For five full days, the nine teachers from Eroret Preparatory School as well as the principal John Kintadel and his wife Esther dealt with the topic of reproductive and sexual health. Four women from the widows’ self-help group and another four Migori women from the Victoria Lake region also came for the training.
A lot is presented and discussed together on the topic of family planning. Several participants had fathers with two or three wives and up to 22 children in the extended family. “What does a child need?” is an important question that becomes more and more important during the course.
Background: Kenya’s population has tripled since independence and the UN population statistics predict that the population will double from the current 45 million to 90 million by 2050. What these alarming figures mean for each individual and for the development of the country was discussed in detail in the workshop. The tradition of large families in Africa, the polygamous way of life, the poor quality of school education, lack of jobs, scarce resources, climate change and the associated lack of water, distribution of land within families, women’s rights, expulsion from their land by the government, the influence of foreign states that take land and natural resources.
Most of the participants are directly affected, they live in poverty far from home, come from large families and their school education was only sufficient for secondary school. They only want to start a small family, with a maximum of two children, and are happy to work as assistant teachers at the Eroret School.
Another major topic was sex education: questions such as “What is puberty? How does the body change? How do I use a condom?” were discussed. The teachers learn how they can impart the necessary knowledge about sexuality, partnership and contraception to the pupils in an age-appropriate manner. A major social problem among the Maasai is the situation surrounding female genital mutilation (FGM). Although officially prohibited, it is widely practiced.
This topic is to be discussed by the rainworkers in all classes, addressed to pupils, parents and the community, so that the problem is addressed from all sides and no longer remains a taboo. First and foremost, FGM should be discussed in the context of human rights and mental health and, above all, young people, girls and boys, should be made aware of their rights. A modern African society should not maintain order by using violence against girls and women. It is particularly important for the Maasai to distinguish between good and bad traditions and to stick to common sense. The Maasai are proud people, they love their animals, treat them well and the issue of FGM is close to their hearts. So the people should also protect their children. That was the conclusion of the discussion!
In the following months, the task of the two supervisors John & Esther Kindatel is to repeat the Aktion Regen program using the documents and tools with the teaching team, to practice the presentation in class, to appear before the parents and to inform them. At the same time, it is necessary to talk to people in the community about family planning.
