Myriad Canada is joining with Kenya YMCA and the Ottawa Y Service Club in supporting the Kibera YMCA Educational Centre. The Kenya YMCA was founded in Nairobi in 1910 by the former USA president Theodore Roosevelt. Its mission is to facilitate and develop the physical, mental and spiritual well-being of youth to enable them to become responsible citizens. Since its founding, the Kenya YMCA has spread from Nairobi to 25 branches and units across the country and now reaches over 15,000,000 young people through various programs.

In 2010, Dave Hall from Ottawa was hosted by Stanley Kinyeki and introduced to the Kibera YMCA Primary School.

The first step was to finance the expansion and upgrading of the school to meet the certification standards of the Kenyan government. This certification allowed all successful graduates to move on to the secondary level and possibly from there, to university.

The fund honoring Stanley Kinyeki, was established in 2015,  with the goal of providing scholarships to cover all secondary school costs as well as other needs of the school and the students. In 2020, first year scholarships for university were also made available.This project is made possible thanks to the partnership with the volunteers of the Ottawa Y Service Club.

Context

Although Kenya's economy is the largest and most developed in eastern and central Africa, approximately 40% of its population lives below the international poverty line. Kenya began offering free primary education in 2003; however the infrastructure to integrate all school-age children into the education system was not in place. To date, access to quality, free education remains unequitable because of insufficient public (free) schools in areas where families have no means to pay school fees.

Nairobi has a population of 3 million, half of whom live in slum conditions. Kibera is the largest slum in Africa, with 1 million people living in desperate conditions. The Kibera YMCA Educational Centre was established in 1983 with the primary purpose of providing basic education to the less fortunate kids in the larger Kibera slum. It began as a pre-school and now offers full primary education through the 8^th grade. A vocational centre was later added to cater to youth requiring technical skills to enter the work force.

As the demand for basic education increased, the Centre felt  pressure to provide more space for the increasing number of children of primary school age  – a big challenge given the Centre’s limited resources. Thanks to the generosity of Canadian donors like the Ottawa Y Service Club, the school is now housed in a one-story building with 8 classrooms with a functioning kitchen, an enhanced Vocational Training Centre and updated equipment.  The school has become a vital resource for some 400 local children and their families who depend on the school for food, water, education, school supplies, school uniforms, and medical care.

Goals and activities 

• To provide scholarships for qualifying students from the Kibera YMCA Educational Centre to attend secondary school, covering tuition fees, books, uniforms, meals and board.
• To provide scholarships to cover the first year of university studies for 1 to 3 qualifying students per year.
• To provide a safe, welcoming and supportive learning environment for students by funding special projects that enhance the learning experience (e.g., extracurricular activities, special events, building maintenance).
• To provide periodic operational support for the school.