An evaluation of the influence of non-formal education program in the rehabilitation of street girls: The case of Mully's children family (MCF) home Yatta girls rehabilitation centre

Abstract

The care and protection services to the children in need of care and support encompass many facets. The identification, rescue, rehabilitation of children on the street, orphans among other vulnerable children and their reintegration to society and the prevention of street influx by the orphans and vulnerable children is a goal sought by the Government and Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs). There have been an increasing number of children in need of care and support due to poverty that has been aggravated by the poor planning, death of parents due to HIV and AIDS among other factors. To bridge the access gap in Kenya, the government together with a variety of Non Governmental Organizations were established to seek, rescue, offer comprehensive care and support to the street children. The study takes on the role and the scope of The Mully Children Family home (MCF) a charitable Christian non-profit making organization that endeavors to address the plight of street children through Non Formal education and Training. To achieve its objectives MCF runs residential homes at MCF Yatta and MCF Ndalani, in Yatta District of Eastern province; in Eldoret are three satellite projects in Kipsongo Slum, Trans Nzioa District and St. Ruth Academy in Kangundo District and Vipingo project in Kilifi district. MCF thus has currently over 12,800 children in its Kenya Projects Nationwide. MCF Yatta home that is unique as it houses only street girls which IS the targeted population for this study and will be therefore the area of study. This study was based on the view that many NGOs exist and most offer non-formal training to the learners but the magnitude of the problem of street children still persists. The uniqueness of this study compared to others that have been done before is that it targets the street girls. Using the survey design, the study sought to evaluate the influence of Non Formal Education training at Mully Children Family Home Yatta in the rehabilitation of street girls, with a view of highlighting lessons for replication by the government and other groups wishing to establish similar projects, allowing them to benefit from the MCF Yatta girl rehabilitation center's experiences, strengths, and weaknesses. All the 250 learners in the home were purposely selected for the study. Out of this, a stratified random sample of 50 learners was drawn to participate in the study. Data was mainly collected using questionnaires as well as interviews and record analysis. The data was analyzed by the use of mainly descriptive statistics. The findings of the survey shows that most of the beneficiaries appreciate the home's intervention and their hope are rekindled of leading a life devoid of suffering and lack that could have been other wise be perpetuated by poverty, death or ignorance. It is hoped that these findings of this study will increase knowledge on girl rehabilitation and the influence of non formal training on the rehabilitation process in the Kenyan social-cultural environment. The Government and other participants may find the information useful for intervention programs aimed at improving the rehabilitation of street children and girls in particular.