We give them skills to manage emotions, be more empathic, and protect them against stress. We are priming their brains to be less reactive. To cope better with difficulties. To be more aware. And to be more resilient.

Benefits of meditation for children

Now let's get into the really good stuff - how can meditation help YOUR child? What changes will you see when you start a regular meditation practice with your kids?

1. Improved learning

Meditation strengthens the prefrontal cortex - the area of the brain responsible for thinking, organising, planning and reasoning. What does that mean? Meditation builds strong brains that learn more effectively!

2. Less stress

Meditation can help us lower our heart rate and respiration rate, switching off the stress response and lowering the levels of the stress hormone - cortisol - in our bodies. And as I mentioned above, it also strengthens the thinking area of our brain, while simultaneously shrinking the emotional area. This means that not only does meditation reduce your child's stress while they're engaged in it, it also makes their brains less reactive to stress in the long term too!

3. A stronger immune system

Stress makes us sick. Research shows that high levels of cortisol, the hormone released in our bodies when we experience stress, can weaken our immune systems over time, making us more susceptible to illness. Because meditation reduces cortisol, it also strengthens your child's immune response!

4. Improved focus and concentration

Because meditation calms the stress response, it also allows for better focus and concentration. Stress and anxiety leave our emotional brains in control, which means thinking clearly and paying attention becomes difficult. A stressed brain is on high alert, focused only on finding danger. It is constantly scanning its environment, and has little capacity for anything else. But a calm brain can focus on the task at hand, whatever that may be.

5. Better self regulation skills

Meditation builds self awareness, which allows for self regulation. Once children are aware of their thoughts and feelings, they can use meditation to effectively manage them. Meditation teaches children to understand the link between their thoughts, feelings and actions. Once they are aware of the physical sensations associated with their emotions, they can put strategies in place to help them calm their bodies and minds so they respond confidently to those emotions, rather than lashing out reactively.

6. Healthy self esteem

Meditation can help children become more aware of their thinking. In particular, it allows them to observe their negative thoughts that impact how they feel about themselves. When children learn meditate, they are able to let these thoughts pass them by without engaging in them , or allowing them to change the way they view themselves. And the better thry become at this, the more their self esteem improves!

7. Better sleep

Meditating before bed can help children fall asleep more easily and sleep more soundly. Because it calms and relaxes both the mind and body, it is the perfect preparation for a night of sweet dreams.

8. Improved resilience

Teaching children meditation skills from an early age, and practicing often, ensures they will carry these skills into adulthood. Meditation provides our children with a set of skills they can draw upon when they feel overwhelmed by big emotions, or stressed by difficult situations.

There are so many wonderful benefits of meditation for children and there's really no excuse not to get started right away! Just take it slow, keep it short and remember to have fun! Your kids will love it (and so will you!).

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8 Benefits of meditation for children - Mindful Little Minds Psychology

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Learn about the benefits of meditation for children and how to get your child started today so you can build their self confidence and resilience!

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Endangered animal species in Kenya are the animal species that are at risk of extinction because of a sudden rapid decrease in their population or loss of their critical habitat. That is for example most of the plant or the animal species that was threatened with extinction are well known as the endangered species. Kenya is a wildlife safari haven with over 450 mammal species, it's the tenth in the world with several of the mammals though a few of these mammal species are certain to be endemic. Endemic species run a high risk of extinction due to changes in their confined habitats, because due to hunting and habitat destruction, Tsavo National Park
Endangered animal species in Kenya Black Rhinos.
Black rhinos are known as the browsers, their prominent horn can grow up to five feet in length and the major threat to the black rhinos are the poachers that they kill them for their horn to make a few coins, leaving the rhino dead, the poachers are known as the most dangerous than any other animal on this planet. The black rhinos can be spotted in the most national parks and national reserves in Kenya on a safari, if you're in the Nairobi city then you can visit the Nairobi National Park with in Nairobi and spot the black rhinos. On a safari to Kenya, make sure that you visit the park to see the most amazing special endangered black rhino.
Lesser kudu.
Lesser kudu is also the incredible antelope, the striking of the kudu makes it stand out from the rest, the lesser kudu are mostly found in the northern Kenya. The lesser kudu are mostly affected by the poachers and hunters for meat, hides and horns, their horns have long been prized in Africa for use as musical instruments, honey, containers and the symbolic ritual objects.
Mountain Bongo.
Mountain Bongo is an endangered sub species of the bongo, one of the largest forest antelopes, the Bongo has a reddish-brown coat, with black, white and yellow-white markings as both the males and females have long, slightly spiraled horns.

The lowland bongo is still subject to snare hunting due to the expanding commercial forestry exploitation, but there are some taboos against eating the bongo meat. The mountain bongo are critically endangered the decline has been caused by a combination of several factors like the hunting, loss of appetite, the livestock-mediated diseases. The mountain bongo are beautiful and relatively scarce.
Grevy zebra.
Grevy zebra is the endangered animal species that were named after the French president Jules Grevy by zoologist Jean Emile. There are 3 types of zebras that is the plain and mountain zebra, Endangered Grevy zebra. The Endangered grevy zebra is taller, broader, have a white belly, the muzzle is brown as opposed to the plains zebra which are dark, the Grevzy has round ears and the stripes are thinner. Hunting is the primary cause of the decline of Grevy's zebras, they are primarily hunted for their striking skins but also will be occasionally be killed for food also minus hunting the Grevy's also face threats from disease outbreaks, drought, habitat loss, fragmented populations, Endangered animal species in Kenya.

Hunters/ Hirola Antelope.

Hirola antelope was delivered from the Somali community that means good luck. The Somali people used to get worried because of this antelope comes to extinct their cattle will too disappear since they believe the hirola has a spiritual significance to cattle rearing. The Hirola antelope is critically endangered antelope species found on the border of Kenya and Somalia. They were discovered by the Kenyans living in the area in the year 1888, it is only extant member of the genus Beatragus. Mostly the loss of the Hirola would be the first extinction of the mammalian genus on the mainland Africa in the modern human history.

Tana River Mangabey is a high endangered species of the primate in the family of the Cercopithecidae, the Tana River Mangabey is diurnal and semi-terrestrial, and it spends most of its time on the ground but still is considered arboreal due to its sleeping area. Tana River Mangabeys are ranked as one of the world's 25 most threatened primates and currently it's estimated as 1000 to 1200 individuals remaining in the wild that can be spotted on a Kenya wildlife Safari.
Sable antelope.
Sable antelope is found in the southern savanna of Africa from the Southeastern Kenya, the Eastern Tanzania, and Mozambique to Angola and Southern Zaire, mainly in the Miombo Woodland zone, they prefer the woodlands and grasslands and thus a voiding the extensive open lands. The sable's horns make it a highly prized hunting trophy and have contributed to the sharp decline of the animal, in addition to the heavy hunting, the numbers have been reduced severely as part of the regional tsetse fly control programs, furthermore the agricultural development is reducing the grassland habitat of the sable antelope, the antelope are important to their habitats as the grazers and browsers and also they are important as prey for the carnivores.
Roan antelope.
One of the Africa's rarest antelopes and the third largest of Kenya's antelopes, the roan (or Korongo as it is known in Kiswahili) is a large, grey to rufous antelope with a distinctive black and white face, not unlike a tribal mask, the roans live in the herds of up to 20 members, led by the bull. These are endemic to Africa, used to be the most common antelopes found in almost all African savannas it is found in 30 countries mostly within the western, central and the eastern Africa. The roan antelopes are now found in Ruma National Park, in the western Kenya which makes Kenya amazing safari tourism destination, this is primarily the result of killing for meat and traditional values such as the horns for the musical instruments and skin for the burial ceremonies though poaching is the major threat, alongside too many young roan antelopes are being preyed upon by mainly the hyena.

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Endangered animal species in Kenya | Kenya Safaris Tours | Kenya Tours

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Endangered animal species in Kenya are the animal species that are at risk of extinction because of a sudden rapid decrease in their..

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Youth Wellness Connection: CSP Chat About Kenyan Youth Mental Health Crisis

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By Audrey Kariithi Every ten (10) people in Kenya suffer from a common mental disorder. The largest population of these statistics is made up of young people, from age 18 and 35. Youth currently make up 75 percent of Kenya's population, and they are the most affected by mental health issues according to research.

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Kenya – National Adolescent Mental Health Survey - APHRC

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Little is known about the prevalence of mental disorders among Kenyan adolescents. This is a critical gap in knowledge as studies have shown that mental disorders during adolescence, particularly those that remain untreated or under-treated, can have adverse outcomes throughout the life course. The lack of adequate evidence inhibits policymakers, practitioners, and researchers from appropriately targeting public health efforts, developing effective service planning, and increasing local and global attention and funding for adolescent mental health. [...]Read More…

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Research

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Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health 17, Article number: 63 (2023) Cite this article

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Abstract

Background

Despite the high burden of mental health problems during adolescence and its associated negative consequences, it has remained neglected especially in sub-Saharan Africa. The 2019 novel Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has placed additional stress on adolescent mental health. However, there are few studies documenting the burden of mental health problems and even fewer mental health services in the region. In relation to the limited body of knowledge, the present study aims to determine the psychological well-being of adolescents and to assess the risks and associated factors of mental health problems among adolescents in the context of COVID-19 pandemic in Kenya.

Methods

We conducted a cross-sectional survey in 2022 among adolescents aged 13-19 years living in Nairobi, and the Coast region of Kenya. We utilized standardized psychological assessment tools including the Patient Health Questionnaire, Generalized Anxiety Scale, Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, The World Health Organization- Five Well-Being Index Scale, and the Pandemic Anxiety Scale, to evaluate the psychological wellbeing of the adolescents. A linear regression model was used to evaluate the correlates associated with quality of life, pandemic anxiety, and emotional and behavioural problems among adolescents. Subsequently, a logistic regression model was used to assess factors associated with depression and general anxiety disorders. Variables with a p-value < 0.25 in the univariate model were included in the multivariable regression model.

Results

The results are based on 797 participants who met the inclusion criteria. We found the prevalence of depression to be relatively higher among out-of-school adolescents at 36.0% compared to school-going adolescents at 20.6%. Furthermore, out-of-school adolescents had significantly higher anxiety scores when compared to their school-going counterparts (27.7% vs 19.1%) respectively. In-school adolescents had a better quality of life scores, lower pandemic anxiety scores, and lower emotional and behavioral problems scores compared to their out-of-school counterparts. Key risk factors associated with depression include; being out-of-school (OR = 1.96 (95% CI 1.33- 2.88) p-value = 0.001), loneliness (OR = 10.68 (95% CI 4.49-22.86) p-value < 0.001), and living in an unsafe neighborhood (OR = 2.24 (95% CI 1.52-3.29) p-value < 0.001). An older age (OR = 1.16 (95% CI 1.03-1.30) p-value = 0.015), being out-of-school (OR = 1.81 (95% CI 1.19-2.77) p-value = 0.006), and living in an unsafe neighborhood (OR = 2.01 (95% CI 1.33-3.04) p-value = 0.001 were key factors associated with anxiety. Furthermore, key factors positively correlated with quality of life include; high socioeconomic status ( ß (Std.Err) = 0.58 (0.14) p-value < 0.001, talking to friends often ( ß (Std.Err) = 2.32 (0.53) p-value < 0.001, and being close to parents ( ß (Std.Err) = 1.37 (0.62) = 0.026.

Conclusion

Our findings imply that mental health support services targeting adolescents in the country should be prioritized, especially for those who are out-of-school.

Background

The burden of mental health problems particularly among adolescents from sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) remains high [ 15]. Factors including older age, female gender, food insecurity, poor access to health care, and substance abuse have been associated with an increased risk of poor mental health among adolescents in SSA [ 28]. The rapid physical, social, emotional, behavioural, and cognitive development during adolescence also predisposes the group to a wide range of mental health issues [ 47]. Additionally, child-parent relationships, including parents' physical violence toward adolescents also significantly increase the risk of mental health problems among adolescents [ 26, 28]. The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) also placed additional stress on adolescents mental health. Despite the high burden of mental health problems during adolescence and its associated negative consequences, it has remained a neglected issue in SSA. Furthermore, mental health services are scarce in the region [ 21].

During the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Kenyan government implemented several measures to prevent the spread of the virus. The first case of COVID-19 was reported in Kenya in March 2020, and by April, the government had imposed a lockdown in several regions, including the capital city, Nairobi. Schools were closed, as well as non-essential businesses were shut down. Also, the government imposed a nighttime curfew and limited public gatherings, such as religious events, marriages, and funerals. The impact of these measures on the population was significant, with many people experiencing job loss, reduced income, and difficulty accessing necessities [ 25]. Schools in the country weren't reopened until January 2021. Millions of students' educations were also impacted by the school closures, raising questions about the long-term implications on their academic development.

Moreover, while Kenya has long struggled with the issue of out-of-school adolescents, the pandemic has exacerbated the problem, resulting in a substantial surge in school dropouts among this demographic in Kenya [ 50]. Although schools have reopened, many adolescents have not returned due to the financial difficulties faced by their families [ 34]. The pandemic caused economic hardship for many families in Kenya, leading to some parents being unable to afford school fees or provide the necessary educational resources for their children [ 34]. School closures, economic hardship, and increased responsibilities at home have contributed to adolescents dropping out of school. This has had significant implications for the mental health and general well-being of these adolescents. School dropouts are at an increased risk of mental health problems, including depression, anxiety, and stress [ 32]. The long-term consequences of school dropout due to COVID-19 may extend beyond the immediate crisis and have lasting effects on adolescents' mental health and future opportunities. Thus, it is essential to address the plight of the out of school adolescents in Kenya and provide support including mental health care to affected adolescents to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on their well-being.

The present study aims to determine the psychological well-being and the burden of mental health problems among adolescents in Kenya in the context of COVID-19. Specifically, the study aims to assess the quality of life, depressive symptoms, anxiety, and emotional and behavioural problems of school-going adolescents compared to their out-of-school peers. The study also aims to identify risk and protective factors of mental health problems among adolescents. This study's findings provide valuable insights on how disruptions as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic impacted adolescent mental health in Kenya and highlight the urgent need for mental health support and interventions for this vulnerable population.

Methodology

Study design and study area

We conducted a cross-sectional study in both Nairobi and the Coast region of Kenya. These regions were selected since they have unique socioeconomic characteristics that are representative of the country's diversity. The regions have predominantly youthful populations [ 17]. Nairobi, which is the capital city and the economic hub of Kenya, has a diversified population made up of people who have migrated from different parts of the country in quests of better prospects. On the other hand, the Coast region has both urban and rural populations, with a significant Muslim community. We chose the two regions in order to capture some of the heterogeneity in the country.

The study was conducted between February and May 2022. In Nairobi County, this study primarily focused on Dagoretti South, which is one of the county's seventeen sub-counties. The area is peri-urban and it consists of five wards including; Riruta, Waithaka, Ngando, Mutuini, and Uthiru-Ruthimitu.

In the Coast region, this study was conducted in Kilifi and Mombasa Counties. Mombasa County, is a major transportation and tourism hub in the country. The county has over 250,000 people (43.8%) between the ages of 15 and 35 [ 6]. In Mombasa County, the study was conducted in Jomvu sub-county. The sub-county is characterized with informal settlements, including Bangladesh which is one of the oldest and largest informal settlements in Mombasa. Kilifi County is situated North of Mombasa. It lies on the shores of the Indian Ocean and is a major tourist destination in the country mostly due to its sandy and beautiful beaches. In Kilifi, the study was conducted in Kaloleni sub-county, which is primarily rural offering a unique perspective on the region's social and economic dynamics.

Eligibility criteria, and participants' recruitment

During the recruitment, adolescents and their parents were approached by the study mobilizers in their homes and informed about the study. The mobilizers scheduled appointments for the full consenting and the assessments in advance for the potential participants based on the inclusion criteria.

Adolescents were included in the study if;

1. 1.
They were aged 13-19 years as established by their birth certificates.

2. 2.
Parents of those aged below 18 years could provide parental consent (or caregiver consent in case the parent is absent) and the adolescents could assent.

3. 3.
Those aged at least 18 years had identification cards and could self-consent.

4. 4.
If they were currently school-going or had dropped out of schools.

5. 5.
Could speak either English or Swahili (the official languages of Kenya).

Sample size

Sample size calculations were based on the formula for comparison of the prevalence of two samples [ 7, 36]. We considered a 95% confidence interval (CI), a design effect of 2, a precision of 0.05, and a non-response rate of 1%, leading to a target sample of 724 participants. Taking into account missing data, participants not meeting the inclusion criteria or other factors that can reduce the final sample size we aimed to recruit a sample of > 750. This was also considered sufficient to conduct sub-group analysis and detect prevalence differences between the school-going and out-of-school populations.

Eight hundred and fifty-two (852) adolescents were approached to participate in the study. Of those, 26 refused to take part in the study. Furthermore, 29 did not meet the full inclusion criteria. Among the participants who completed the baseline survey, 797 were included in the statistical analysis (Fig. 1).

Participants recruitment flowchart

Data collection procedures

Ten research assistants with either diploma or bachelor's degree qualifications were recruited and trained before conducting the field activities. The authors' GM, RA, AM, MK, and AA facilitated the week-long training in both sites (Nairobi and Coast). Topics covered during the training sessions included: an overview of constructs, a review of tools/questionnaires, psychological first aid, consent, privacy, confidentially and ethics, how to conduct face-to-face interviews, recruitment and mobilization strategy, COVID-19 protocols, and data management. The team spractised how to effectively conduct consent on participants through role plays. Pretesting of the tools used in the quantitative study was done through a pilot study.

For school-going adolescents, we created a list of schools within our study sites and used simple random sampling to select a total of 10 schools (out of a list of all existing schools including primary, and secondary schools, stratified in such a way that schools are geographically spread out). Since the field activities were conducted when schools were closed for holidays, we worked with a School Health Focal Person (SHFP) from the Ministry of Education (MOE), teachers, community health volunteers (CHVs), and community health assistants (CHAs) to recruit students from the communities who met our inclusion criteria and where from the schools selected.

For the out-of-school adolescents, we worked with the Community Focal Person (CFP) from the county government, CHAs, and CHVs to recruit participants who met our inclusion criteria. Out-of-school adolescents were defined as adolescents who were not enrolled in either primary or secondary schools [ 14]. Adolescents who had completed primary school or secondary school exams in February and March 2022 respectively and were waiting for the government directive to advance to the next level of their education were not considered to be part of the out-of-school population. However, those who had completed primary-level national exams before 2022 and had not progressed to secondary or high school at the time of data collection were deemed out of school. Before the mobilization, all the mobilizers were trained on the study's mobilization and community engagement strategy and procedures. We drew on the CHVs' and CHAs' knowledge of both the geography and local population of the study sites to identify potential out-of-school adolescents.

During our face-to-face data collection, we ensured all the stipulated COVID-19 guidelines were followed and data collection was carried out in specified sites in each of the counties. Adolescents below eighteen years were accompanied by their parents to ensure they provide consent. The assessments took approximately one hour. After the assessment, a small refreshment was provided to the participants. To ensure that the refreshments offered did not influence participation or responses, we made it clear to all of the participants that the refreshments were being offered as a token of appreciation for their time and effort and that their decision to participate in the study would not be influenced by whether or not they accepted the refreshments. Additionally, refreshments were offered to all mobilized participants, regardless of whether or not they agreed to participate in the study. This ensured that there was no differential treatment of participants based on their willingness to participate. Finally, we used standardized questionnaires and a data collection process, which was administered by trained research assistants who were not involved in the distribution of the refreshments. This minimized the potential for response bias or influence on the data collection process.

Cost incurred such as travel to attend these discussions were reimbursed to the guardians/parents based on standard acceptable rates. Based on various sources of information, we determined a flat rate of transportation rate. This included conducting planning engagements in which we consulted with community leaders to obtain an estimate of the typical cost of transportation in the study area. Secondly, we reviewed previous studies conducted in the area that involved similar participant populations and assessed the transportation costs associated with those studies. The rate agreed upon was also per rates as guided by the Aga Khan University Institute for Human Development participant's transport payment and reimbursement standard operating procedures. We aimed to ensure that the transportation reimbursement provided was sufficient to cover the cost of transportation to and from the study site, without providing an excessive or undue financial incentive for participation.

Measures

Social demographic measure

The information on adolescents' age, gender, school attendance (whether they were in school or not), level of education, religion, economic status, and parental marital status was collected using a socio-demographic survey tool. The household socioeconomic status was evaluated by asking the adolescents about items found in their homes using an assets index that has been used in similar studies focusing on adolescents [ 1, 39].

Patient health questionnaire- 9 (PHQ-9)

PHQ-9 is a multipurpose instrument for screening, diagnosing, and measuring the severity of depression [ 18]. In this study, PHQ-9 was used to screen for depressive symptoms. The tool consists of 9 items scored on a 4-point Likert scale (0 = not at all, 1 = several days, 2 = more than a week, 3 = nearly every day). The items are summated together, and the total scores range from 0-27. A score of 5-9, 10-14, 15-19, and 20-27 represents the cut-off points for mild, moderate, moderately severe, and severe depression, respectively. PHQ-9 has been used and validated for use in adolescents from Africa [ 2, 20, 43]. The tool has been validated in the Swahili language [ 24]. Psychometric analysis performed on the PHQ-9 scale for the current study showed a relatively high internal reliability of the scale (Cronbach's alpha = 0.83).

General anxiety disorder- 7 (GAD-7)

The GAD-7 tool was used to assess anxiety among adolescents. The tool consists of seven items, with responses on a Likert scale ranging from 0 (not at all) to 3 (more than half the days) [ 38]. The scale's total score ranges from 0 to 21, with cutoffs of 5-9, 10-14, and 15-21 equating to mild, moderate, and severe anxiety symptoms, respectively. GAD-7 has been extensively used [, 3, 30] and has been validated in similar settings while maintaining its unidimensional latent structure with favourable psychometric characteristics [ 27]. In this study, results from reliability analysis showed that the GAD-7 scale had good internal reliability (Cronbach's alpha = 0.81).

Strengths and difficulties questionnaire (SDQ)

The SDQ is a brief 25-item emotional and behavioural screening tool for children and young people [ 12]. The SDQ questionnaire contains 25 items, grouped into five subscales (emotional symptoms, conduct issues, hyperactivity/inattention, peer relationship issues, and prosocial behaviour) and the item scores are 0 (not true), 1 (somewhat true), and 2 (certainly true). The scores of all except the prosocial behaviour sub-scale (positive measure) are aggregated to give a total difficulty score ranging from 0 to 40. SDQ has been widely used in Africa to assess internalizing and externalizing problems among children and adolescents, in which as of 2018 it had been used in 54 studies conducted across 12 countries in Africa, including Kenya [ 13]. A reliability analysis was carried out including 20 items from the SDQ scale. The analysis showed that the scale had acceptable internal reliability (Cronbach's alpha = 0.75).

Pandemic anxiety scale (PAS)

The PAS was used to identify the specific aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic that cause worries. The PAS is a nine-item scale with ratings on a five-point Likert scale of 0 (strongly disagree) to 4 (strongly agree), with scores ranging from 0 to 36. The scale includes questions about the disease itself as well as concerns and worries about the pandemic's consequences and has good validity and reliability [ 22]. Item 7 (I am worried about missing schoolwork) was not used in the analysis as it was not relevant to the out-of-school population, hence the highest score based on the remaining eight questions was 32. The scale had acceptable internal reliability based on results from psychometric analysis (Cronbach's alpha = 0.77).

The World Health Organization- five well-being index (WHO-5)

Covid-19 related questionnaire

We administered the questionnaire to evaluate how the COVID-19 pandemic had affected adolescent mental health care-seeking behaviour, school attendance, peer relationships in the school setting, and interactions with parents.

Assembled items for the Kilifi adolescent health risk behavior questionnaire

The tool was used to assess health risk behaviours among adolescents such as alcohol and drug abuse use, sexual behaviours, and violence among others. The tool is easy to use and has acceptable test-retest reliability (Gwet's AC1 = 0.82) [ 40].

Data management

All data were collected using Open Data Kit (ODK) through tablets and computers. These electronic instruments were password protected and encrypted to avoid data loss and were only available to authorized personnel. To ensure quality control and safety, the data manager double-checked any inconsistencies in the data before uploading it to the server daily.

Statistical analysis

Stata version 17, a statistical software, was used to analyze all the data [ 41]. The sample characteristics of the adolescents were summarized using proportions, means, and standard deviations. The differences between the in-school and out-of-school groups were investigated using the independent t-test for continuous variables and Pearson's chi-squared test for categorical variables. For depression and anxiety, the point prevalence and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were calculated. The figures and tables were used to present the results.

A linear regression model was used to evaluate the socio-demographic characteristics, COVID-19-related questions, parents and peer relationships, psychosocial stressors associated with quality of life, pandemic anxiety, and emotional and behavioural problems. First, a univariate linear model was fitted for each outcome, and the variables with a p-value < 0.25 were included in the multivariable linear regression model [ 4]. Plots and statistical tests were used to evaluate the model assumptions; linearity, normality, multicollinearity, homoscedasticity, and the presence of outlying observations [ 11].

Subsequently, a logistic regression model was used to assess factors associated with depression and general anxiety disorders. A univariate logistic model was fitted, and variables with a p-value < 0.25 were included in the multivariable logistic regression model. The odds ratios (ORs) with corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) and associated P-values were reported. A 5% significance level was used for this study. Furthermore, in the present study, Cronbach's coefficient α was used to calculate the internal reliability coefficients of the items used in the regression models. A score of > 0.70 was considered an acceptable value of Cronbach's alpha based on the reliability analysis [ 42].

Results

A total of 852 participants were approached to participate in the study, however, our analysis was based on 797 who met the full inclusion criteria (see Fig. 1). Table 1 shows the socio-demographic characteristics of the study participants. Additionally, statistical group comparisons between school-going and out-of-school adolescents are presented. The participants in the study had an average age of 16.3 years ( SD = 1.9). Out-of-school adolescents had a higher mean age ( M = 16.6, SD = 2.0) than in-school adolescents ( M = 16.1, SD = 1.8), p < 0.001. There is no significant difference in terms of the number of participants in the two geographical regions [ P = 0.190]. The majority of the participants were Christians (75.2%), while 59.5% were female, 53.6% were in secondary schools, and 50.1% were from the coastal region. Furthermore, 4.6% of adolescents were parents, and 1.7% of females were pregnant, with most of them from the out-of-school group. Adolescents who attended school had a higher mean social-economic status score ( M = 3.2, SD = 1.6) compared to those who did not attend ( M = 2.8, SD = 1.5), p  < 0.001. Furthermore, the results show a significant difference in education level, having a child(ren), and being expectant between school-going and out-of-school adolescents.

Table 1 Socio-demographic characteristics of participants

Table 2 summarizes the prevalence estimates for depressive and anxiety symptoms. In terms of severity for both depression and anxiety, the prevalence of the two disorders was relatively higher among out-of-school as compared to in-school adolescents. Using a cut-off score ≥ 10 for PHQ-9, the prevalence of depression among school-going adolescents was 20.6%; relatively lower than the out-of-school at 36.0% [ p < 0.001]. Similarly, out-of-school adolescents had a significantly higher prevalence of anxiety (27.7%) than in-school adolescents (19.1%), p < 0.001. The overall prevalence of positive screen for comorbidity for both depression and anxiety symptoms was 12.5%, with a high prevalence score in out-of-school compared to school-going adolescents (18.3% vs 9.1%, p  < 0.001).

Table 2 Prevalence of common mental disorders among school-going versus out-of-school adolescents

Figure 2 represents the box plots of emotional and behavioural problems, pandemic anxiety, and quality of life among school-going, and out-of-school adolescents. The red asterisk represents the mean score, while the solid black line between the boxes represents the median score. The in-school adolescents had significantly higher quality of life scores ( M = 15.9, SD = 6.1) compared to their out-of-school counterparts ( M = 14.8, SD = 6.6), t(795) = 2.49, p  = 0.01. The effect size (Cohen's d) was small, with a value of 0.18, 95% CI [0.03, 0.32].

Emotional and behavioural problems, pandemic anxiety, and quality of life of school going versus the out-of-school adolescents

Furthermore, for emotional and behavioural problems, the mean score for out-of-school adolescents was ( M = 12.9, SD = 6.3), while for the in-school adolescents was ( M = 10.4, SD = 5.9), t(795) = − 5.68, p < 0.001, Cohen's d = 0.41, 95% CI [0.27, 0.56]. This indicates a moderate effect size, with out-of-school adolescents having statistically significantly higher levels of emotional and behavioural problems than in-school adolescents.

There was no significant difference in terms of pandemic anxiety mean scores between the out-of-school ( M = 19.3, SD = 6.8) and in-school groups ( M = 19.0, SD = 6.1), t(795) = − 0.57, p = 0.572, Cohen's d  = 0.05, 95% CI [− 0.09, 0.19]. This indicates a very small effect size, suggesting that the pandemic anxiety mean scores for the two groups were similar.

Additional file 1: Table S1 illustrates results from univariate logistic regression model analyses assessing the correlates i.e., both risk and protective factors associated with depression and anxiety. Two socio-demographic characteristics including being out of school and an increase in age were associated with higher odds of both depression and anxiety (Additional file 1: Table S1). An adolescent having a child was significantly associated with higher odds of anxiety but not depression. For COVID-19-related questions, having a COVID-19 infection, and having someone who is close to you including a family member or a friend being infected with COVID-19 were factors significantly associated with higher odds of depression and anxiety (Additional file 1: Table S1). For parents and peer relationship questions, interacting less with friends or peers, loneliness, and arguing with parents often were all significantly associated with higher odds of depression and anxiety (Additional file 1: Table S1. Furthermore, living in unsafe neighbourhoods, being physically forced to have sex, and drinking alcohol were also significantly associated with higher odds of depression and anxiety. Being Muslim, being very close to parents, and talking to friends often, were factors significantly associated with lower odds of both anxiety and depression (Additional file 1: Table S1).

Talking to friends often was the only factor that was negatively correlated with both pandemic anxiety and emotional and behavioural problems (Additional file 2: Table S2). Being close to parents, and being Muslim were factors negatively correlated with emotional and behavioural problems. Factors associated positively with both pandemic anxiety and emotional and behavioural problems include being female, increase in age, having a someone close being infected with COVID-19, interacting less with peers, loneliness, feeling unsafe, and physically being forced to have sex (Additional file 2: Table S2). Furthermore, an adolescent having children was a predictor of pandemic anxiety but not emotional and behavioural problems (Additional file 2: Table S2). Being out of school, arguing with parents, and history of drinking alcohol were positively correlated with emotional and behavioural problems but not pandemic anxiety (Additional file 2: Table S2).

Table 3 shows the results of the multivariate regression model showing both protective and predictor factors associated with depression, anxiety, emotional and behavioural problems, quality of life, and pandemic anxiety. Predictors associated with high odds of depression include; being out of school loneliness, and living in an unsafe neighbourhood (Table 3). Talking to friends often, being Muslim, and being close to parents were factors associated with lower odds of depression (Table 3). Additionally, an increase in age, being out of school, interacting less with friends, loneliness, and living in an unsafe neighbourhood were factors associated with higher odds of anxiety (Table 3). Factors negatively correlated with quality of life include; an increase in age, loneliness interacting less with friends, and living in an unsafe neighbourhood (Table 3). Furthermore, factors positively correlated with quality of life include; being Muslim, having high socioeconomic status, talking to friends often, and being close to one's parents (Table 3). Loneliness was the only factor positively correlated with pandemic anxiety (Table 3). We didn't identify any factor that was negatively correlated with pandemic anxiety (Table 3). Being out of school, loneliness arguing with parents often, and living in an unsafe neighbourhood were factors positively correlated with emotional and behavioural problems (Table 3). Belonging to other religions e.g. traditional religions was the only factor found to be negatively correlated with emotional and behavioural problems (Table 3).

Table 3 Results from regression analysis showing factors associated with depression, anxiety, pandemic anxiety, emotional behavioural problems and quality of life

Discussion

We observe that out-of-school adolescents have relatively poorer outcomes in terms of depression, anxiety, quality of life, and emotional and behavioural problems when compared to their in-school counterparts. Additionally, pandemic anxiety scores are almost equivalent between the two groups suggesting that the two groups experienced comparable levels of worry about the pandemic. Comparative studies are scarce since there is a paucity of research comparing the mental health outcomes of adolescents who attend school and those who do not. Adolescents who are out-of-school face a lot of challenges including struggling more to meet basic needs which makes them more prone to poor mental health. Additionally, the experience of stressful life events, absence of social support, an HIV-positive diagnosis, being a young mother, and teenage pregnancy pregnancies have been associated with higher depressive symptoms among out-of-school adolescents [ 31]. Schools have a responsibility to play in promoting positive mental health and the general well-being of students. Support from teachers, co-curriculum activities, and support from peers are key components in school that help students deal with difficulties that can lead to mental health problems. Adolescents who are not enrolled in school generally don't have access to this support even though they face more challenges, which may explain why they have a disproportionately greater burden of mental health problems than their school-going peers.

We found that adolescents who were extremely close to their parents were more likely to report lower levels of depressive symptoms. Furthermore, the same adolescents also had a better quality of life. This shows the importance of a healthy connection between adolescents, their parents and their families. Our results show that adolescents who belonged to the Islam religion reported lower odds of depression and also a better quality of life. Although this was an interesting finding, we were unable to ascertain the reason behind this observation. However, prior research has demonstrated that religion and spirituality can play a role in promoting positive mental health outcomes, for instance through positive religious coping, social support, and positive attitudes and beliefs [ 45]. Additionally, adolescents who reported being close and engaging with their friends reported lower odds of depressive symptoms as well. Adolescents who feel close and connected to the people around them are buffered from risk factors around them associated with poor mental health [ 10]. This shows the importance of promoting positive youth connectedness including connectedness to family and parents, schools, community, and peers. While connections inside and outside the family setting have been linked with positive well-being, the absence of these connections imposes the risk of negative outcomes. This points to the fact that promoting positive connectedness not only reduces potential risks but also promotes positive outcomes among adolescents.

Strengths and limitations

This study has strengths and limitations worth highlighting. First, it not only focused on school-going adolescents but also adolescents out of school, a population that tends to be ignored yet is at a very high risk of poor mental health. In addition to conducting mental health assessments in the current study, we also offered psychological counselling to adolescents who were experiencing significant psychological distress. Another strength of the study is its ability to explore a timely research theme on assessing the psychological well-being and burden of mental health problems among adolescents in the context of COVID-19. Furthermore, this study used measures that have been psychometrically tested in our setting and have shown to have good internal reliability and validity. Additionally, all assessments were done in a one-on-one environment within private and secure rooms.

In terms of the limitations of the study, data on the outcomes and the correlates were collected based on self-report, which is prone to information and the potential of recall bias. The cross-sectional nature of the study means we cannot establish the causal relationship between the factors assessed and the mental health outcomes. While our study aimed to capture a representative sample of adolescents from two regions in Kenya, we acknowledge that our findings may not be generalizable to the entire Kenyan population. Even with all effort put to minimize bias in the study, we recognize that the refreshments provided to the participants could have influenced their engagement and motivation. We did not collect data on the treatment-seeking behaviours of adolescents with mental health issues, meaning we cannot provide a comprehensive overview of the situation in the country.

Conclusion

Our analysis revealed a relatively high prevalence of depression, emotional and behavioural problems, and anxiety among out-of-school adolescents when compared to school-going adolescents. There was no significant difference in terms of pandemic anxiety levels in the two groups. School-going adolescents had a better quality of life than the out of school adolescents. We also identified correlates associated with mental health outcomes. These factors include; socio-demographic factors, parents and peer relationships, COVID-19-related factors, and psychosocial stressors and health risk behaviours. This indicates that the predictors of mental health problems among adolescents are multidimensional and interrelated. Given the high burden reported in this study, there is a need to embed mental health services and interventions in primary health care. In the school systems, there is a need to integrate mental health education within the school curriculum.

Availability of data and materials

The de-identified dataset used and analysed during this current study will be made available upon reasonable request, in due consideration of Aga Khan University's data sharing policies. Requests to access the datasets should be directed to amina.abubakar@aku.edu.

References

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Acknowledgements

We are thankful to the parents and adolescents who took part in the study. We would like to thank Ezra Too who contributed to the development of the initial study protocols. Additionally, we would like to thank the field enumerators including Anne Karendi, Eunice Kisau, Faith Ocharo, Isaac Lihanda, John Maina, Joseph Muye, Maurine Okoth, Nimo Jamaal, Peter Mulupi, and Philip Herman for their exceptional efforts in collecting the data. We thank all the study mobilizers including the community health volunteers, community health assistants, school health focal persons, and community focal persons from the Dagoretti South sub-county, Kaloleni sub-county, and Jomvu sub-county.

Funding

This publication was produced with the financial support of the Aga Khan Foundation UK and the European Union (Contract No: CSO-LA-2020/418-235). Its contents are the sole responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Aga Khan Foundation UK and European Union. The funders had no role in the study's design, in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data, in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results. Additionally, Amina Abubakar's work is also supported by the Office Of The Director, National Institutes Of Health (OD), the National Institute Of Biomedical Imaging And Bioengineering (NIBIB), the National Institute Of Mental Health (NIMH), and the Fogarty International Center (FIC) of the National Institutes of Health under award number U54TW012089 (Abubakar A and Waljee AK). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

1. Institute for Human Development, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya

Gideon Mbithi, Adam Mabrouk, Rachel Odhiambo, Judith Tumaini Dzombo, Margaret Kabue, Paul Mwangi & Amina Abubakar

2. School of Nursing and Midwifery, Aga Khan University, Kampala, Uganda

Ahmed Sarki, Mary Namuguzi & Joseph Atukwatse

3. Family and Youth Health Initiative (FAYOHI), Jigawa State, Dutse, Nigeria

Ahmed Sarki

4. Neurosciences Group, KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme, Centre for Geographic Medicine Research (Coast), Kilifi, Kenya

Amina Abubakar

5. Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK

Amina Abubakar

Author notes

Adam Mabrouk-Passed away on March 4, 2022

Contributions

AA conceptualized and designed the study. AA, AM, GM, AS, RA and MN developed study protocols, tools, and training programmes. RA programmed the study questions on tablets and managed study data throughout the data collection period. AM, GM, JTD, MK, RA, and AA conducted training on the enumerators and coordinated the data collection process. AM conducted initial data cleaning and analysis. GM and PM analyzed the data. GM wrote the first draft of the manuscript. All authors except the late AM critically reviewed subsequent versions of the manuscript and approved the final version for submission. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Gideon Mbithi or Amina Abubakar.

Ethics declarations

Ethics approval and consent to participate

The ethics review for this study was obtained from The Aga Khan University, Nairobi Institutional Ethics Review Committee (IERC) (Ref:2021/IERC-110.v2), and a research license was granted by the National Commission for Science, Technology & Innovation (License no: NACOSTI/P/22/14894). Approvals were also sought from the County Commissioner, Directorate of Education, Nairobi Metropolitan Services, as well as the Kilifi, and Mombasa County governments. All participants provided informed written or recorded consent to participate in this study. The field activities were conducted per the relevant guidelines and regulations.

Consent for publication

Not applicable.

Competing interests

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

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Mbithi, G., Mabrouk, A., Sarki, A. et al. Mental health and psychological well-being of Kenyan adolescents from Nairobi and the Coast regions in the context of COVID-19. Child Adolesc Psychiatry Ment Health 17, 63 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13034-023-00613-y
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Mental health and psychological well-being of Kenyan adolescents from Nairobi and the Coast regions in the context of COVID-19 - Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health

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Background Despite the high burden of mental health problems during adolescence and its associated negative consequences, it has remained neglected especially in sub-Saharan Africa. The 2019 novel Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has placed additional stress on adolescent mental health. However, there are few studies documenting the burden of mental health problems and even fewer mental health services in the region.

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why have pancake tortoise if no waffle tortoise

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why have pancake tortoise if no waffle tortoise

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yum pancakes

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Physical Description

Unlike most tortoises that have hard, domed shells, the African pancake tortoise has a thin, flat shell. As a result, the shell (or carapace) does not offer much protection from predators, so pancake tortoises use speed and flexibility to evade danger.

A pancake tortoise's shell is generally different shades of brown with patterns that provide camouflage in their rocky habitat. Its plastron, or belly, is pale yellow, and its head, limbs and tail are generally yellow-brown.

They grow to be about 7 inches (17.8 centimeters).

Native Habitat

African pancake tortoises are native to East Africa and are found in Kenya, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe. They inhabit rocky outcrops, called kopjes, or rocky hills in arid thorn scrub and savannah regions. These habitats are generally 30 to 1,800 meters (100 to 6,000 feet) above sea level.

Pancake tortoises spend most of their time in crevices in the rocky hillsides. They are generally solitary, but crevices may be occupied by pairs or sometimes small groups.

Food/Eating Habits

Dry grasses and vegetation, including succulents, make up the bulk of a pancake tortoise's diet in the wild. They may also eat seeds, nuts and sometimes insects. Pancake tortoises seem to get most of their water from the foods they eat, a survival trait in their natural environment.

At the Zoo, they eat a mixture of leafy greens and pellets.

Reproduction and Development

Mating occurs throughout the year, but the peak of mating season occurs in January and February. Males fight for the opportunity to mate with females. Therefore, larger males tend to have the most chances to breed.

Nesting tends to occur in late spring and early summer. Females dig nests in loose soil or lay their eggs in a crevice. They only lay one egg at a time, but may lay many throughout the nesting season. Their incubation period lasts four to six months.

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Physical Description Unlike most tortoises that have hard, domed shells, the African pancake tortoise has a thin, flat shell. As a result, the shell (or carapace) does not offer much protection from predators, so pancake tortoises use speed and flexibility to evade danger.

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Mental health is a critical, yet often neglected, aspect of overall well-being. This is true globally, but particularly concerning for young people in Kenya. In this article, we will explore the current state of mental health among Kenyan youth, the challenges they face, and potential solutions to build a more resilient future.

High Prevalence: Studies suggest that approximately one in four Kenyans experience a mental health condition at some point in their lives, with youth being disproportionately affected. This translates to a significant number of young people struggling with issues like depression, anxiety, and substance abuse.

Limited Access to Care: Unfortunately, accessing proper mental healthcare remains a challenge in Kenya. The stigma surrounding mental illness, coupled with limited resources and specialists, creates a "treatment gap" for many young people.

Stigma and Misconceptions: Mental illness is often viewed as a personal failing or a sign of weakness, leading to social exclusion and hindering help-seeking behavior.

Socio-economic Factors: Poverty, unemployment, and lack of education can exacerbate mental health issues, creating a vicious cycle. Additionally, factors like violence and displacement can contribute to trauma and psychological distress.

Limited Resources: The Kenyan healthcare system faces a shortage of trained mental health professionals and accessible mental health services, particularly outside major urban centers.

Raising Awareness: Destigmatizing mental health through educational campaigns and open dialogue is crucial. Platforms like social media can be powerful tools for promoting awareness and fostering understanding.

Investing in Resources: Increasing the number of trained mental health professionals and ensuring equitable access to affordable services across the country is critical.

Youth-Centered Solutions: Creating safe spaces for young people to talk openly about their struggles and providing them with peer support systems are essential steps in building resilience.

Community Engagement: Engaging community leaders, faith-based organizations, and NGOs can play a vital role in promoting mental health literacy and early intervention strategies.

By acknowledging the mental health challenges faced by Kenyan youth and taking collective action, we can build a future where mental well-being is prioritized and young people are empowered to reach their full potential. Remember, investing in mental health is not just the right thing to do, it's also an investment in a stronger, more resilient Kenyan society.

Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below. Let's keep the conversation about mental health going and support young people in Kenya on their journey towards a healthier future.

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Building Resilience: Addressing Mental Health Concerns Among Kenyan Youth

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Introduction: Mental health is a critical, yet often neglected, aspect of overall well-being. This is true globally, but particularly concerning for young people in Kenya.

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Privacy policy

We at African Land and AL Capital Investments Limited (collectively, " AL ") respect your concerns about privacy. This Privacy Policy describes the types of consumer personal information we collect, how we use the information, with whom we may share it and the choices available to you regarding our use of the information. We also describe the measures we take to protect the security of the information and how you can contact us about our privacy practices.

This Privacy Policy applies to the general practices of AL with respect to its processing of consumer personal information in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679, as well as to AL's website.

Information you provide to us

In respect of clients, tenants and in certain cases, permitted occupiers of property, the personal data which AL may collect and use usually includes:

* First name and surname

* Date of birth

* Contact details (work/personal email address, mobile or telephone numbers)

* Work/home address

* Financial information such as bank account information, income and savings

* Source of wealth

* Political exposure

* Education and employment information

* Photographic representation (passports and other identification paperwork)

* Information for research, surveys and marketing activities

Please note that you are not required to provide any personal information to use the website. However, if you provide your contact details (name, address, telephone and email address) either through the website or at a meeting with us, these details will be stored in the AL database and may be further processed for the purposes set out in this Privacy Policy. For information about how to change or update your contact details, or to exercise any of your other rights, please see the "Your Rights and Choices" section of this Privacy Policy.

In addition, depending on the nature of our relationship with you and the purpose for collecting it, we may process further information such as your personalised property criteria, property ratings and reviews. We limit the collection and processing of personal data to information that we need in order to meet our contractual obligations, a legal obligation or in furtherance to a legitimate interest. Where applicable, we may ask for your express consent.

Information we obtain by automated means

When you visit our website, open our emails or interact with AL, we may collect certain information (including IP addresses) by automated means, such as cookies, web server logs, web beacons and JavaScript.

Cookies are files that websites send to your computer or other Internet-connected device to uniquely identify your browser or to store information or settings on your device. Our website may use cookies (such as HTTP and HTML5 cookies) and Flash cookies, as well as other types of local storage (such as browser-based or plug-in-based local storage). Your browser may tell you how to be notified when you receive certain types of cookies and how to restrict or disable certain cookies. You also may be able to delete your Flash cookies or adjust your Flash cookie settings by visiting the Adobe Website Storage Settings Panel and Global Storage Settings Panel. Please note, however, that without cookies you may not be able to use all of the features of our sites or other websites and online services.

In conjunction with gathering information through cookies, our web servers may log information such as your device type, operating system type, browser type, domain, and other system settings, as well as the language your system uses and the country and time zone where your device is located. We also may record information such as the address of the web page that referred you to our website and the IP address of the device you use to connect to our website. We may log information about your interaction with the website, such as which pages you visit. To control which web servers collect information by automated means, we may place tags on our web pages called "web beacons," which are small files that link web pages to particular web servers and their cookies. We also may send instructions to your device using JavaScript or other computer languages to gather the sorts of information described above and other details about your interactions with our sites.

We may use third-party web analytics services on our website, such as those of Google Analytics. These service providers help us analyse how visitors use the website. The information obtained for this purpose (including your IP address and other information collected by automated means) will be disclosed to or collected directly by these service providers. To learn more about Google Analytics, and how to opt out, please click here. The providers of third- party plug-ins and widgets on our website, such as embedded videos and social media sharing tools, may use automated means to collect information regarding your use of the website and your interactions with the plug-ins and widgets. We may also receive information you have made available to those third party services, including the geographic location of your mobile device and other information about you (such as name, email address, locale, time zone, languages, and certain security settings information) and your contacts on those services. This information is subject to the privacy policies or notices of the third-party providers of the plug-ins and widgets.

How we use the information w e obtain

Depending on whether you are a client, a business associate or third-party supplier of services, a contracted party, an estate agent, a fund enquirer or a journalist, we may use the information described above for purposes necessary for the performance of our contractual obligations to you or to comply with our legal or regulatory obligations. We may also process your personal data for the purposes of our legitimate interests provided those interests do not override any of your own interests, rights or freedoms, which may include processing for marketing, business development and management purposes. Specifically, we may use your information to:

provide products and services to you;

perform transactions that you request;

incorporate your contact details into the AL database;

send you promotional materials, newsletters and other communications relating to our products and services;

create and manage your account;

communicate with you about, and administer your participation in, special events, promotions, offers, surveys, focus groups and market research (where applicable, if you have not opted out of receiving such communications);

respond to your enquiries;

provide aggregate statistical information and perform data analyses (including market and consumer research, economic impact analyses, demographic analyses and anonymisation and aggregation of personal information);

operate, evaluate and improve our business (including developing new products and services; enhancing, improving and analysing our products and services; managing our communications; and performing accounting, auditing and other internal functions)

protect against, identify and prevent fraud, copyright infringement, unauthorised use and distribution of protected content and other criminal activity; and

comply with and enforce applicable legal requirements, relevant industry standards and our policies.

In addition, we use information collected through cookies, web beacons, web server logs and other automated means for purposes such as: (i) customising our users' visits to our website; (ii) delivering content tailored to our users' interests and the manner in which our users browse our website, and (iii) managing our sites and other aspects of our business.

We also may use the information in other ways for which we provide specific notice at the time of collection. We do not obtain or record personal information about our visitors' online activities over time and across third-party websites.

Information we share

We do not disclose personal information we obtain about you outside AL, except as described in this Privacy Policy. We may share your personal information with our affiliates and subsidiaries. We also may share personal information with service providers who perform services on our behalf based on our instructions. We do not authorise these service providers to use or disclose the information except as necessary to perform services on our behalf or comply with applicable legal obligations.

Examples of these service providers include entities that provide web hosting, analytics and email list management services.

We also may disclose information about you: (i) if we are required to do so by law or legal process; (ii) for the purposes of, or in connection with, any legal proceedings, or otherwise for the purposes of establishing, exercising or defending any legal rights;

(iii) to law enforcement authorities or any regulator or other government entities based on a lawful disclosure request; or (iv) when we believe disclosure is necessary or appropriate to prevent harm or financial loss, or in connection with an investigation of suspected or actual fraudulent or illegal activity. We reserve the right to transfer personal information we hold about you in the event we sell or transfer all or a portion of our business or assets (including in the event of a reorganisation, spin-off, dissolution or liquidation).

Information collected through third-party plug-ins and widgets on the website (such as information relating to your use of a social media sharing tool) is collected directly by the providers of the plug-ins and widgets. This information is subject to the privacy policies of the providers of the plug-ins and widgets, and AL is not responsible for those providers' information practices.

From time to time, we may send information to you regarding our products and services, upcoming events and promotions and other information that may be of interest to you. For information about how to unsubscribe from marketing communications, please see the "Your Rights and Choices" section of this Privacy Policy. We do not share your details with any other marketing organisations.

You may change your contact details at any time, or request that we remove your details from our database, or instruct us not to use the personal information which you have provided to us for marketing purposes, by notifying us by email. We may still continue using your personal information to meet our contractual or legal obligations in compliance with the legislation.

You may unsubscribe from our promotional email list at any time by simply clicking on the unsubscribe link included in every promotional email we send. Alternatively, to update your preferences, ask us to remove your information from our mailing lists or submit a request, please contact us. After you unsubscribe, we will not send you further promotional emails. However, we may retain your personal information to meet our legal or contractual obligations, or for the purposes of our legitimate interests. We may also continue to contact you as reasonably necessary in connection with the administration of your account.

You may request access to the personal information we maintain about you or request that we correct, amend, delete or block the information. Where provided by law, where we relied on your express consent, you may withdraw any consent you previously provided to us or object at any time on legitimate grounds to the processing of your personal information, and we will apply your preferences going forward.

Should you wish to make a data subject request under the GDPR or complain about the way we use your personal data or handle your request pursuant to your rights under the GDPR, please contact our Data Compliance Officer in the first instance by writing to us at our registered office address or via email at contact.ceo@londoncentralportfoio.com. Our Data Compliance Officer will investigate the matter and aim to address your concerns or respond to your request within 30 days of your initial communication. You can also lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO). For more information, please visit ico.org.uk.

We may transfer the personal information we collect about you to recipients in countries other than the country in which the information originally was collected. Those countries may not have the same data protection laws as the country in which you initially provided the information. When we transfer your information to recipients in other countries: (i) we will perform those transfers in accordance with the requirements of applicable law; and (ii) we will protect the transferred personal information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

How we protect personal information

We maintain administrative, technical and physical safeguards designed to protect personal information against accidental, unlawful or unauthorised destruction, loss, alteration, access, disclosure or use.

Modern Slavery Act 2015 Statement

This statement is made on behalf of African Land ("AL") pursuant to the Modern Slavery Act 2015 ("the Act") and comprises our slavery and human trafficking statement.

AL is fundamentally committed to ensuring that there is no slavery or human trafficking in our supply chains or in any part of our business. As a supplier of property-related services, we aim to provide our clients with high levels of service, and to uphold all relevant standards of professional conduct in our sector and accept nothing less from our suppliers. We recognise that there is a very small risk for slavery or human trafficking to occur in the supply chain. We also recognise that we should be vigilant in identifying and reporting to the authorities any possible exploitation in the form of modern slavery or human trafficking when we visit properties and/or deal with third parties.

We are committed to taking all appropriate steps to ensure that slavery or human trafficking is not taking place in any of our supply chains. We review our existing business and supply chains for the risks of slavery and human trafficking; we review and revise as needed our procurement processes; and we disseminate relevant information as part of awareness training to our employees. We will not support or deal with any business knowingly involved in slavery or human trafficking.

This statement is issued on behalf of the Board of Directors and will be reviewed annually.

Children's privacy

Our website is not directed to children under the age of thirteen and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under the age of thirteen on our website.

Links to other websites and apps

Our website may provide links to other websites and apps for your convenience and information. These websites and apps may operate independently from us. Linked sites and apps may have their own privacy notices or policies, which we strongly suggest you review. To the extent any linked websites or apps are not owned or controlled by us, we are not responsible for their content, any use of the websites or apps, or the privacy practices of the websites or apps.

Updates to our Privacy Policy

This Global Privacy Policy may be updated periodically and without prior notice to you to reflect changes in our personal information practices.

How to contact us

If you have any questions or comments about this Privacy Policy, or if you would like us to update information we have about you or your preferences, please email us at contact.ceo@african.land

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Need rubbish removal services in Nairobi? Look no further than African Land. We offer a wide range of waste management solutions to help you get rid of your trash quickly and efficiently. Contact us today for a free quote!

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Over the years, Taita Hills's forested areas have fragmented with about 98% of the original forest being destroyed. This severe habitat loss has put enormous pressure on these endangered birds

Paul Kariuki Ndang'ang'a Ag. Regional Director for Africa

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Species on the brink: saving the Endangered Taita birds of Kenya

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Across the expansive Taita Plains in South Eastern Kenya rise majestic densely-forested hilly outcrops straddling the skyline near the historic town of Voi. These hilly outcrops, famously known as the...

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their horns are made of the same material as fingernails, no wonder they're always in a bad mood. fingernail face.

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Meditation is a practice that combines concentration with awareness. Once you learn how to meditate, you can do it entirely on your own, with no external resources necessary. Mediation can help you to reduce stress, enhance your ability to focus, and improve your overall well-being.

(JakaylaToney/Unsplash.com)

(JakaylaToney/Unsplash.com)

How to Meditate

Learning how to meditate is relatively simple, but your ability to meditate will improve with practice. Here are some simple steps for getting started. Enjoy!

1. Get comfortable, either in a sitting or lying position. Find a place that is calm and quiet, whether that is in your home or outside.

2. Set a time limit, such as five minutes to begin.

3. Close your eyes.

4. Focus on your breathing. Pay attention to your body, and where you feel your breath, such as in your belly or chest.

5. Notice when your mind wanders. If you find yourself beginning to think about other things, gently pull your thoughts back to your breath.

6. When your time is up, slowly come back to your thoughts, open your eyes, and take notice of your environment. Pay attention to how you are feeling at this moment.

Decide upon a regular time of day for your meditation to create a habit, and push yourself to continue your meditation practice.

Begin with a relatively short amount of time, such as a few minutes, that you will fully devote to your meditation. If you want to, you can increase this amount of time as you become more comfortable with meditation.

The steps to take to meditate may seem simple, but in practice meditating can sometimes be difficult. Our minds tend to wander, so it is important to be patient with yourself. The benefits of meditating come quite quickly, and with more practice, meditating becomes easier.

"All it takes is 10 mindful minutes"

Andy Puddicombe is a mindfulness expert who wants to make meditation accessible for everyone. In this talk, he describes the transformative power of doing absolutely nothing for 10 minutes a day.

" "Most people assume that meditation is all about stopping thoughts, getting rid of emotions, somehow controlling the mind, but actually it's quite different from that. It's more about stepping back, sort of seeing the thought clearly, witnessing it coming and going, emotions coming and going without judgment, but with a relaxed, focused mind." "

" "The mind whizzes away like a washing machine going round and round, lots of difficult, confusing emotions, and we don't really know how to deal with that. And the sad fact is that we are so distracted that we're no longer present in the world in which we live. We miss out on the things that are most important to us, and the crazy thing is that everybody just assumes, that's the way life is, so we've just kind of got to get on with it. That's really not how it has to be." "

Is this article worth reading

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A Simple Meditation Practice to Try Yourself-EnableMe

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Mediation can help you to reduce stress, enhance your ability to focus, and improve your overall well-being.

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Quality universal healthcare is considered a fundamental human right and a key indicator of a flourishing nation, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The provision of healthcare is viewed as a public good, aligning with a nation's interest in maintaining the well-being of its citizens.

The 2010 Constitution of Kenya (COK) decentralised healthcare services to counties, leading to a restructuring of the healthcare system and its administration nationwide. Under this arrangement, the national government oversees all Level 4 hospitals, providing specialised care, while county governments are responsible for managing Level 3, 2, and 1 healthcare centres in their respective regions.

Regarding access to quality and affordable healthcare, Kenya faces major challenges in ensuring equitable access to healthcare for her citizens. There is a high level of poverty and inequality among citizens, and this continues to impact access to healthcare heavily.

Kenya's doctor-to-patient ratio is 1:5,725, well above the WHO-recommended ratio of 1:1,000, according to a fact-check by PesaCheck. This is an indication of an insufficient number of doctors to meet the population's needs. An Oxfam report highlighted the vast inequality in Kenya, with the top 0.1% (8,300 people) being wealthier than the remaining 99.9% (over 50 million people). This wealth gap is expanding, with the country experiencing one of the fastest growth in super-rich individuals globally.

Access to healthcare is a life-and-death struggle for many poor Kenyans. A 2021 United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) report on Kenya's Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) showed that 37.5% of the population (19.8 million) is multi-dimensionally poor, while an additional 35.8% (18.9 million) are vulnerable to multi-dimensional poverty in a country with a population of 51 million (2019).
What are the issues facing healthcare systems in Kenya?
Major issues impacting Kenya's healthcare system include an uneven distribution of professionals, facilities, and resources, with a concentration in urban areas over rural ones. Counties like Mandera and Wajir have notably fewer health professionals per person compared to Nairobi and Kiambu. While nurses are distributed more evenly than doctors, their numbers still fall short of the WHO's recommended ratio of 25 healthcare professionals per 10,000 people.

Notably, a Ministry of Health (MoH) health facilities census from December 2023, spanning three months, indicated that 93% of Kenya's health facilities cannot provide basic outpatient services. The census, which covered over 12,000 facilities, revealed that a majority lack the necessary equipment for basic services. For maternity services, 84% of around 5,000 facilities lack essential equipment.

The report further reveals that 78% of health facilities are unable to offer critical care, with public facilities posting a mere 2,304 critical functional beds in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and High Dependence Unit (HDU). Moreover, 68% of health facilities do not have access to oxygen sources, while 69% have no advanced life support ambulances. This discrepancy has emerged despite the Kenya Kwanza government running on an ambitious healthcare manifesto.

In the same report, only 12 counties have satisfied the minimum requirement of the recommended manpower in the provision of health services. Narok County is ranked lowest, with only six workers serving an average of 10,000 people, with Wajir and West Pokot counties posting 12 workers to serve a population average of 10,000 people. Nairobi County has 37 workers for the same population set, with Vihiga and Laikipia counties posting 31 and 27 workers, respectively, for an average population of 10,000.

Indeed, the impact of these challenges is already visible, considering that the number of Kenyans losing their lives due to poor healthcare systems is rising. A report by the Civil Societies Organisation Centre for Reproductive Rights, for instance, pointed to a rise in the number of maternal injuries and deaths due to medical negligence.

The 2023 report highlighted cases of medical negligence, including the death of Rebecca Wangari at Naivasha Level 4 Hospital due to excessive blood loss during delivery. Medical staff allegedly neglected her for over 24 hours despite her critical condition. Two other cases involved Velma Anita Ochieng, a 19-year-old Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education candidate, who died after giving birth at Homa Bay County Teaching and Referral Hospital in November 2022, and Maureen Anyango, a patient at Mama Lucy Hospital, who died in September 2022 shortly after giving birth to twins.

Additionally, there is a shortage of training institutions and graduates, further compounding the country's healthcare needs. Public health facilities in rural areas, where most people live often lack the necessary funding and resources, while the allure of higher salaries and better facilities in urban areas pulls healthcare professionals away, creating a further disadvantage for rural regions.

The consequences of this imbalance include reduced access to healthcare for rural and underserved populations, resulting in challenges in obtaining basic healthcare services. Furthermore, the unequal distribution contributes to elevated rates of preventable diseases and a high maternal mortality rate in these areas.

A 2022 report by the World Bank found that Kenya's maternal mortality rate is one of the highest in the world, with 510 women dying for every 100,000 live births. The report also found that rural women are twice as likely to die from childbirth compared to urban women.

The few cases are an indication that much hasn't changed at the county level to ensure that citizens have access to quality healthcare despite devolution. The unequal distribution of healthcare resources in Kenya is also evident in the distribution of health facilities, with over half located in urban areas. Notably, only 30% of the population lives in such areas.

One direct impact of this unequal distribution of health facilities is that the rate of preventable deaths can also be attributed to the unequal distribution of healthcare resources. The country is still dealing with cases of high maternal mortality rate, especially in rural areas where many women have inadequate access to skilled birth attendants. Furthermore, the high mortality rate issue is not confined to rural areas alone. Several urban centre facilities have been in the news for alleged medical negligence, resulting in death.

While the Kenyan Government has taken steps to tackle the unequal distribution of healthcare resources by introducing programmes to boost the number of healthcare workers in rural areas, further action is required. This includes hiring more healthcare workers, enhancing working conditions and salaries, and increasing funding for the construction of additional health facilities in rural areas.
Government response to healthcare disparity
As part of its initiatives to address healthcare sector challenges, a WHO report highlighted that the Kenyan Government implemented a pilot programme for universal health coverage (UHC), offering healthcare insurance and substantially improving access to services. Key achievements of this programme encompassed over 1.6 million additional hospital visits within its inaugural year, expansion to encompass all 47 counties, the establishment of more than 200 community health units, recruitment of 7,700 volunteers and 700 health workers, and government funding for health insurance for one million households.
Recommendations to address existing equity challenges
The health census report recommends the scaling up of investments in basic equipment and appropriate infrastructure to support basic services in outpatient, maternity and newborn care. The MoH also underscores the need to prioritise the improvement of pharmaceutical availability, medical personnel, and overall health infrastructure to achieve universal health coverage (UHC).

At the same time, the Kenya Kwanza government has taken various steps in a bid to address the provision of quality healthcare in the journey towards the attainment of UHC.

Since assuming office, significant reforms have been implemented, including the approval of crucial bills aimed at advancing healthcare. These bills encompass the Primary Healthcare Bill, the Digital Health Bill, the Facility Improvement Financing Bill, and the Social Health Insurance Bill of 2023.

Human resources for health is a critical component in the delivery of basic healthcare, according to Prof. Gilbert Kokwaro, the Director of the Institute of Healthcare Management.

"Kenya has got two doctors serving approximately 10,000 Kenyans; this gives you an idea of how critical the shortage is," he said.

Prof. Kokwaro intimates that Kenya cannot afford to train doctors for other countries, as more than half of the doctors trained in Kenya hardly stay in the country beyond five years.

"We need a complete change in mindset. We need strategies to not only retain what we have but start increasing the numbers," he added.

The professor discourages the classification of healthcare workers according to job groups and lumping everyone into a set. He proposes that workers should be classified into professional clusters and to produce a scheme that balances the resources available with people's qualifications.

In Prof. Kokwaro's assessment, the work environment for training healthcare workers should have the necessary resources for them to work with while paying the available doctors enough wages that will incentivise them to stay in Kenya. His conclusion is that a central body that looks after the welfare of all health workers should be created. That body should be able to negotiate attractive packages for all cadres workers.

In reality, solving the unequal distribution of healthcare resources in Kenya requires a proactive approach that prioritises rural areas and impoverished counties. There should be investments in training healthcare workers, hospital infrastructure and labour incentives. These measures are some of the ways to make strides toward achieving fair access to healthcare for all Kenyans.

See full article here: https://africauncensored.online/kenyans-are-dying-due-to-lack-of-healthcare-even-as-plans-to-export-health-workers-are-underway/

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How Unequal Distribution of Healthcare Resources is Killing Kenyans | News | charterAFRICA

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An initiative led by 6 democracy organisations using Civic Tech to boost citizen engagement with the African Union's Charter on Democracy, Elections & Governance.

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21st Century Educational Technology Classroom Infographic - e-Learning Infographics

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At the Components of a 21st Century Classroom Infographic you will learn about some of the key advancements in the 21st century classroom.

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Write something beautiful

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Infopro Learning - eLearning Companies | Corporate Training Solutions Provider

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Here are Two Sample Course Screens

Which sample do you find more effective? For most of us, it is easier to relate to the second example. Why? Because it is in harmony with the personalization principle-it uses a conversational style, has an effective on-screen coach, and a visible author.

Let's look at the significance of the second aspect of the personalization principle-using effective on-screen coaches or pedagogical agents.

Pedagogical Agents

Pedagogical agents are virtual life-like characters used in online learning environments who help guide the learning processes. These on-screen coaches serve various instructional goals. They:

Act as instructors or motivators

Interact with learners

Provide cognitive support

Offer social enrichment to the learning experience

Provide human-like assistance

Reduce learner anxiety and frustration

Act as a learning companion

Support learning and instruction

Guide learners

How can you represent pedagogical agents in eLearning? You can represent them visually as cartoon-like characters, as a talking-head video, or as virtual reality avatars; and represent them verbally through machine-simulated voice, human recorded voice, or printed text. You can also represent them as real people using video and human voice or artiﬁcial characters using animation and computer-generated voice.

Do Pedagogical Agents Enhance Learning?

Why should you invest time and money to incorporate pedagogical agents into your elearning? Because if you don't, your learning outcomes will suffer.

Agents Improve Performance
In a study by Moreno, Mayer, Spires, & Lester, 2001, it was seen that students who learned by interacting with an on-screen agent generated 24 to 48 percent more solutions in transfer tests than the students who learned without an agent.

In another study (Atkinson, 2002), a group of students learned to solve proportionality word problems with the help of an on-screen agent who spoke to them, giving a step-by-step explanation for the solution. On a subsequent transfer test, these students generated 30 percent more correct solutions than the students who learned without an agent.

Hence, there is clear evidence suggesting that it is worthwhile to consider the role of animated pedagogical agents as aids to learning.

Pedagogical Agent Qualities

What makes an effective agent? Do people learn better from human-looking agents or cartoon-like agents?

Research suggests that a lifelike image is not always an essential component in an effective agent. There is not much of a difference in learning when a real character is used or a cartoon-like animated character. In addition, people learn just as well when the image of the character is present or absent, as long as they can hear the agent's voice.

Agents Need Realistic Human-Like Behavior
Agents may not have to look real, but evidence does indicate that these agents should demonstrate human-like actions in terms of their gestures, movements, and eye-gaze. In a study by Lusk and Atkinson (2007), it was found that students learned better from an on-screen agent who used human-like locomotion, gestures, and eye-gazes rather than from an agent who was physically present but did not move, gesture, or gaze at the learner.

Hence, on-screen pedagogical agents do not need realistic human-like appearance but do need realistic human-like behavior.

Agents have to Sound Conversational
An important factor that makes the agents effective is that they have to sound conversational. Various studies show that people learn better when:

Words are spoken rather than presented as on-screen text (modality effect)

Words are spoken in a conversational style rather than a formal style (the personalization effect)

Words are spoken in a human voice rather than a machine-simulated voice

Consider the Following Suggestions When Using Pedagogical Agents:

Present the agent's words as speech rather than text, in conversational style rather than formal style, and with human-like rather than machine-like articulation

Use agents to provide instruction rather than for entertainment purposes

Use some ﬁrst- and second-person constructions-"I," "we," "me," "my," "you," and/or "your"-in the script for a narration or the text for an on-screen passage to create the feeling of conversation between the course and the learner

Do not overdo the personalization style in the script as this might distract the learner

Though pedagogical agents are constrained by programming, and cannot replace a real teacher or mentor, it is advisable to use pedagogical agents in online courses as research indicates a positive impact on learning.

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How to Use Pedagogical Agents in Your eLearning

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Which sample do you find more effective? For most of us, it is easier to relate to the second example. Why? Because it is in harmony with the personalization principle-it uses a conversational style, has an effective on-screen coach, and a visible author.

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Endangered animal species in Kenya are the animal species that are at risk of extinction because of a sudden rapid decrease in their population or loss of their critical habitat. That is for example most of the plant or the animal species that was threatened with extinction are well known as the endangered species. Kenya is a wildlife safari haven with over 450 mammal species, it's the tenth in the world with several of the mammals though a few of these mammal species are certain to be endemic. Endemic species run a high risk of extinction due to changes in their confined habitats, because due to hunting and habitat destruction, Tsavo National Park
Endangered animal species in Kenya Black Rhinos.
Black rhinos are known as the browsers, their prominent horn can grow up to five feet in length and the major threat to the black rhinos are the poachers that they kill them for their horn to make a few coins, leaving the rhino dead, the poachers are known as the most dangerous than any other animal on this planet. The black rhinos can be spotted in the most national parks and national reserves in Kenya on a safari, if you're in the Nairobi city then you can visit the Nairobi National Park with in Nairobi and spot the black rhinos. On a safari to Kenya, make sure that you visit the park to see the most amazing special endangered black rhino.
Lesser kudu.
Lesser kudu is also the incredible antelope, the striking of the kudu makes it stand out from the rest, the lesser kudu are mostly found in the northern Kenya. The lesser kudu are mostly affected by the poachers and hunters for meat, hides and horns, their horns have long been prized in Africa for use as musical instruments, honey, containers and the symbolic ritual objects.
Mountain Bongo.
Mountain Bongo is an endangered sub species of the bongo, one of the largest forest antelopes, the Bongo has a reddish-brown coat, with black, white and yellow-white markings as both the males and females have long, slightly spiraled horns.

The lowland bongo is still subject to snare hunting due to the expanding commercial forestry exploitation, but there are some taboos against eating the bongo meat. The mountain bongo are critically endangered the decline has been caused by a combination of several factors like the hunting, loss of appetite, the livestock-mediated diseases. The mountain bongo are beautiful and relatively scarce.
Grevy zebra.
Grevy zebra is the endangered animal species that were named after the French president Jules Grevy by zoologist Jean Emile. There are 3 types of zebras that is the plain and mountain zebra, Endangered Grevy zebra. The Endangered grevy zebra is taller, broader, have a white belly, the muzzle is brown as opposed to the plains zebra which are dark, the Grevzy has round ears and the stripes are thinner. Hunting is the primary cause of the decline of Grevy's zebras, they are primarily hunted for their striking skins but also will be occasionally be killed for food also minus hunting the Grevy's also face threats from disease outbreaks, drought, habitat loss, fragmented populations, Endangered animal species in Kenya.

Hunters/ Hirola Antelope.

Hirola antelope was delivered from the Somali community that means good luck. The Somali people used to get worried because of this antelope comes to extinct their cattle will too disappear since they believe the hirola has a spiritual significance to cattle rearing. The Hirola antelope is critically endangered antelope species found on the border of Kenya and Somalia. They were discovered by the Kenyans living in the area in the year 1888, it is only extant member of the genus Beatragus. Mostly the loss of the Hirola would be the first extinction of the mammalian genus on the mainland Africa in the modern human history.

Tana River Mangabey is a high endangered species of the primate in the family of the Cercopithecidae, the Tana River Mangabey is diurnal and semi-terrestrial, and it spends most of its time on the ground but still is considered arboreal due to its sleeping area. Tana River Mangabeys are ranked as one of the world's 25 most threatened primates and currently it's estimated as 1000 to 1200 individuals remaining in the wild that can be spotted on a Kenya wildlife Safari.
Sable antelope.
Sable antelope is found in the southern savanna of Africa from the Southeastern Kenya, the Eastern Tanzania, and Mozambique to Angola and Southern Zaire, mainly in the Miombo Woodland zone, they prefer the woodlands and grasslands and thus a voiding the extensive open lands. The sable's horns make it a highly prized hunting trophy and have contributed to the sharp decline of the animal, in addition to the heavy hunting, the numbers have been reduced severely as part of the regional tsetse fly control programs, furthermore the agricultural development is reducing the grassland habitat of the sable antelope, the antelope are important to their habitats as the grazers and browsers and also they are important as prey for the carnivores.
Roan antelope.
One of the Africa's rarest antelopes and the third largest of Kenya's antelopes, the roan (or Korongo as it is known in Kiswahili) is a large, grey to rufous antelope with a distinctive black and white face, not unlike a tribal mask, the roans live in the herds of up to 20 members, led by the bull. These are endemic to Africa, used to be the most common antelopes found in almost all African savannas it is found in 30 countries mostly within the western, central and the eastern Africa. The roan antelopes are now found in Ruma National Park, in the western Kenya which makes Kenya amazing safari tourism destination, this is primarily the result of killing for meat and traditional values such as the horns for the musical instruments and skin for the burial ceremonies though poaching is the major threat, alongside too many young roan antelopes are being preyed upon by mainly the hyena.

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Endangered animal species in Kenya | Kenya Safaris Tours | Kenya Tours

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Endangered animal species in Kenya are the animal species that are at risk of extinction because of a sudden rapid decrease in their..

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1. The Taita Apalis is rapidly decreasing in population due to habitat destruction and invasive species such as cats, dogs, and non-native rats.

2. The Black Rhinoceros in also close to being extinct due to illegal poaching and habitat destruction, along with tourists disturbing them.

3. many cheetah cubs die each year due to car engine's causing them to be unable to hear their mother's chirp for food, making the mother have to chirp louder and more frequent, attracting lions, hyenas and leopards that may steal the kill and/or kill her cubs.

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Endangered animal species in Kenya are the animal species that are at risk of extinction because of a sudden rapid decrease in their population or loss of their critical habitat. That is for example most of the plant or the animal species that was threatened with extinction are well known as the endangered species. Kenya is a wildlife safari haven with over 450 mammal species, it’s the tenth in the world with several of the mammals though a few of these mammal species are certain to be endemic. Endemic species run a high risk of extinction due to changes in their confined habitats, because due to hunting and habitat destruction, Tsavo National Park

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State of Mental Health among the Youths in Kenya

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Kenya is home to

25,000 Animal species

7,000 Plant species

2,000 Fungi and bacteria species

Only 6,517 mature Cheetahs are alive and reported vulnerable. For they are at risk of habit loss.

Every animal is in the category of one of these stages

NE: not evaluated

DD: data deficient

LC: least concern

NT: near threatened

VU: vulnerable

EN: endangered

CR: critically endangered

EW: extinct in the wild

EX: extinct

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Want to learn about the nature and wildlife of Kenya and its stunning landscapes? A photographer's paradise. Travel with the Africa experts at Goway. 45+ years of expertise and experience to make your Kenya vacation a success. Get a free trip quote. Let's go globetrotting!

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Pedagogical agents don´t need human appearances but they do need human-like characteristic

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Infopro Learning - eLearning Companies | Corporate Training Solutions Provider

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Here are Two Sample Course Screens

Which sample do you find more effective? For most of us, it is easier to relate to the second example. Why? Because it is in harmony with the personalization principle-it uses a conversational style, has an effective on-screen coach, and a visible author.

Let's look at the significance of the second aspect of the personalization principle-using effective on-screen coaches or pedagogical agents.

Pedagogical Agents

Pedagogical agents are virtual life-like characters used in online learning environments who help guide the learning processes. These on-screen coaches serve various instructional goals. They:

Act as instructors or motivators

Interact with learners

Provide cognitive support

Offer social enrichment to the learning experience

Provide human-like assistance

Reduce learner anxiety and frustration

Act as a learning companion

Support learning and instruction

Guide learners

How can you represent pedagogical agents in eLearning? You can represent them visually as cartoon-like characters, as a talking-head video, or as virtual reality avatars; and represent them verbally through machine-simulated voice, human recorded voice, or printed text. You can also represent them as real people using video and human voice or artiﬁcial characters using animation and computer-generated voice.

Do Pedagogical Agents Enhance Learning?

Why should you invest time and money to incorporate pedagogical agents into your elearning? Because if you don't, your learning outcomes will suffer.

Agents Improve Performance
In a study by Moreno, Mayer, Spires, & Lester, 2001, it was seen that students who learned by interacting with an on-screen agent generated 24 to 48 percent more solutions in transfer tests than the students who learned without an agent.

In another study (Atkinson, 2002), a group of students learned to solve proportionality word problems with the help of an on-screen agent who spoke to them, giving a step-by-step explanation for the solution. On a subsequent transfer test, these students generated 30 percent more correct solutions than the students who learned without an agent.

Hence, there is clear evidence suggesting that it is worthwhile to consider the role of animated pedagogical agents as aids to learning.

Pedagogical Agent Qualities

What makes an effective agent? Do people learn better from human-looking agents or cartoon-like agents?

Research suggests that a lifelike image is not always an essential component in an effective agent. There is not much of a difference in learning when a real character is used or a cartoon-like animated character. In addition, people learn just as well when the image of the character is present or absent, as long as they can hear the agent's voice.

Agents Need Realistic Human-Like Behavior
Agents may not have to look real, but evidence does indicate that these agents should demonstrate human-like actions in terms of their gestures, movements, and eye-gaze. In a study by Lusk and Atkinson (2007), it was found that students learned better from an on-screen agent who used human-like locomotion, gestures, and eye-gazes rather than from an agent who was physically present but did not move, gesture, or gaze at the learner.

Hence, on-screen pedagogical agents do not need realistic human-like appearance but do need realistic human-like behavior.

Agents have to Sound Conversational
An important factor that makes the agents effective is that they have to sound conversational. Various studies show that people learn better when:

Words are spoken rather than presented as on-screen text (modality effect)

Words are spoken in a conversational style rather than a formal style (the personalization effect)

Words are spoken in a human voice rather than a machine-simulated voice

Consider the Following Suggestions When Using Pedagogical Agents:

Present the agent's words as speech rather than text, in conversational style rather than formal style, and with human-like rather than machine-like articulation

Use agents to provide instruction rather than for entertainment purposes

Use some ﬁrst- and second-person constructions-"I," "we," "me," "my," "you," and/or "your"-in the script for a narration or the text for an on-screen passage to create the feeling of conversation between the course and the learner

Do not overdo the personalization style in the script as this might distract the learner

Though pedagogical agents are constrained by programming, and cannot replace a real teacher or mentor, it is advisable to use pedagogical agents in online courses as research indicates a positive impact on learning.

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How to Use Pedagogical Agents in Your eLearning

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Pedagogical agents are virtual life-like characters you can use in online learning environments to help guide the learning processes.

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The current edtech companies in kenya are: Zeraki

Year Founded: 2014

Location: Nairobi, Kenya

M-Shule

Year Founded: 2016

Location: Nairobi, Kenya

Eneza Education

Year Founded: 2011

Location: Nairobi, Kenya

Zydii

Year Founded: 2017

Location: Nairobi, Kenya

Kidato

Year Founded: 2016

Location: Nairobi, Kenya

FunKe Science

Year Founded: 2012

Location: Nairobi, Kenya

Angaza Elimu

Year Founded: 2017

Location: Nairobi, Kenya

Univus

Year Founded: 2021

Location: Nairobi, Kenya

Arifu

Year Founded: 2013

Location: Nairobi, Kenya

Ed Partners Africa

Year Founded: 2018

Location: Nairobi, Kenya

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12 East African Edtech Startups You Should Know

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The East African education sector has been experiencing rapid growth in recent years, and one of the major contributors to the change is the infusion of technological and innovative solutions into the industry. Several education technology companies have emerged, revolutionizing the way students, te

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68% of the wildlife has been lost since 1977

167 conservancies in Kenya, 65 National Parks under Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS)

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Intelligence Department is charged with the responsibility of collecting, collating, and analyzing security related information from which it generates intelligence concerning the security of wild flora and fauna, security of tourists and KWS resources. The department undertakes surveillance and monitoring of bandits and gangs around wildlife-protected areas.

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Established in 1964, the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species has evolved to become the world's most comprehensive information source on the global conservation status of animal, fungi and plant species.

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Wildlife Security and Education on Conservation

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Wildlife Security and Education on Conservation

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68% of wildlife has been lost since 1977

There are 167 conservancies in Kenya and 65 National Parks under the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS)

There are very few conservation programs in government schools and it should be encouraged a lot more.

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Intelligence Department is charged with the responsibility of collecting, collating, and analyzing security related information from which it generates intelligence concerning the security of wild flora and fauna, security of tourists and KWS resources. The department undertakes surveillance and monitoring of bandits and gangs around wildlife-protected areas.

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Africa stares at severe child, adolescent mental health services gap

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WHO confirms the link to the number of harms children face, the huge gap in services as well as financing and poor mental health outcomes.

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Specific Procurement Notice Request for Bids Bidding Document for Lot 1 and Lot 2 (Kisumu County).pdf Bill Of Quantities for Lot 1 and Lot 2 (Kisumu County).pdf Book of Drawings for LOT 2 (Kisumu county).pdf Book of Drawings for LOT 1 (Kisumu county).pdf Works (Without Prequalification Lot 1: ) Lot 2:
TENDER DOCUMENTS FOR DOWNLOAD (Click on each item to download)

1. The Government of the Republic of Kenya has received financing from the World Bank (IDA) towards the cost of the Second Kenya Informal Settlement Improvement Project (KISIP 2) and intends to apply part of the proceeds toward payments under the contract for Lot 1 (IDA funded component) works in selected settlements in Kisumu County. This contract will be jointly financed by the French Development Agency (AFD) under Lot 2 (AFD funded component) works. Bidding process will be governed by the World Bank's Procurement Regulations.
a) General and Preliminary Items b) Roads and Drainage Works i) Carriageway Works
2. The County Government of Kisumu now invites sealed Bids from eligible Bidders for the construction and completion of Lot 1 and Lot 2 components of the works described below.
ii) Walkway Works

Roads and Drainage Works in Bandani, Nyawita, Migosi, Manyatta A and Manyatta B Settlements in Kisumu city.

Water supply and sewerage works in Migosi and Manyatta B Settlements in Kisumu city.

Electrical Works in Migosi and Manyatta A Settlements in Kisumu city.

iii) Drainage Works

Roads and Drainage Works in Shauri Yako and Bondeni Settlements in Muhoroni town; and Kibuye Settlement in Kisumu City.

Water supply and sanitation works in Kibuye settlement in Kisumu city; and Sangoro/Swahili and Shauri Yako Settlements in Muhoroni town.

Electrical Works in Bondeni and Shauri Moyo Settlements in Muhoroni town.

iv) Other Works c) Electrical Works
The nature and scope of works is detailed in the bidding documents but will generally comprise the following:
d) Water, Sanitation and Sewerage Works

Construction of Wearing Course - 50mm (0/19mm) asphalt concrete (SUPERPAVE) as detailed in the drawings.

Construction of Base Layer - 150mm thick Graded Crushed Stone (Stone Class B, Stone Size 0/40mm) as detailed in the drawings.

Construction of Subbase - 150mm thick Natural Gravel, minimum CBR of 30% as detailed in the drawings.

Construction of improved Sub-grade - 350mm improved sub-grade (minimum CBR of 22.5%) compacted in two layers of 150mm compacted to 95% MDD (AASHTO T180) as detailed in the drawings.

General Earthworks Construction - Up to 350mm below formation level, (minimum CBR of 10%) and compacted to 95% MDD (AASHTO T99) in layer not exceeding 150mm thick as detailed in the drawings.

Construction of 200mm x 100mm x 50mm medium duty interlocking blocks for surfacing as detailed in the drawings.

Construction of improved Sub-grade - 300mm improved sub-grade (minimum CBR of 30%) compacted in two layers of 150mm compacted to 95% MDD (AASHTO T180).

General Earthworks Construction - Up to 300mm below formation level, (minimum CBR of 10%) and compacted to 95% MDD (AASHTO T99) in layer not exceeding 150mm thick.

Construction of Box Culvert as detailed in the bidding documents.

Construction of cross pipe culverts and access culverts.

Construction of Rectangular covered drain and lined trapezoidal side drain.

Construction of a combination of earth standard and lined drains in selected settlements.

Installation of 11No. grid-powered 30M high mast floodlights.

Water supply and sanitation works (HDPE water lines of various diameter, uPVC offtake lines, water kiosks, public tap yards, ablution blocks, consumer connections)

Sewerage works (primary sewer lines of various diameter, lateral sewer lines, individual connections).

Construction of Base Layer - 150mm thick Graded Crushed Stone (Stone Class B, Stone Size 0/40mm) as detailed in the drawings.

The construction period for Lot 1 is 365 days while the construction period for Lot 2 is equally 365 days.

3. Bidders may bid for one or both lots as further defined in the bidding documents. Bidders wishing to offer discounts in case they are awarded more than one contract will be allowed to do so, provided those discounts are included in the Letter of Bid.

4. Bidding will be conducted through national competitive procurement using Request for Bids (RFB) as specified in the World Bank's " Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers- Procurement in Investment Projects Financing dated July 2016, and revised in October 2017, August 2018 and November 2020", and is open to all eligible Bidders as defined in the Procurement Regulations.
For Lot 1:
5. Interested eligible Bidders may obtain further information from and inspect the Bidding document during office hours at the address given at the end of this Request for Bids (RFB).
For Lot 2:
6. Bidders will access the Bidding document from the County Government website kisumu.go.ke or the Public Procurement Information Portal (PPIP) https://tenders.go.ke free of charge.

7. Bids must be delivered to the address below on or before 29th August, 2023 at 1000HRS East African Time (EAT). Electronic Bidding will not be permitted. Late Bids will be rejected. Bids will be publicly opened in the presence of the Bidders' designated representatives and anyone who chooses to attend at the address below on 29th August, 2023 at 1000HRS East African Time (EAT).

8. All Bids must be accompanied by a Bid Security (in the form prescribed in the bidding documents) of:

The amount and currency of the Bid Security shall be Kenya Shillings Twenty-Two Million (KES 22,000,000.00).
The County Secretary, County Government of Kisumu, 2nd Floor, Prosperity Building, P.O. Box 2738-40100, Kisumu, Kenya. E-mail address: countysecretary@kisumu.go.ke From Monday to Friday between 08:00 hours to 16:00 hours except on public holidays.
The amount and currency of the Bid Security shall be Kenya Shillings Four Million (KES 4,000,000.00).

9. Attention is drawn to the Procurement Regulations requiring the Borrower to disclose information on the successful bidder's beneficial ownership, as part of the Contract Award Notice, using the Beneficial Ownership Disclosure Form as included in the bidding document.

10. All interested bidders are required to continually check the County Government website kisumu.go.ke and the Public Procurement Information Portal (PPIP) https://tenders.go.kefor any tender addenda or clarifications that may arise before the submission date.

11. The address (es) referred to above is (are):

Web page: www.kisumu.go.ke

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Construction of Roads & Drainage Works/Water Supply & Sewerage Works/Public Lighting Works for Lot1 & Lot2 in Kisumu County | County Government of Kisumu

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Specific Procurement Notice Request for Bids Works (Without Prequalification) TENDER DOCUMENTS FOR DOWNLOAD (Click on each item to download) Bidding Document for Lot 1 and Lot 2 (Kisumu County).pdf Bill Of Quantities for Lot 1 and Lot 2 (Kisumu County).pdf Book of Drawings for LOT 2 (Kisumu county).pdf Book of Drawings for LOT 1 (Kisumu

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Posts about programming written by Neil Jarrett

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Many games focus on making things fun or competitive. Such as Prodigy, which requires you to battle other creatures by answering questions to summon your attack. For competitiveness, Kahoot is a live questionnaire for people to race to get the right answer. Gimkit is both fun and/or competitive and has a variety of games to choose from. Blooket is similar to Gimkit. If we do a similar game to all of these combined, it will lead to an entertaining game. Only if we give questions to answer very often, we can make it more education related.

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Learning Games: Blooket vs Kahoot vs Gimkit vs Quizizz | Roundup

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There are so many interactive tech options that are great for the classroom — but how do you choose? We’ve reviewed (and determined which option is the best out of) Blooket, Kahoot, Gimkit, Quizizz, and Slides With Friends.

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These guys can see the foocher.

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Introducing Wonderscope: an augmented reality iOS app for kids

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How To Create 'Guided Meditation' Videos For YouTube With AI Tools

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Climate Kids is produced by the Earth Science Communications Team at

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Save the Elephants (STE) has been GPS tracking elephants and other animals in Africa since 1995. Originally a tool for fundamental research into elephant movements, the technique has become an important tool to guide ranger patrolling and to help in long-term landscape planning.

In 2013 STE signed a deal with Vulcan to transform the concept of the STE Tracking System into a powerful platform protected area managers to visualise the positions not only of wildlife, but of rangers, vehicles and aircraft, and integrate them with data from camera traps, fence-break alarms and other sensors.

The STE WildTracks, powered by Vulcan Inc., is a specialised tool designed for those interested in visualising and interrogating the movements of individual animals, be they elephants or other animals. It is currently used by researchers and conservationists in 12 countries across Africa.

Currently available on all iOS devices, elegant visualization helps researchers, conservationists and wildlife managers to investigate behavior, plan wildlife areas and corridors and guide law enforcement.

Support - contact STE on [email protected]

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STE WildTracks Save the Elephants (STE) has been GPS tracking elephants and other animals in Africa since 1995. Originally a tool for fundamental research into elephant movements...

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Maintaining ecological balance and biodiversity depends on protecting wildlife. Implementing successful wildlife protection policies is essential to ensuring the survival of animals and sustaining healthy ecosystems . In this article, we will explain the most effective methods for preserving and protecting wildlife.

Conserving natural , such as wetlands or woods, entails protecting land from development and other human activities that can disturb the ecology. Reforestation or wetland restoration initiatives are examples of ways to repair degraded habitats. It is also a proactive approach to species protection.

Nature-based projects such as those of DGB Group help restore nature at scale by creating habitats and revitalising biodiversity through reforestation, afforestation, and community-based agroforestry. For instance, our Bulindi Chimpanzee Habitat Restoration Project aims to rapidly restore the declining chimpanzee habitat of over 300 chimpanzees in Bulindi, Uganda, through active afforestation and community involvement. By investing in our projects, you not only help to create and preserve vital habitats but also take responsibility for your environmental impact by offsetting your carbon footprint with our verified carbon credits.

Preserve habitats and start measuring your environmental impact

2. Sustainable land-use practices

Encouraging sustainable land-use practices can protect wildlife by reducing habitat loss and fragmentation. This can include promoting sustainable agriculture, reducing the use of pesticides and other harmful chemicals, and using eco-friendly technologies in forestry and other industries.

Sustainable land-use practices also involve reducing the impact of human activities on wildlife populations. This can include measures such as reducing pollution, minimising disturbance, and avoiding activities that disrupt natural ecosystems. By minimising our impact on the environment, we can help to reduce stress on wildlife populations and ensure their long-term survival.
Join DGB in protecting nature
3. Research and monitoring

Monitoring the status and trends of wildlife populations is essential for effective conservation management. Research can identify opportunities for conservation and inform policy and management decisions. This can include monitoring changes in habitat quality, population size, and other key indicators of wildlife health and survival.

4. Public education and awareness

Educating the public about the importance of wildlife conservation is crucial in creating a culture of responsible and sustainable behaviour. This can be done through outreach programmes, school programmes, and public awareness campaigns that raise awareness about the impacts of human activity on wildlife.

Public education and awareness can promote a deeper appreciation of nature and wildlife. By learning about different species and their unique characteristics, people can develop a greater understanding and appreciation for the natural world. This can foster a sense of responsibility and stewardship, encouraging individuals to take action to protect wildlife and their habitats.

5. Creating wildlife areas

Creating wildlife areas is an excellent approach to helping local wildlife populations and providing much-needed habitat. By investing in nature-based projects or converting your property into a wildlife-friendly habitat, you provide a safe refuge for birds, butterflies, bees, and other species while also promoting biodiversity .

Wildlife areas provide animals with a place to graze and relax. You can provide food and shelter for many wildlife species by growing a selection of native plants and shrubs. Flowers that attract butterflies and bees, trees that provide nesting sites for birds, and shrubs that provide cover for tiny mammals and reptiles are examples of this. You can also invest in DGB's nature-based projects that plant millions of trees and make a positive environmental impact on a large scale.

Invest in our nature-based projects and make a positive impact

Recycling reduces the demand for new products, protects the lives of animals, and contributes to carbon offsetting by lowering sent to landfills and incinerators, both large sources of carbon emissions. Recycling helps reduce an organisation's overall carbon footprint by diverting waste from these facilities. Using recycled materials also reduces the pressure on the habitats and preserves them for wildlife.

A fantastic method to protect the natural habitats of nearby animals is to plant trees in your garden or on any other potential land via tree-planting programmes. This helps provide the habitats and resources needed for wildlife to prosper. Trees are sources of food, shelter, and breeding grounds for many animal species. Trees also provide resting places, nesting sites, and animal hunting locations. Planting trees can also help to offset the carbon emissions of human activities. DGB's nature-based projects plant millions of trees, helping to restore nature at scale and provide vital habitats for species. Our selection of indigenous tree species not only sequesters large amounts of carbon but also restores ecosystems and supports local communities.
Support nature and plant trees with DGB
You can also support wildlife protection by reducing your environmental impact and calculating and offseting your carbon footprint. By offsetting your carbon footprint with our verified carbon credits, you support our nature restoration and tree-panting projects.
Measure your environmental impact
The importance of protecting wildlife

There are many ways you can protect wildlife. Sustainable land use practices, public education and awareness, tree planting, recycling, wildlife habitat creation, and investing in nature-based projects are all examples of techniques for protecting the natural environment.

Also, wildlife resource conservation carries profound implications for our planet and future generations. The consequences of wildlife resource conservation extend beyond biodiversity preservation. Conserving wildlife resources helps maintain the overall health and resilience of ecosystems, preventing habitat destruction, curbing pollution, and combatting the illegal wildlife trade. Such efforts mitigate the loss of valuable species and their habitats, safeguarding the intricate interdependencies of nature. Moreover, wildlife resource conservation promotes the sustainable use of natural resources, supporting the livelihoods of local communities and fostering environmental stewardship. By valuing and protecting wildlife resources, we contribute to a healthier planet, enhanced ecological sustainability, and harmonious coexistence between humans and nature.
Reforestation: 10 amazing benefits of planting trees
DGB supports biodiversity and protects wildlife by planting millions of trees and making a positive impact on the environment and local communities. Our goal is to improve the state of global forests and the habitats they provide by implementing high-quality nature-based solutions. Our mission is to protect wildlife, and planting trees is one of the most effective ways to protect them.
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Maintaining ecological balance and biodiversity depends on protecting wildlife. Learn more about the most important strategies for protecting wildlife.

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This happend 5 days ago.

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Endless savannah plains, the life-giving waters of Mara River and abundant wildlife make up the intriguing Mara ecosystem, a 2,500 square kilometre-protected area in the south of Kenya. It consists of the Masai Mara National Reserve and privately owned conservancies, where people and wildlife have traditionally co-existed. One keystone species that stands out here is the Maasai giraffe.

But what's less obvious about these towering twigas is where and how they roam this vast ecosystem, an important wildlife corridor. Gathering this information requires capturing a giraffe. It is a tall order, a mission the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) sets out to accomplish.

The Giraffe Conservation Foundation is a key partner in this exercise. They're providing the technology that will gather the necessary information. Arthur Muneza, the East Africa coordinator, says it's a tag attached to a giraffe. "We have tagged giraffes in the reserve and Mara North, Lemek and various others in the Mara ecosystem.

These conservancies are somewhat connected, but we don't know to what level and whether the human activities happening, like fencing and livestock presence, impact wildlife. That's why we are using GPS satellite tags to essentially look at giraffes to see how they are using this landscape," Aurthur says.

He adds that the biggest threat is human activities, especially infrastructure. "Fences severely threaten giraffes' survival. For some reason, they can't see the wires, and they often get trapped in fences. Indeed, we have seen poachers pushing giraffes towards fences."

Tagging a giraffe requires darting, capturing and fitting it with a tag. But first, the process requires finding the right candidate, which is a sub-adult male or female around three-four years old. From this age, they move away from their mothers and are highly mobile, so they can be better monitored.

On this particular day, a potential target is spotted, but it has a baby. Another one is too big and would require more drugs to bring it down. Its large size could also pose a danger to the team at the point of release. A couple is seen, but they sense the team's presence and make a run for it. Finally, there is one that fits the bill. The KWS vet, Dr Mukami Ruori, decides to take her aim and fires.

The team ropes the giraffe around its legs and brings it down. They then rush in to adjust its neck position, which needs to be upright to avoid regurgitation, choking and possible death. Giraffes are delicate due to their size and long necks.

The antidote, or reversal drug, is given immediately the giraffe has been roped down as keeping it sedated for too long can be life-threatening. It's a race against time to get everything done, including attaching the satellite tag on the giraffe's tail.

The GPS gadget, made in Kenya, costs Sh300, 000, including satellite upload and download time. It's expected to stay on for two-three years, during which time it will capture information and help answer research questions.

Once attached, the giraffe is released and it runs back into the savannah. The entire exercise takes about 15 minutes. A total of 21 giraffes are fitted with the GPS trackers.

Six months after the exercise, we follow up on the satellite data transmitted to the EarthRanger integrated web-based system, which is made to assist ecological matters. Victor Matsanza, Earth Ranger coordinator, explains that the signal from the tag is sent via satellite and it provides the time, date and direction the tagged giraffe is moving towards.

The giraffes' behaviour is revealed through the data. The technology shows the direction of the animals' movement and areas of concentration. Victor says the data allows for conservation decisions to be made. "Are they moving towards the community areas where we have farms or not? If they are, we have patrol teams on the ground guiding them based on this data. We tell teams that we have movement of giraffes towards this area, 'so be on the lookout', and we prevent poaching."

Victor adds that the technology comes with its challenges: "Sometimes when the area is more cloudy, you won't get real-time readings as expected. If an animal goes to an intense area like a thicket or a lot of vegetation, the satellites cannot recognise those tags. You end up getting a delayed signal, or sometimes it can fail.

In this case, five tags failed and depowered. Tags can also fall off the giraffes. Despite this, technology is key in conservation efforts, according to Victor.

"Technology is changing and conservation can't be left behind. We have to invest fully in it so we get more real-time value. If we don't act, then chances are we will end up losing the giraffes. You can only safeguard what you monitor; whatever you can't monitor, it's hard to safeguard," Victor says.

There are three species of giraffes in Kenya, the Maasai, Nubian and reticulated. Giraffes are critical as they help balance the ecosystem by eating tall shrubs and opening up forage for shorter animals. There are about 35,000 giraffes in Kenya. Safeguarding their populations is crucial as they continue to face growing threats such as poaching, habitat loss, diseases and climate change.
Watch NTV Wild Talk's "Tracking Twigas" episode tonight on NTV Kenya or on ntvkenya.co.ke at 8.25pm

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Tracking the Mara giraffes using innovative tail tags

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The technology shows the direction of the animals' movement and areas of concentration

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Equipping our children with the ability to perform important life skills is a crucial aspect of adulting. We all want our kids to be ahead of the game and succeed at this thing we call life, but what should we be teaching them and how? With this ultimate list of life skills to teach kids, we'll explore all the little things we sometimes don't think to teach and find fun ways to implore our kiddos to learn them. Let's learn some life skills!

Teaching and Learning With Adventures From Scratch

Looking for a way to create memorable family moments and teach life skills at the same time? We've got you covered. Adventures From Scratch: Family Edition has over 50 scratch-off challenges that have been carefully crafted to promote communication, teamwork, and laughter among family members of all ages. Stay at home, or take your adventure on the road. You can even scrapbook together to save memories! Gather your loved ones, and let the games begin!

The Most Important Life Skills to Teach Kids

Preparing your child for each stage of life, from preschool to independence, is a challenge. While many of the skills they need can be developed at a young age, others will take time to hash out over the years. By fostering these skills early on and allowing your child to put them into practice, you can help them gain self-esteem and independence as they approach adulthood.

Remember that teaching kids life skills is an ongoing process that requires patience, consistency, and support. It won't happen in a day, so don't put too much stress on yourself here. They will eventually learn to tie their shoes. On this helpful list of life skills, we've included concepts for both young children and older kids.

1. Decision-Making

Decision-making is an important life skill that kids need to learn at an early age. It's also one that many of us adults still need to work on. Mature decision-making involves assessing the range of options and choosing the best course of action. Practicing by starting with small decisions in a safe and supportive environment is the best way to learn this valuable skill and develop critical thinking skills.

Play board games like The Game of Life together or card games like Phase Ten. Consider taking time-outs during play to talk about concepts, or pair up with your child as a team until they get the hang of it.

Create problem-solving challenges for your child, like finding a solution to puzzles or riddles. Try our "150+ Best Riddles (with Answers)" for ideas. Riddles are a fun way to help your child learn to think creatively.

Role-playing scenarios: Pretend to be a fashion designer! Lay out your best creations, or have your child tell you what kind of look they're going for. You could also pretend to be a car salesman and let your child think about the aspects that go into purchasing a vehicle. The list goes on.

2. Health and Hygiene

Health and hygiene skills seem like a no-brainer, but as a former elementary school teacher, I can personally attest that they are often overlooked. Good hygiene not only helps prevent the spread of germs but also produces self-worth and confidence in children. Tooth brushing, hand washing, and healthy eating habits are not always a high priority for kids. These can be boring and redundant activities, so you will need to find ways to keep their attention.

Model healthy habits for your child, like washing your hands and brushing your teeth regularly, and invite them to help.

Create fun activities that teach hygiene, like washing hands with colorful soap animals, creating a tooth-brushing chart, or using one of the many tooth-brushing songs on YouTube. For older kids, you may need to use a timer to make sure they're performing each task for the appropriate amount of time.

3. Time Management

Time management is a valuable skill that is hard to master. It involves setting goals, prioritizing tasks, and not losing your sanity trying to fit it all in. The following activities can help in promoting good time management.

4. Cooking

Learning to cook food for yourself paves the way toward self-sufficiency and healthy eating. While most of us only cook to eat, the concept of cooking actually teaches quite a few important skills, such as meal planning, budgeting, sanitary food preparation, and time management.

5. Money Management

Making informed financial decisions is an essential life skill. Proper money management involves things like budgeting, saving for the future, and managing debt. Money management is not the easiest concept for a lot of people in our very consumer-driven society. Here are a few options to help promote good money habits.

6. Laundry

Laundry is a basic life skill that kids can learn early. Even tiny children can start by sorting clean clothes from dirty clothes. Preschoolers can help load a washing machine, and older kids can do the folding and put it away.

Turn laundry into a fun game by creating a laundry relay. Have your child race to sort and fold clothes in a certain amount of time. Might as well get their hearts pumping!

Create laundry challenges for your tween, like looking up the remedy for a stubborn stain. This will help them develop their problem-solving skills and build their confidence in the laundry room. For little ones, send them on a scavenger hunt of the house looking for dirty laundry to put in the washer.

7. Cleaning

Again, cleaning may not seem like something you need to teach, but the concepts involved don't come naturally. Keeping a clean house involves organization, good time management, and willpower.

Create cleaning games for your child, like "cleaning treasure hunt," where they search for hidden objects to clean, or "cleaning dance party," where they wrap their feet in microfiber towels and dance their way to cleaner floors.

Create cleaning challenges for your child, like cleaning a specific area of the house or organizing a messy room before the time runs out.

For more ways to make chores fun, check out " 11 Ways to Make Chores Fun."

8. Comparison Shopping

To make informed purchasing decisions, it's crucial for children to learn the skill of comparison shopping. It involves comparing prices, quality, and features of different products to find the best value for money.

Play a game where you compare the prices of different products at two stores. This will help them understand that branding produces different price ranges for essentially the same product.

Create shopping challenges for your child, like finding the best deal on a specific item on Amazon or in your local store.

9. Ordering at a Restaurant

Ordering at a restaurant can help kids learn to communicate effectively, overcome social anxieties, and make informed food choices. Encourage them to read the menu, ask questions about unknown food items, place an order, and interact with the waitstaff.

Role-play ordering at a restaurant with your child, taking turns being the customer and the waiter. This will help them develop their communication skills in a fun way.

Create a menu at home, and have your child practice ordering from it. This will help them learn how to read a menu before being under pressure at a restaurant.

10. Getting Dressed and Ready

Learning to get dressed and ready is a significant life skill for children as it helps them manage their time efficiently, choose weather-appropriate clothing, and express themselves with personal style.

Play dress-up games with your child, where they practice putting on different outfits and accessories. This will help them develop their unique style and learn how to choose appropriate clothing for different occasions.

Create a morning routine chart with your child, with different tasks assigned at different times. Give them a way to check off the task when they've completed it. Stickers are good!

11. House Maintenance

Learning to take care of a house themselves can save your kids lots of money in the future. Most house maintenance is easy to do but can be daunting if you were never taught the basics. The more comfortable you get fixing things, the more confident you will be when a new problem arises. Under adult supervision, even young children can be taught to paint, weed the flower bed, plunge a toilet, or change a light fixture.

Pick Your Tool: Explain to your child that you have a leaky faucet, a stopped-up toilet, or a loose nail in the deck, and have them choose the appropriate tool to fix the problem. Then demonstrate proper use of the tool, and allow them to attempt to fix it.

12. Basic First Aid

Basic first aid involves things like cleaning wounds, applying bandages, and recognizing when to seek medical attention.

13. Car Maintenance

Let's face it; cars are a lot of maintenance. Teaching your young adults to check the oil and fluid levels, change tires, and do some basic repairs will help keep their cars running a bit longer and hopefully prevent the 2 a.m. "Dad, I'm stranded" calls.

14. Caring for Pets and Plants

Caring for pets and plants helps children develop empathy and responsibility. Involving kids in things like feeding, grooming, and watering can nurture caregiving skills that will come in handy once they're running the show.

Create a pet and plant care schedule for your child, with individual tasks assigned to different days of the week.

Take your child to a pet or plant care facility, like a pet store or a greenhouse, where they can learn about different animals and plants and how to care for them. Animal shelters are often looking for volunteers to feed, walk, and bathe the animals.

15. Contact Information Memorization

We all have smartphones that have made this skill almost useless, but phones die or don't have service sometimes. Kids get separated from their parents, and you have to know your address to enter it into Google Maps. By the time they go to school, children should know their address and phone number.

Play memory games with your child, where they memorize phone numbers or addresses and then repeat them back with some prize attached to them. The traditional card match game is easy and effective. Make cards with mom's picture, and have the child match it to the card with mom's phone number.

Emergency contact practice: Practice emergency contact scenarios with your child, where they learn to dial 911, look for emergency exits on a plane or in a store, or identify personnel that can help in the event of an emergency.

16. Coping with Failure

Learning to handle disappointment and setbacks is not the most fun thing, but it's definitely needed for healthy child development. Whether it's losing a game or a failed business investment, dealing with failure in a healthy way can be the difference between a valued learning experience and a depressive episode.

Teach your child to appreciate failure as a necessary step toward success. Talk to them about famous people who have failed before succeeding, and encourage them to see failure as a learning opportunity. Also, never let them win in a game against you (kidding... sort of).

Help your child develop self-awareness by asking them reflective questions after a failure, like "What did you learn from this experience?" or "What could you do differently next time?"

17. Finding a Job

Finding a job is nerve-wracking, time-consuming, and sometimes ego-deflating. Learning to write a resume, apply for jobs, and prepare for interviews in advance can save your child from some of the frustration later in life.

Hop on Canva, and have your older child use the templates to develop a resume for a fictitious job or a college application.

Role-play different job interview scenarios with your child, taking turns being the interviewer and the interviewee. This will help them learn how to answer common interview questions and how to present themselves confidently.

18. Good Manners

Good manners are seriously lacking in modern society. Using polite language, respecting personal space, and showing empathy are qualities we need to invest in the next generation.

Have a tea party, and work on proper table etiquette!

Role-play introducing yourself to a respected person.

Watch a YouTube video on how to properly set a table, and then try to make yours match.

Encourage children to use polite language like "please" and "thank you" consistently within the home, building the habit for when they're outside the home.

Help your child develop empathy by asking them to imagine how other people feel in difficult situations. Ask them questions like, "How do you think your friend felt when you didn't share your toy with them?" or "How would you feel if someone said that to you?"

19. How to Swim

At some point in your child's life, they will be around water, and you don't want to be freaking out every second of summer. The earlier you bite the bullet and teach them to swim, the better.

20. Self-Defense

It's a wild world out there, and learning self-defense can help children feel empowered and safe in their environment. Your child learning about situational awareness, boundary-setting, and physical defense can ease your worry a little, too.

21. Riding a Bike

Riding a bike promotes physical fitness, independence, and adventure. Things like balance, coordination, and traffic safety are life lessons that are inherently learned while riding.

Teach your child about bike safety, including things like wearing a helmet, using hand signals, and obeying traffic laws.

Practice bike riding with your child in a safe, open area, like a park or a bike trail. Start with training wheels or a balance bike. Gradually remove the training wheels as your child becomes more confident. Once they've got it down, challenge them to a bike race, or introduce them to a bike ramp.

22. Using Maps

Using maps can help children navigate the world around them and develop a sense of direction. Yes, we have Google Maps, but there are a lot of places it doesn't work. Learning to read a map legend, use a compass, and understand landmarks helps develop situational awareness skills that will serve them in countless ways.

Geocaching: This is an outdoor recreational activity in which participants use GPS coordinates or a mobile device to hide and seek containers, called "geocaches," at specific locations marked by coordinates all over the world.

Treasure hunt: Organize a treasure hunt for your child using a map and clues. This will help them develop their map-reading skills while having fun.

23. Basic Sewing

We have all had a button fall off of our favorite pants. When you have some basic sewing skills, you can fix it and keep your favorite around for a bit longer. You don't need to be a seamstress to teach your kids how to thread a needle and tie a knot.

Threading and knotting practice: Teach your child how to thread a needle and tie a knot using embroidery floss or thread. Hobby stores also have tons of cute felt sewing kits with plastic needles and larger holes to help little ones learn.

Hand-sewing practice: Have your child practice hand-sewing by sewing buttons onto fabric or repairing small holes in clothing. They can create a button masterpiece to show off.

Machine-sewing practice: Teach your child how to use a sewing machine by guiding them through simple projects like making a pillowcase or a tote bag.

Fashion Show: Challenge their creativity by having them design and sew their own piece of clothing! They can use stitches, glue, household items, or real fabric. Get creative with it!

24. Digital Literacy

In our technical world, digital literacy is of vital importance. Kids are wizzes at the technology part, but they rarely understand the implications of being careless with information. Teaching them to navigate safely through their online interactions and protect their privacy might just save their lives.

Pop Quiz: Start by formulating a few questions: "True or False-It's ok to watch YouTube videos on mommy's profile," or "True or False-It's fine to talk to adults that aren't family on Messenger."

Teach your child about digital citizenship, including things like respecting intellectual property, being mindful of online behavior and language, and contributing positively to online communities. Scroll through social media, and snag a few nasty comments and a few empowering ones. Talk about how you would feel if someone said those things to you, and encourage your child to be an uplifting friend, not a keyboard warrior.

If your child spends too much time on electronics, check out " Tips for How to Get Kids Off Electronics " to help them curb the habit.

Tackling the Tough Tasks

Teaching life skills to kids is an important responsibility that parents and caregivers share. By equipping children with practical skills, we help them develop independence, responsibility, and resilience and prepare them for a successful future. To be honest, teaching can take a lot of energy and patience. It's often easier just to do the task yourself, but that doesn't benefit anyone in the situation. It's a short-sighted solution. The key to teaching life skills to children is making it fun, engaging, and age-appropriate. By using a variety of teaching methods, like role-playing, games, and real-life experiences, we can help kids learn important life skills in a way that is enjoyable and meaningful to them and to us.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are practical life skills?

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24 Life Skills to Teach Kids (And Fun Ways to Teach Them!)

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We've composed a list of 24 life skills to teach kids (and fun ways to teach them) to help shape them into well-rounded individuals.

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Exploring the innovative ways technology and game mechanics can be used to enhance education and learning, Game Research and Immersive Design (GRID) at Rutgers University creates various custom games and virtual experiences for online learning across the institution. As part of the Teaching and Learning with Technology game department, GRID works with members across the Rutgers community to build games, immersive technologies, and engaging experiences that can be accessed directly from the university's main learning management system, Canvas. In a recent collaboration with Edge, GRID developed an education game design project for the School of Social Work where the player can alter the outcome of the story by making choices along the way.

Educating through Storytelling
Michael Gradin, or Maka, Assistant Director of GRID at Rutgers Division of Continuing Studies, helped head up this project and brought over 20 years of knowledge in game development, IT support, and education to the development of this learning object. "I've always been interested in the intersection between playing and learning, and have worked at a couple of EdTech startups, as well as working as a game designer and developer for a local game design studio, Quixotic Games, which has thirty published board games," shares Maka. "Most narrative-type games are linear, where you start at the beginning, get to the middle, and end with a conclusion. We set out to create a branching story game, where the learner can make choices for the character along the way that affect the game's output or ending. There are three main stories, each requiring an initial choice by the user. Then each of those choices has a new branch extending from there, where each story has the possibility of nine different endings."

The learning object presents the user with a conflict where he or she must choose either side. "While these games are often used to tell many kinds of stories in entertainment, most of those I've seen used in education have been designed to help build empathy for the people students will face in their eventual careers," shares Maka. "The purpose here is to build empathy for the main character featured in each of the three initial stories. For example, when confronted with the idea of someone in an abusive situation or relationship, some student's instincts may be to blame the victim because 'they should just leave.' Or as a nurse or social worker, understanding why a person might be struggling with their health instead of seeing them as a symptom that just needs to be 'fixed' allows that person to be more compassionate and effective in their role. Stories like these are designed to help the learners understand why people might find themselves in undesirable situations and how even when they make choices to try to improve their lives, they don't always work out. By showing these scenarios, we help students build empathy for the people in these types of situations."

Learning Object Development
Prior to development, the stakeholders at Rutgers had a rough concept for this learning object, but lacked the resources needed to achieve the project's goals. "GRID is a very small unit and we did not have the bandwidth to work on this project during the timeframe the clients were requesting," explains Maka. "Our parent unit, Teaching and Learning with Technology, had already met with Edge to discuss the possibility of helping with other projects, so we reached out to them to see if they could take this project on as well." Aaron Yorchak, an instructional designer and technologist at Edge, teamed up with Maka to help get the project to the finish line.

Upon joining the project, Yorchak received a rough outline of the script for each scene, the goals of the project, and what the learning object was set out to accomplish. "I took the initial script and built out a skeleton where I have a number of slide placeholders for each scene in the story," explains Yorchak. "I would drop in the textual parts from the script, and once that skeleton was in place, I would start from the beginning to review each scene and determine what images will help illustrate each scenario, including the scene, number of characters, and the actions depicted by the characters. I would then share a prototype version with Maka and the stakeholders so they could see each story in action and identify any issues with the script that needed to be revised. Maka is an excellent conduit between Edge and the stakeholders, helping communicate our needs to them and helping us understand what the stakeholders' goals and expectations are as we move through the project."

Working closely with stakeholders, Maka helped structure their story and keep track of each separate path. "With stories like these, it is very easy to get confused about what has happened in the story so far," explains Maka. "I help keep track of the branches and after editing and converting their work, I hand over those notes to Aaron who builds the information into an interactive story using Articulate Storyline. Aaron also helped design the scenes and scenarios that meet certain minimum art requirements and met the approval of all stakeholders." Yorchak adds, "As development has progressed, some content revisions were necessary to address challenges in the storytelling process, such as realism and sensitivity to stereotypes and difficult content. As a collaborative partner, Edge will work with an organization to customize a solution to fit their needs, not try to force a cookie-cutter idea to work."

Partnering for Success
As the project enters its final stages and reaches deployment, Maka says he gained important insight into the process and which steps could be improved upon in the future. "Now that I've had the experience of working with Edge and the stakeholders, the only thing I would do differently is to ask Aaron to build out the text of all the stories first, before asking him to work on graphics and settings. This would have allowed the stakeholders to see the flow of the stories and review the text more easily and earlier in the process. As far as teaming up with Aaron and Edge's Associate Vice President & Chief Digital Learning Office, Josh Gaul, they have been very professional and it's been a pleasure working with them on this project. Aaron is not only building the story, but has been working with me to make the editing and review process smoother for the stakeholders."

In reflecting upon this project that is near completion, Yorchak says this experience is another great example of Edge's commitment to member institutions and helping them achieve their goals. "We're very proud of the work we've accomplished with Maka and GRID and building an innovative game that helps increase engagement and enhances the learner experience. Edge prides itself on adapting to the needs of the individual organization and offering our combined expertise and experience to turn an institution's ideas into reality."

Partner with Edge to bring your teaching and learning innovation ideas to life. To explore Edge's portfolio of learner-centric services and solutions, visit njedge.net/solutions-overview/digital-learning.

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Using Educational Games to Create Real World Learning Experiences - NJEdge Inc

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Exploring the innovative ways technology and game mechanics can be used to enhance education and learning, Game Research and Immersive Design (GRID) at Rutgers University creates various custom games and virtual experiences for online learning across the institution.

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Preparing for Success: Enhancing Social Communication in Grade 12 Key Takeaways Strong social communication skills are crucial for academic success and building meaningful relationships in Grade 12. Social communication includes verbal and non-verbal communication,...

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Fun and Educational Games for Building Life Skills Online, at No Cost | Everyday Speech

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Fun and Educational Games for Building Life Skills Online, at No Cost Fun and Educational Games for Building Life Skills Online, at No Cost Are you looking for fun and interactive ways to develop important life skills? Look no further! In today's digital age, online games can be a valuable tool for building essential skills [...]

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It's a common phrase to say "learn by playing." Different communication theories confirm this. Games make us produce dopamine, a brain chemical that increases learning and stimulates our state of attention. eLearning experts believe that games and playing need to be part of a course for adults to learn effectively. As a result, learning games are a necessary part of great eLearning these days. Without them, your courseware wouldn't be so engaging..."They are fun, competitive, rewarding, interactive, and attention-grabbing. Traditional training is...not any of those" says Steve Boller from Bottom-Line Performance Blog.

Since the ultimate goal is to get your learners to complete the course and actually learn the content in it, games are a great way to achieve this. Because the design of your game has a direct impact on the learning experience, it's absolutely critical that you approach it wisely. When games are created with the learner in mind, students don't even realize they're in a training session.

Here are the five most critical components of outstanding Learning Games:

Games definitely help reinforce learning objectives through playing. Therefore, it's very important to make sure if the games that are planned to be included are based on your initial objectives. As well, you need to define what the learning objectives for the game should be (knowledge, skills, and attitudes).

Some games turn out to be just boring ordinary games instead of proper ones with good content. On the other hand, there are others that have plenty of information which is unnecessary. You need to ask yourself some questions: What is the learning objective? I s the structure of the game appropriate for the instructional objectives, for the audience's characteristics and intended use? Remember: students need to see the point of it all and know what they personally will get out of the game.

Note: You can include any number of games you want in a single eLearning course with the only condition that they must respond to initial course objectives.

Rules and/or Instructions:

This brings us to the next concern that trainers have with regard to including learning games and that is rules and/or instructions. Effective instructions are a vital part when using learning games in your courses. Learners need to know what they are expected to do and how the game is played in order to succeed. You need to answer to some basic questions, for example: Does the game include clear and concise instructions? Do the rules avoid unnecessary and insignificant items?

Games are a great resource for experimenting with ideas and knowledge. Without doubt, in games, anything the learner does has a consequence; therefore they become a valuable and experiential tool. It's highly empirial and interactive because students are able to see their results of their decisions in real time, and they can also change their choices and experiment with how they could improve their performance by trying things differently.

There are several different types of games that offer interactivity. Some that we can mention: Adventure games, Building games, Reality Testing games, Role-play games, Puzzles, Competitions, Sport Games. Always keep in mind that you're making it easy for learners to play the game!

Conflict (and/or competition, challenge, opposition)

The next -- and probably biggest -- question when including learning games in your courses is, how can they be challenging enough to avoid boredom? This is a tricky question, because games are extremely powerful and students will spend all their energies on winning if they are developed correctly. Therefore, you have to be careful the game is developed with this in mind. For your convenience, SHIFT offers more than 20 different games already developed with this in mind, so you don't have to spend time thinking on this. A challenging game usually means more learners will be willing to play the game, so you'll generate more engagement.

Keeping in mind that challenge should match the skill level of the student. Providing an adequate challenge is introducing one that it's not easy to bore students and not too hard to be resolved, the result can an increase in student's motivation so be careful!

Taking a challenge, achieving better scores every time, experimenting and seeing what happens are some of the aspects you should consider to maintain conflict. The most important thing is that you have enough content to evaluate in a game, so that you can combine different variables to regulate the game's difficulty level. Although you don't use games as tests, you should always show students that they are being evaluated and they must respond responsibly. All this is also part of the initial motivation for training.

The last major component of your games is the feedback learner's receive. Certainly, within games there is a close connection between action and instantaneous feedback. Learners need feedback when asked to respond to the different questions. They need to be able to know how they are doing. Therefore, you need to show them if their answers are correct or incorrect... and explain why (Never just say: "That's wrong. Try again"). Include feedback continuously as it will increase learning and motivational results. Just make sure that it's encouraging and that should help to reduce friction for completing the game.

You can quickly add several different types of games in your courses with SHIFT:

Game show competitions: IQ Challenge for example.

Detective and adventure games: Rescue de princess,

Timed games: Rally

Sport games: Baseball, Basketball, Golf and Tennis tournaments for example.

Simulation games

Dare to use games in your training! They definitely help engage learners and make them think. As well, they are a totally different and fresh way to assess students without falling into monotony.
Master these five crucial components when developing learning games, and you'll significantly improve your eLearning courses.

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The 5 Decisive Components of Outstanding Learning Games

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eLearning experts believe that games and playing need to be part of a course for adults to learn effectively.

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What is Educational Technology?

Educational Technology is the field of study that investigates the process of analyzing, designing, developing, implementing, and evaluating the instructional environment, learning materials, learners, and the learning process in order to improve teaching and learning.

Why is Educational Technology in Education Important?

Educational technology in education is important because it helps today's teachers to integrate new technologies and tools into their classroom. Teachers are able to upgrade and improve the learner-centeredness of their classroom. It enables teachers to engage their students in unique, innovative, and equitable ways. Teachers are also able to expand their network and connect with other teachers and educators nationally and globally.

What can I do with a Master's in Educational Technology degree?

Many teachers pursue a Master's degree in Educational Technology because they want to improve their use of educational technology-they want to learn how to more effectively integrate the use of 1:1 devices, or how to teach in a hybrid or fully online setting, or how to improve student engagement and achievement with technology. Not only do they learn all of these skills and more, they also learn how to integrate research-supported strategies to improve their teaching and how to coach their peers to do the same.
Graduates of a Master's in Educational Technology degree have gone on to become:

National Board-Certified Teachers

School Administrators

Technology Facilitators and Coordinators

Personnel at Ed Tech Start Ups

Instructional Designers (both within and outside of education)

Online preK-12 Teachers

STEM Teachers and Coordinators

Professional Learning Leaders and Liaisons

Curriculum Developers

Here are some of the recent promotions that 2020 graduates of Loyola University Maryland's Master's in Educational Technology program have accepted:

Technology Teacher and Musician Joanna Edwards accepted a new position as Technology Teacher at Elizabeth Seton High School.

With her MEd in Educational Technology, Julia Goffredi started a new position as Coordinator of Educational Technology at Notre Dame Preparatory School.

Michele Baskin recently accepted a position at Great Minds to be a Digital Curriculum Developer on their PhD Science program.

What are the Top 5 Advantages of Loyola's Educational Technology Program?

Create engaging and transformative online instruction

Learn multimedia design for the classroom

Become a technology leader in your school

Understanding of the advantages and disadvantages of technology, and how to address both in the classroom.

Active professional networking with other teachers and educators nationally and globally.

Learn more about Loyola University Maryland's fully online M.Ed. in Educational Technology program.

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What is Educational Technology and Why is it Important?

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Loyola University Maryland's Educational Technology Program Director, Dr. Kelly Keane, explains what educational technology is and why it is important and what you will learn in the Master's of Educational Technology program at Loyola.

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Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University

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As essential as they are, we aren't born with the skills that enable us to control impulses, make plans, and stay focused. We are born with the potential to develop these capacities-or not-depending on our experiences during infancy, throughout childhood, and into adolescence. Our genes provide the blueprint, but the early environments in which children live leave a lasting signature on those genes.

This signature influences how or whether that genetic potential is expressed in the brain circuits that underlie the executive function capacities children will rely on throughout their lives. These skills develop through practice and are strengthened by the experiences through which they are applied and honed. Providing the support that children need to build these skills at home, in child care and preschool programs, and in other settings they experience regularly is one of society's most important responsibilities.

Being able to focus, hold, and work with information in mind, filter distractions, and switch gears is like having an air traffic control system at a busy airport to manage the arrivals and departures of dozens of planes on multiple runways. In the brain, this air traffic control mechanism is called executive function.

More Information on Executive Function

Guide: A Guide to Executive Function
Learn more about the basics of building executive function skills, and learn strategies that can help build them.

Working Paper 11: Building the Brain's "Air Traffic Control" System: How Early Experiences Shape the Development of Executive Function
This in-depth working paper explains executive function works, and gives recommendations for ways that caregivers and policymakers can effectively respond to the science.

This refers to a group of skills that helps us to focus on multiple streams of information at the same time, monitor errors, make decisions in light of available information, revise plans as necessary, and resist the urge to let frustration lead to hasty actions. Acquiring the early building blocks of these skills is one of the most important and challenging tasks of the early childhood years, and the opportunity to build further on these rudimentary capacities is critical to healthy development through middle childhood and adolescence. Just as we rely on our well-developed personal "air traffic control system" to make it through our complex days without stumbling, young children depend on their emerging executive function skills to help them as they learn to read and write, remember the steps in performing an arithmetic problem, take part in class discussions or group projects, and enter into and sustain play with other children. The increasingly competent executive functioning of childhood and adolescence enable children to plan and act in a way that makes them good students, classroom citizens, and friends.

Children who do not have opportunities to use and strengthen these skills, and, therefore, fail to become proficient-or children who lack the capacity for proficiency because of disabilities or, for that matter, adults who lose it due to brain injury or old age-have a very hard time managing the routine tasks of daily life. Studying, sustaining friendships, holding down a job, or managing a crisis pose even bigger challenges.

Correcting Popular Misconceptions of Science

The fact that young children have a difficult time with self-control, planning, ignoring distractions, and adjusting to new demands is hardly news to the adults who care for them. It is not widely recognized, however, that these capacities do not automatically develop with maturity over time. Furthermore, it is even less well known that the developing brain circuitry related to these kinds of skills follows an extended timetable that begins in early childhood and continues past adolescence and that it provides the common foundation on which early learning and social skills are built. Based on this new understanding, the following common misconceptions about the development of executive function skills can be laid to rest.

Contrary to popular belief, learning to control impulses, pay attention, and retain information actively in one's memory does not happen automatically as children mature, and young children who have problems with these skills will not necessarily outgrow them.
The evidence is clear that, by 12 months of age, a child's experiences are helping to lay the foundation for the ongoing development of executive function skills. These early abilities to focus attention, control impulses, and hold information "on-line" in working memory appear to be easily disrupted by highly adverse early experiences or biological disruptions. Evidence also shows that early interventions aimed at improving these capacities before a child enters school can have beneficial impacts across a broad array of important outcomes.

Contrary to popular belief, young children who do not stay on task, lose control of their emotions, or are easily distracted are not "bad kids" who are being intentionally uncooperative and belligerent.
Young children with compromised or delayed executive function skills can display very challenging behaviors for which they are often blamed. In most circumstances, however, it is the protracted development of the prefrontal cortex that is to "blame." Efforts to help affected children develop better executive function skills and adjustments of the demands placed upon them to avoid overtaxing their capabilities are much more helpful than punishment for difficult behavior. Particularly when adverse experiences or environments elicit a toxic stress response, it can be very difficult for even the most competent children to enlist whatever executive function skills they have. In these circumstances, the provision of a safe and predictable environment offers the sense of security needed for successful behavior change to occur.

Contrary to the theory that guides some early education programs that focus solely on teaching letters and numbers, explicit efforts to foster executive functioning have positive influences on instilling early literacy and numeracy skills.
Early evidence from randomized trials of interventions designed to foster the cluster of executive function skills (working memory, attention, inhibitory control, etc.) indicates benefits in early literacy and math skills compared with children who experience "regular" classroom activities. Indeed, there is also evidence that emerging executive function skills contribute to early reading and math achievement during the pre-kindergarten years and into kindergarten. This is not surprising insofar as the acquisition of traditional academic skills depends on a child's capacity to follow and remember classroom rules, control emotions, focus attention, sit still, and learn on demand through listening and watching. Neuroscientists are also beginning to relate specific aspects of executive functioning, notably attentional skills, to specific steps involved in learning to read and to work with numbers. It is important to emphasize that this research is in its infancy, and much remains to be learned. Not only do we need to understand the effectiveness factors that account for the emerging impacts on school readiness from interventions designed to focus on executive function skills, but we also need to examine whether effective early education programs that focus directly on social, numeracy, and language skills also have positive impacts on executive functioning. Thus, the highly interrelated nature of these capacities makes it difficult to label any single intervention as focused explicitly (or not) on the critical domains of executive functioning.

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What is Executive Function? How Executive Functioning Skills Affect Early Development

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As essential as they are, we aren't born with the skills that enable us to control impulses, make plans, and stay focused. We are born with the potential to develop these capacities-or not-depending on our experiences during infancy, throughout childhood, and into adolescence. Our genes provide the blueprint, but the early environments in which children [...]

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Customize your new tab page so you can fight climate change while browsing the web. Save trees by doing what you do every day.

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You can track them whole you are on safari

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Track the Mara’s wildlife on a game drive | Timbuktu Travel

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Trundle out of camp as the sun lights up the plains or as the coolness of dusk approaches for a game drive in the famous Masai Mara. You’ll be in the best of hands with a knowledgable guide who will give you the 411 on the bush. As any safari buff would know, this reserve plays host to a spectacular array of wildlife, from the flighty bee-eater to sauntering prides of lion, not to mention other members of the Big Five! The rest of the big cat clan is present too so keep your eyes peeled for a leopard snoozing on a branch or cheetah speeding across the savannah in pursuit of antelope.

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noobler

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Generate business names with artificial intelligence

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Facts About Endangered Animals in the Maasai Mara

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With its constant growth, Nairobi's garbage headache is likely to get worse. It currently generates 2,500 tonnes a day but can only collect about 1,500 tonnes.

A manager at the Dandora dumpsite told the Star the city needs a coordinated strategy to address its solid waste management challenges. Speaking in confidence, he said collection is just part of a solution to the bigger problem.

The manager said a strategy is needed that encompasses waste segregation at the source, clear processes of transfer, treatment and disposal of the waste. He said the current collection method is poorly managed, which poses health and environmental risks to city dwellers.

The officer called for door-to-door training of residents in estates and slums on the importance of managing the waste they generate.

"What is troubling is that most Nairobians have a bad attitude towards waste disposal," he said.

He said basic by-laws on waste management that can be understood even by a class three pupil should be formulated urgently to overhaul the existing guidelines.

"Waste management lessons should be introduced in schools at early stages because when children have a concept of proper disposal, they will do the right thing."

Environment executive Larry Wambua says City Hall has devolved garbage collection to increase efficiency. He said to manage the little fleet they have, each ward has a team assigned to be in charge of waste collection.

These teams, he says will ensure garbage is collected from homes and put at a one-collection zone. After this, the teams communicate with the main coordination team, which assigns a lorry at least four times a week.

He said to avert the underhand deals at the dumpsite, the entire team was overhauled and new people put in place. City Hall has further terminated permits for contractors who were flouting the garbage collection rules. This, he said, include those who had been spotted emptying garbage along roads and those who falsified weights.

"We have made significant strides in clearing the illegal dumpsites, and we have turned the areas to recreational centres or children's playgrounds," Wambua said.

He said so far, the 'Ngarisha Jiji' initiative has seen piles of garbage cleared in several estates and wards, including City Primary, Embakasi, Langata Road, Taj Mall, Capitol Hill and Kilimani.

Others are St Mary's Mission Hospital in Langata, Kitanga Road in Kwangware, St Veronica, Uhuru Market, Umoja Estate and Majengo.

RECYCLING PLANT SOLUTION

Governor Mike Sonko says the next big project is to launch the waste recycling plant at the Dandora dumpsite. Once complete, he says, it will permanently address the garbage dumping problems, as well as create jobs for some youth.

"We can still do better but the efforts we have put in place are in order. Rome was not built in one day, and for that, we have introduced day and night operations at the dumpsite to beat traffic," Sonko said.

He said the county is disposing written-off trucks and injecting more money in hiring more trucks to enhance collection.

"Tippers cost Sh8 million, and specialised garbage trucks that compress cost Sh20-30 million. For us, we would rather explore other alternatives that will help us manage the garbage," he said.

The governor said the county is also introducing garbage ATMs and skips, which are expected to help curb illegal dumping.

"I better be a one-term governor with a good legacy than entertain cartels who are making our work in collecting garbage difficult," he said.

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Why proper waste disposal should be taught in schools

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With its constant growth, Nairobi's garbage headache is likely to get worse. It currently generates 2,500 tonnes a day but can only collect about 1,500 tonnes. A manager at the Dandora dumpsite told the Star the city needs a coordinated strategy to address its solid waste management challenges.

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In 1971, the Maasai Mara Game Reserve had approximately 120 black rhinos, but by 1984 this number plummeted to just 18 individuals due to poaching. When the Mara Conservancy started in 2001, there was only one known rhino left in the Mara Triangle: an aggressive female, very wary of people and vehicles, and very difficult to spot. However, after only a few months of Mara Conservancy's regular patrols and successful arrests of poachers, security in the area increased and in 2002, male rhino moved into the Triangle and mated with the female.

Three successful mating and the addition of other rhinos that migrated into the area has increased the Mara Triangle's resident population upwards of ten individuals. Unfortunately, this is not a reflection of the Maasai Mara population as a whole, which still hovers between 25 - 30 individuals. The Maasai Mara National Reserve is the only protected area in Kenya with an indigenous black rhino population, unaffected by translocations, and with the potential to support one of the largest black rhino populations in Africa, given the size of the Reserve

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The Masai giraffe, also spelled Maasai giraffe, and sometimes called the Kilimanjaro giraffe, is a species or subspecies of giraffe. It is native to East Africa. The Masai giraffe can be found in central and southern Kenya and in Tanzania. Wikipedia

Masai giraffe

... Masai giraffe population declined 52% in recent decades due to poaching and habitat loss. • The #Masai Mara and surrounding conservancies remain stronghold ...

https://m.facebook.com › richardsrivercamp › photos

Richards Camp Maasai

Mara Kenya - World Endangered Species ...

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BiomeViewer | This interactive module explores biomes, climate, biodiversity, and human impacts around the globe and at different times.