Eldoret and the Mercy Corps programs

I have split off from my Women of Purpose partners to travel farther northwest to Eldoret. Eldoret was one of the places hardest hit by post election violence in late 2007/early 08. People in Kenya continue to be frustrated and Mercy Corps is addressing the simmering tensions by working with the young people of Kenya. Since unemployment is so high, targeting those from 18 - 35 just seems to make sense. My head is spinning, though, since we visited so many programs today, including a camp of those made refugees by the violence. Some have been living in the IDP* camps for over 2 years. My heart just broke when one of those living there (the chairman of the the camp) took me to another tent where a young girl in a wheelchair lives with her mother and others. Her mother said that the tent leaked and they would get wet when it rained. Those tents were not designed to last this long and the people there (over 100) are waiting for the government to rebuild their houses that were burned during the riots. Some still go out to work their fields walking quite a ways to get there.

We also visited the Mercy Corps youth programs which include training for young people and included a cash-for-work program, and income generating program (a tree and flower nursery), and a sports program which are all designed and led by young people! All have the ultimate goal of bringing about peace and reconciliation in Eldoret. Seeing sports teams made up of Kikuyu, Kalenjin, Luo and other tribes does my heart good. They are playing and working together, not just for their own good but for the future of Kenya.

*IDP = Internally displaced persons. One is not technically a refugee unless you have crossed an international border. These are Kenyans displaced within their own country, but nonetheless, without a real home.