Rescue Dada centre gives hope to destitute girls in the streets

In a world where thousands of children face the harsh realities of life on the streets, a beacon of hope has emerged with the opening of a new centre dedicated to supporting girls rescued from these difficult circumstances.

Rescue Dada Centre established in Kamulu by the Caritas Nairobi, the social development arm of the catholic church will not only provide a haven for girls rescued from the streets but also survivors of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV).

The centre adds to the numerous children's institutions run by the catholic.

Archbishop of Nairobi Philip Anyolo said the new centre under the Rescue Dada program builds to the church’s efforts to protect and support vulnerable children.

“This centre is poised to play a significant role in advancing Kenya's national agenda for child protection and care for the children,” said Anyolo during the official opening of the facility.

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He added, “We are ready to collaborate further with the government, civil society, and community leaders to expand our outreach and continue providing the resources they need to thrive.”

The centre which was constructed by Caritas in partnership with The Tree of Life organization and Bishops of Italy will serve as a rehabilitation centre, where the girls will be hosted for a short period before they are reintegrated back into the families and communities.

Through the children welfare program, archbishop Anyolo said the church is aligned with the government's agenda of advancing childcare reforms and also providing a return to family life and family care.

As part of the National Care Reform Strategy that seeks to transition children from Charitable Children Institutions to families and communities, the program seeks to rescue, rehabilitate, reintegrate and re-socialize the girls into families and communities.

“We stand in solidarity with the government in its efforts to create a framework where every child has access to a safe and nurturing environment. The future of our nation depends on how we care for our children today,” said Anyolo.

Anyolo added, “We continue to provide comprehensive care addressing not only the immediate needs of vulnerable children but also their long-term reintegration into society.

This comes at a time when the government through the Directorate of Children Service is rolling out the National Care Reform Strategy for Children in Kenya which seeks to phase out all children's homes and transition them to family and community-based care in a 10-year plan that runs from 2022-2032.

Statistics show that over 3.6 million children in Kenya are classified as orphans and vulnerable and approximately 50,000 children live and work on the streets with numbers possibly as high as 250,000 over the years.

The primary drivers of this growing crisis include family break-up, poverty, the HIV and AIDS pandemic and the increasing socio-economic pressures.

According to the Caritas Nairobi director Fr. Peter Kiarie, there is a similar program for the boys noting that the children are rescued from streets across the country.

At the centres, Kiarie said the children are debriefed, counselled, and de-intoxicated before undergoing vigorous training.

“We only hold them here for a short period. Then after that, we are able now to try and find their root, their families. The truth of the matter is every child has a parent,” said Kiarie.

“When we identify those families, they take them but also offer support to the families to ensure they retain the child at home,” he added.

The clergy called on people to open doors to the orphaned children being transitioned from the institutions.

The care reform strategy emanates from the belief that all children belong in a family, backed by overwhelming scientific evidence that children under institutional care suffer severe and sometimes irreversible developmental setbacks as opposed to those raised in families and communities.