Category: Health

A Christmas message from Stephen He writes about his experience of what Christmas with his disabled child is like for him and his family “Many parents find Christmas difficult. This is partly because of the practical challenges of making sure everything goes to plan: family gatherings, travelling upcountry, the decorations and so on. But it’s more because of the emotional ups …

COVID-19 pandemic has hit Africa not only as a health crisis but also as a devastating socio-economic crisis that may persist over the months and years to come. Although children do not represent a high-risk group for direct COVID-19 fatality, the pandemic posts far-reaching secondary impacts that heighten risks to African children’s rights and wellbeing. In fact, the COVID-19 pandemic …

This has been a difficult year. COVID-19 has caused, and continues to cause, anxiety and stress to our global community and in the country. It has had a significant impact on our disabled children, too. When lockdown hit in March, like so many others, we at Watoto Ciao worked at pace, adapting every single service and resource we had to …

Watoto Ciao recognises that the strategies and intervention to improve the wellbeing of children with disabilities cannot work and will not be sustainable without providing alternative or supplemental sources of income to their caregivers. Most children with disabilities are found among the poorest families and communities due to such interlocking factors as inadequacy of household income, lack of marketable skills …

In Kenya, disabled children are affected by the following factors: Myths and false beliefs: In many traditional African cultures, disability is considered a curse. People with disabilities are rejected by their families of origin and regarded as pariahs. Affected families are also highly stigmatized in communities. These myths and beliefs are still very present and disabled children are still considered …