Kenya 2011: Research and a Kenyan Birthday

The rest of my research group arrived on Monday night. The last couple days have been very busy. On Tuesday we met with the entire staff and took a tour of all the CFK programs in Kibera, including the new health clinic (where I will be volunteering in a couple of weeks). On Tuesday night I celebrated my 23rd birthday Kenyan style! Our group went to dinner at a nice hotel in Nairobi. We enjoyed delicious food and a beautiful cake. The hotel staff and my group sang Happy Birthday to me. What a great time! Julie, Kevin, Jeffrey, and Lindsey took me out to a karaoke bar after dinner. I commend Lindsey for being the only one brave enough to sing!

Yesterday I conducted my first stakeholder interview and sat in on one of the focus groups with the education program here. The focus group was interesting, however we had to really probe to get answers out of some of the less vocal members. The girls in the group were definitely less talkative, which I believe probably reflects the strict gender roles in Kibera. Of the 7 teenagers, only one lived with a parent. This is the reality of Kibera. Many youth migrate to Kibera from their parents' homes elsewhere to try to make a life for themselves in Nairobi. After the focus group we debriefed with the research team. Anna and Rain (other research team members) conducted a focus group with teens from the sexual and reproductive program. According to Anna, they were very insightful and engaging as they discussed the difficulty of securing assets and planning for a future when the resources are so sparse. Women are especially disadvantaged as they are often impregnated and left to fend for themselves.

I continue to enjoy my homestay. I have taken to calling Grace "Mama Grace" and our friend Betty "Auntie Betty". We all find this very amusing. I am so fortunate to have found a great homestay, as you never know what to expect. Grace is also a wondeful cook, so I look forward to my meals when I get home. We usually have a stew or lentils of some kind and either rice, chipati, or ugali (a traditional Kenyan dish made out of corn).

Today I will continue with interviews and focus groups. We will be busy with these until next Wednesday, when the group leaves and Julie and I take off for Mombassa (a city on the coast).

Mama Grace and Auntie Betty