Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) also known as female circumcision, has been practised in the Kipkelion area for generations.  Although many people in developed countries associate FGM with Islam, it is in fact a traditional practice in many African countries and is not part of the teachings of Islam.  Both of the two main communities in Kipkelion…

Kipkelion has a Special School.  It’s quite unusual, as there is very little special needs provision in Kenya, and Kipkelion Special School is the only one in a huge area, serving a population of more than a million people. The school caters exclusively for children with learning difficulties.  There are currently 120 pupils.  The school…

In the first week of December, Friends of Kipkelion is taking part, along with many other UK charities, in an online fundraising initiative called the Big Give Christmas Challenge (www.thebiggive.org.uk). Friends of Kipkelion is doing this to raise funds for the Girls for Girls programme run by our sister charity, Friends of Londiani,  at Kipteris…

One of the most exciting projects we are involved with in Kipkelion at the moment is the introduction of smokeless stoves.  Here’s how it works: Traditionally, people in Kipkelion have cooked their food inside their houses using an open fire.  The main fuel they use is wood, and this has all sorts of awful consequences. …

You have to get up at 4 am.  Why?  Because you have to walk for at least an hour along muddy roads to get to school.  It’s at least 3 miles away! Time for a wash – the water is cold.  There’s no hot water unless you light a fire to warm it up.  And…