Staying Positive in Kibera
In honor of World Aids Day on Saturday, I thought I would honor a couple of VERY special people I’ve met in the past year.
Over the summer, I went on a study abroad program to Kenya. While we were there, we had the opportunity to spend some time in Kibera in Nairobi. Kibera is the largest slum in East Africa and some people estimate over 1,000,000 people living in a little over 1 sq. mile.
Aids is pretty rampant in this part of Kenya. And the close living conditions make a lot of other diseases, like TB and malaria, much easier to catch than in more sparsely-populated areas.
While the Aids rate is high, those that are HIV remain extremely positive. Carolina for Kibera is a nongovernmental organization that works with the inhabitants of Kibera. CFK has a women’s health organization, called Binti Pamoja, that deals with HIV/AIDS, violence against women, sexual abuse and other women’s health issues. While I was there, they sold us beadwork, which contributed to the health costs of the women involved in the group.
Many people aren’t quite sure what living conditions in a place like Kibera looks like. I’ve included a couple of photos from our trip so you can really get the visual.
Check out Carolina for Kibera and the amazing people there for yourself at http://cfk.unc.edu/.
March 15th, 2009 at 3:39 pm
I don’t normally comment on blogs but your post was a real call to action. Thank you for a great read, I will be sure to bookmark your site and check in now and again. Cheers, Amy xXx.