MARSABIT — Needy pupils at Bubisa and Boru Haro Primary Schools in Marsabit have received food, stationery, school bags and bedding in a joint outreach by the State Department for Children Services and Oscar Feeding Program aimed at keeping vulnerable children in school.
Gender Cabinet Secretary Hanna Wendot Cheptumo, in a speech read by Children’s Services Secretary Shem Nyakutu, said the government is committed to protecting children and ensuring they remain in school and safe, calling on communities to help safeguard children against harmful practices.
Nyakutu announced Bubisa Primary will get a new school bus by end of year courtesy of World Bank funding.
Oscar Junior Feeding Program founder Oscar Ochieng urged parents to enroll children, saying the initiative targets learners in Bubisa and Sagante, and supports pupils from Siaya, Turkana, Marsabit, Wajir, Kisumu and Mombasa with uniforms, fees, food and writing materials.
Turbi Deputy County Commissioner Daniel Ouma said administration will work with police to enforce school attendance and curb early marriages, terming FGM outdated and warning perpetrators of legal action.
Turbi-Bubisa MCA Huka Galgallo Amballo thanked the program, saying hunger keeps many pupils out of school, while citing acute water shortage, frequent borehole breakdowns and salinity as major challenges affecting residents and livestock.
At Boru Haro Primary, headteacher Hadija Adan cited human-wildlife conflict after a pupil died from a snake bite, appealing for a school bus and for KWS and Health Department to avail anti-venom to save lives.
