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Development of self-help groups for caregivers of children with disabilities in Kilifi, Kenya: Process evaluation

GONA, Joseph K.
NEWTON, Charles
HARTLEY, Sally
BUNNING, Karen
July 2020

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Background: Caring for a child with disabilities in a resource-poor setting brings many challenges to the caregiver. We examined the development of self-help groups for caregivers in a rural part of Kenya.

 

Objectives: To conduct a process evaluation on the development of self-help groups during a 10-month set-up period, focusing on implementation and mechanisms associated with their functional status.

 

Methods: Using a realist evaluation design, we set up 20 self-help groups for 254 caregivers. An evaluation was conducted to investigate implementation and mechanisms of impact. Implementation focused on caregiver registration, community group support and monitoring visit compliance. Data were collected from group registers, records of meetings and field notes. Mechanisms of impact employed a framework of strengths–weaknesses–opportunities–threats to review the groups at the end of the 10-month set-up period.

 

Results: Recruitment resulted in registration of 254 participants to 18 groups – two groups disbanded early. Post-evaluation included 11 active and 7 inactive groups. Compliance with the monitoring visits was consistent across the active groups. All groups engaged in ‘merry-go-round’ activities. The active groups were characterised by strong leadership and at least one successful income generation project; the inactive had inconsistent leadership and had dishonest behaviour both within the group and/or externally in the community. Mediators associated with functional status included the following: available literacy and numeracy skills, regular meetings with consistent attendance by the members, viable income generating projects, geographical proximity of membership and strong leadership for managing threats.

 

Conclusion: Self-help groups have the potential to progress in resource-poor settings. However, critical to group progression are literacy and numeracy skills amongst the members, their geographical proximity, regular meetings of the group, viable income generating projects and strong leadership.

 

 

African Journal of Disability, Vol 9, 2020

Impact of training programmes for people with disabilities (Disability Inclusion Helpdesk Report 5)

FRASER, Erika
ABU AL GHAIB, Ola
February 2019

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 Supporting people with disabilities into employment is important not only in providing income, but research in Nepal has shown positive life changes including increased confidence, social status, and acquiring new skills. This document provides a rapid review of the evidence of the types of interventions used to reduce barriers and support people with disabilities into employment, as well as the impact of training programmes on employment and/or livelihood outcomes (Section 4). Case studies are included in Section 5 and Annex 1 to give further details on key learnings.

 

Case studies outlined are 

  • Vocational training programme by Madhab Memorial Vocational Training Institute (MMVTI), Bangladesh 
  • Gaibandha Food Security Project (Bangladesh)
  • Self-help groups (Nepal) 
  • EmployAble programme (Kenya, Rwanda and Ethiopia) 
  • Economic Empowerment of Youth with Disabilities (Rural Uganda)
  • Access to Livelihoods Programme (India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Pakistan, the Philippines, South Africa)

Youth to youth|Disability-sensitive youth to youth : methodologies in HIV and AIDS

HANDICAP INTERNATIONAL KENYA
2010

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This video features HIV and AIDS prevention and education initiatives in Kenya. It particularly targets the youth population due to a lack of available information and risk behaviours, such as sexuality, drug use and alcohol use. In order to prevent risks and present treatment options for the youth who are AIDS-carriers, several youth groups organized the following activities to prevent and fight the disease: street theatre for awareness-raising, group education sessions, and promotion of VCT services for communication and information. This video contains several testimonies and one features Mercy, a young girl who has AIDS after working as prostitute to feed her two children and is now involved in a support group

Keeping the promise : interventions by persons with disabilities against HIV/AIDS

HANDICAP INTERNATIONAL KENYA
2009

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People with disabilities, including people with disabilities who are living with HIV, are often excluded from their community and their family. This video presents testimonies of people with disabilities who are living with HIV and proposes actions in Kenya to fight against their exclusion. For example, it highlights support groups that have been created to educate people with disabilities, living with HIV or not, on sexuality, HIV/AIDS, and how to live positively with disabilities and reduce the stress caused by them. Another section of the video presents a support group for parents of children with disabilities where it is encouraged to talk about sexual abuse and violence on children and prevention of sexually transmitted diseases. Support groups for hearing and visually impaired people are also presented in the video. In addition to support groups, education and prevention are also promoted by through sport and street shows which contribute to the social inclusion of people with disabilities living with HIV

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