My name is Patricia,24 years of age from Huruma Estate. I have a family of three children. The first-born is 10 years of age, followed by one who is five years of age and the youngest is 3 years old.
Life in the ghetto is troublesome. The environment itself is not conducive at all. Our houses are sarrounded with dirt all over, with raw sewage lying in the open.
My house is located next to the sewerage and we are very much prone to cholera. Many a times my children play around the sewage, feasting on dirt, touching with their fingers, then they lick their fingers again.This traumatizes me.
Right now, my children are sick, as a result of the dirt. Many a times,I am not in a position to buy drugs for their medication since I do not have the money and the drugs recommended by the doctor are costly.I rely on painkillers like Panadol which are not very effective for the illness.
With this type of poverty we are facing, we decided to start a merry-go-round for women, whereby, we do give fifty shillings in a week and the money is distributed to two people in the group. This has really helped us, since we can buy medicine for our children.
Not only that, we in the community are able to provide for ourselves, hence, saving most of us from indulging in bad behaviors such as, prostitution and early marriages in the society. More so, we are able to help our aging mothers financially.
Those who refused to join the merry-go-round, still throng the streets of Nairobi in the evening to exchange their bodies in return for quick money, not putting into consideration, about their health.
