Backhaul Photojournalism: Kenya

Showing posts with label Kenya. Show all posts

James, a young boy at the small home for disabled children, has been suffering from extreme malnutrition despite eating a healthy diet. Even when he was able to eat, much of it was later thrown back up making the problem worse. It is unclear as to what James suffers from, local doctors are still unable to make a diagnosis based on his symptoms.

Students attending a boarding school are required to wear a uniform and shave their head. This reduces distractions by placing a strong emphasis on school work. While not all students enjoy such strict control over their looks, most agree on the importance of a good education in the pursuit of a better life.

The harsh reality for many of the children attending public school in rural Kenya is several mile commute to and from school everyday. The more wealthy are afforded the luxury of bus rides to and from boarding school.

Members of the Catholic Women's Association carry banana leafs in support of peace for the upcoming election. Historically, elections have often brought much violence to Kenya. Many return to the home region of their tribes to avoid conflicts along tribal lines.

For the children not attending school, most spend their time doing chores and running errands for their family. Here a local girl returns home with fire kindling to be used for cooking. Despite electricity being run through the area a few years prior, many homes still lack access.

The first destination of our journey to Africa was the small town of Sigomere Kenya, home to Obama's extended family. Here our primary focus was to improve the financial well being a local small home for disabled children and to check on a previously implemented aquaponics system in the local all-girls school. While visiting, we were frequently referred to by the local children as "muzungu", the Swahili term for 'white person'.