Michael Frederiksen immigrated to Canada from Denmark in 1951. His career in education spans thirty-five years as teacher and administrator at the elementary, secondary and post secondary levels of education. He has served as chair of Phi Delta Kappa (U of Toronto) and the Toronto chapter of the Royal Commonwealth Society. He has worked on a number of international humanitarian and educational projects in Kenya, India, Pakistan and Grenada . In 2004 Michael was instrumental in founding CES Kenya and presently is it’s President and a member of its board of directors. He is a strong advocate for children with disabilities, particularly those who suffer from polio and HIV/AIDS.

Surviving Rural Kenya

It is almost impossible to describe what it is like to live in a third world developing country, particularly in a poor rural community like Kakamega Kenya where people struggle each day to survive.  If we lived in a world with no prospect that anything would ever change – would we survive?

Reflecting on the writings of American economist Robert Heilbroner in The Great Ascent : Struggle for Economic Development in our Time, the following describes what a typical Canadian family would need to surrender in order to live among the poorest of the poor in rural Kenya.

• Furniture – everything goes; beds, chairs, tables, television sets, lamps. The family will be left with a few old blankets, a kitchen table and one wooden chair.
• Wardrobe – along with the bureaus go the clothes. Each member of the family may keep the oldest suit or dress, a shirt or blouse. A pair of flip-flops is a luxury.
• Kitchen – appliances have already been taken out, so we turn to the cupboards…the box of matches may stay, a small bag of flour, some sugar and salt. A few moldy potatoes, already in the garbage can will provide much of tonight’s meal. Some maize and a handful of dried beans will create the one meal of the day. There is no meat, fresh vegetables canned goods or fruit.
• Bathroom – now dismantled, the running water shut off, the electric wires taken out. A latrine will be dug for family use.
• House – now a simple dwelling like a shed, grass hut with mud walls or a makeshift structure made of sticks, mud, fabric or other materials such as corrugated tin.
• Communications – no more newspapers, magazines, books, computers, telephones, cell phones, I-pads, pagers or video games.  A one battery radio is allowed since there is no electricity.
• Community Services – gone are mail delivery, social security, utilities such as hydro, water and telephone lines. There is a school, but it is 5 km away and it consists of four classrooms with 80-100 students in each. There are no hospitals or doctors nearby and the nearest clinic is 10 km away.  It can be reached by bicycle if the family has one.
• Money – each family will have $2Cdn or 200 KSh each day for daily expenses.  There may only be enough funds to pay the school fees for the eldest child.
• Household chores – if you are a female you are expected to manage the chores, gather firewood, cook, collect unclean drinking water from the closest stream (2km away) and tend to a small plot of land growing a crop or two.  Once a week you will walk to market to sell what is left over.

Question:  If you had to make the transition…could you survive under these conditions?

CES Canada is committed to reducing poverty, fighting HIV/Aids and providing hope through education.  Working in poor rural communities in Western Province Kenya, CES provides secondary school education for 160 students. Since 2005 – 650 scholarships have been awarded to needy students. All have been affected by the HIV/Aids pandemic and without support would be unable to attend school.

2012 is the Year of Transformation, where the lives of Kenyan youth are enhanced and rural school communities are strengthened.  For caring Canadians who through personal sacrifice and acts of love provide for these students – may 2012 provide you with the faith and opportunity that breaks the tyranny of acute poverty.

2012-01-01

The challenges are great

so too are the opportunities and rewards