November 2008 mission to Kenya and Uganda - leaving soon!

African Action assists single parent families and homeless children with accommodation, food, clean drinking water, medical aid and education. Our visiting teams bring instruction regarding hygiene, nutrition, crafts and micro business development. We also develop programs to train pastors and leaders from outlying areas who then return to the village to share with the people in their communities.

Our mission in November 2008 to Africa will include;

Visiting prisons, we are hoping for funds to buy blankets for prisoners who have none and bibles or bible portions. Opening our new Medical clinic for serving the local community. Ministering in local churches and working with youth and widows to teach crafts (doll making and saleable items) at our project in Magere, a village 20kms from the capital city Kampala. The second week of our mission we will be travelling for five hours to the Masindi district where will we will be visiting the poor, families and churches, holding a conference for the leaders and their wives and families, taking medical aid if funds are available.

We will be visiting a school in Bweyale for 500 children rescued from the ‘rebel army’ in Northern Uganda who kidnapped them years before. These children need much help. We hope to inspire and assist them with English tuition, art therapy and games and to share stories and the gospel message in a creative way. We then fly to Kenya and work for two weeks in Mercy Orphanage for forty children who were orphaned or abandoned. Much help is needed there and we will be teaching the children and reaching out to the poor widows and families nearby.

We ask for your prayers and if you are willing to be part of our outreach by donating please contact Jean from the African Action website.

Safe way Clinic

The Clinic will be managed by Betty, the wife of Pastor Sula, Betty is a well qualified nurse, having spent a number of years working in the Adjumani goverment at a hospital in Northern Uganda. Betty has now completed her Advanced Nursing diploma with distinction and is keen to have the clinic open for business. The clinic has been built and supported exclusively by African Action International, Australia. The aim of the Clinic is to provide nutritional products and medical drugs to treat the many illnesses suffered by the people such as Typhoid, Malaria, HIV/AIDS, Sickle Cell Anemia, Viral and Bacterial illnesses thereby reducing the death rate in the community. They have to incorporate a Diagnostic Laboratory in order to test for Malaria and typhoid. People often fail to get help because they cannot afford this testing process or the medication and therefore suffer and die needlessly. Support and teaching for women during pregnancy, birthing and child care will be another focus of this clinic. We also want to provide nutritonal supplements for malnourished people. Betty and Pastor Sula have a vision to also reach out to people suffering from terminal illnesses in the Magere community, to medicate, counsel and share the gospel of Christ Jesus with them. This is a great vision and is worthy of our support! The clinic has received funding and hopes to provide medicines and staff for the first 12 months. It is hoped that in the future a mobile clinic will operate from the Magere Clinic to reach remote areas.

Mercy Children's Home

The Mercy Children’s Home is located in Uriri, South Nyanza, Kenya. This home for orphaned and abandoned children was started in 1998 by Consolate A Muga. The boy’s wing was completed in May 2007. It is now home for ten boys who were sleeping in a portion of the tin shed which is used for the Mercy Nursery School and Church. A cow-shed has been built for the cow provided by a Victorian church and a calf was born in December 2007. The children now enjoy fresh milk every day. The cow is hand fed with a special long grass that is especially grown for animals. It has to be cut and chopped each day to feed the cow. All cows are raised in the ‘zero grazing’ method because of the danger to cattle of tropical diseases. A new kitchen and storeroom has been built.

A second extension for the thirty girls is currently underway. The trenches for the new girl’s wing have been dug, the traditional ‘huge rocks’ were placed into the trenches and the concrete poured. Mercy Home was originally ten girls, now Mercy Home has thirty six children, a third boys and two thirds girls. An upper slab is being poured to allow another storey to be added later. We urgently need funds to complete this building. It is a large building and it is eventually to be two or even three storeys high to be able to accommodate staff, a baby section and other facilities such as offices. At present people are sleeping on the floor on mattresses as there is just not room for everyone. Fifteen to twenty thousand dollars is needed to complete the upper slab on top of the ground floor.

We continue to believe God for the completion of this building.

African Expo coming up in Box Hill

Where: Living Streams, 245 Middleborough Road, Box Hill South
When: Saturday 4th October 10am-5pm
Why: To support the work of African Action Inc and the forthcoming mission trip to Kenya and Uganda.

Kenya & Uganda Today.

Some interesting details and statistics about Kenya.
People
Kenya

Population:
33,829,590 note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2005 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 42.5% (male 7,252,075/female 7,124,034) 15-64 years: 55.2% (male 9,378,428/female 9,295,471) 65 years and over: 2.3% (male 356,116/female 423,466) (2005 est.)
Median age:
total: 18.19 years male: 18.08 years female: 18.3 years (2005 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.56% (2005 est.)
Birth rate:
40.13 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Death rate:
14.65 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Net migration rate:
0.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population note: according to UNHCR, by the end of 2001 Kenya was host to 220,000 refugees from neighboring countries, including: Somalia 145,000 and Sudan 68,000 (2005 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 61.47 deaths/1,000 live births male: 64.26 deaths/1,000 live births female: 58.62 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 47.99 years male: 48.87 years female: 47.09 years (2005 est.)
Total fertility rate:
4.96 children born/woman (2005 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
6.7% (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
1.2 million (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
150,000 (2003 est.)
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: very high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever vectorborne disease: malaria is a high risk in some locations water contact disease: schistosomiasis (2004)
Nationality:
noun: Kenyan(s) adjective: Kenyan
Ethnic groups:
Kikuyu 22%, Luhya 14%, Luo 13%, Kalenjin 12%, Kamba 11%, Kisii 6%, Meru 6%, other African 15%, non-African (Asian, European, and Arab) 1%
Religions:
Protestant 45%, Roman Catholic 33%, indigenous beliefs 10%, Muslim 10%, other 2% note: a large majority of Kenyans are Christian, but estimates for the percentage of the population that adheres to Islam or indigenous beliefs vary widely
Languages:
English (official), Kiswahili (official), numerous indigenous languages
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 85.1% male: 90.6% female: 79.7% (2003 est.)


A PROJECT OF AFRICAN ACTION INTERNATIONAL.



NOTES ON COSTS OF GOODS
FOR MERCY CHILDREN'S HOME IN RURAL KENYA.

FOOD STUFFS.

Rice – 50kg = $40.00

Maize flour - 100kg = $40.00

Dried beans - 100kg = $70.00

White wheat flour - carton = $20.00

Mercy Home uses each week:-

1 sack of maize flour weekly, = $160.00 per month.

1 sack dried beans per month, = $ 70.00 “ “

Once a week meat is part of the meal.
Twice a week Beans with onion and Tomatoes.
Available Vegetables each day. (Grown on property).
Most meals are Posho, (maize), and veg.
Once a month one meal with fresh fish.
Twice a week meals with dried fish.

Fruit trees are banana’s fruiting throughout the year.
Mango’s in season.
Avocado’s – not sure.

All children help with chores.
School uniform must be washed on arrival home and hung to dry.
In rainy season they are rubbed dry with towels and ironed with charcoal iron.


CLOTHING.

Foot wear is normally thongs. (called ‘slippers’).
Some school shoes were bought in 2006 by an Australian lady.
Also some school bags, each child then had a bag.
One School uniform per child was bought in Jan. 2005.
This one uniform has been made to last until now. June 2007.
Uniforms are therefore urgently needed. Also additional children are now in the home.

School Clothing Needs – full uniform is as follows.

1 dress or shirt n’ shorts, per child for 40 = $640.00

2 pair socks per 40 children @ $2.00 = $ 80.00

1 pair Shoes for 40 children @ $10.00 = $400.00

1 dark green cardigan @ $10.00 = $400.00

1 undergarment per child = $280.00

SPORTSWEAR.

T-shirt & Shorts per child = $200.00

Sneakers @ $15.00 = $600.00

We want our children from Mercy Home to feel valued in providing for them the correct school uniform. We believe this will affirm them and give self esteem to each child.
The Mercy Nursery School for pre-school children, ( many from the poverty stricken community), see costs above, has a red & white check dress for girls and white shirt and coloured shorts for boys. Some individual children have one thanks to their sponsors sending enough supplemental finance to enable Consolate to acquire it for them.

The next challenge for African Action International is to believe for God’s great provision to enable the completion and equipping of the newly built kitchen next to the new boys Dormitory & Dining room.

To also commence the foundation for the 30 bed girls Dormitory within 10 weeks, and to connect electricity to the property.

We are awaiting a quote for the electricity connection.


Email received on 3/3/08 from Mercy Children's Home:

Hi,
These are children needing sponsors.

The three year old has a sad story, the mother died at night and the boy continued to suck the mothers breast till morning. The father had died when he was born.

They are a family of six children.

I have only taken the photos of three children namely, Vincent Otieno 3. Steve Omoka 5. Mary Atieno 10.

These children were taken by a neighbour who is a very old woman and a drunkard. The other girl Edwina Akinyi is homebased and the mother is alive. From the time she began nursery school to now the mother could not afford to buy her uniform or books and they live near Mercy home.

May God bless you,
Connie.

The new wing at the Mercy Orphanage Including Bedrooms