More than 200 school going children drawn from parts of Kandara Sub County in Murang’a have benefited from adjustable shoes courtesy of two charitable organizations.
Ahadi Kenya Trust in partnership with Because-International has donated pairs of shoes, believed to be long-lasing, to children who are at risk of being infested by jiggers.
Ahadi Director Dr. Stanley Kamau observed that the type of shoes they distributed can be adjusted depending on the size of feet thus the children will take time to outgrow them.
He noted that the partnership with Because-International has helped to get the long-lasting shoes thus relieving parents’ hardship of buying shoes soon.
“My organization has been looking for a partnership to get long lasting shoes. The shoes we have donated today are able to handle the growth of a child’s feet, so parents will not need to buy shoes for the next at least 3 years,” said Kamau at Gathige area.
The shoes, he added, will protect the children from being infested by jiggers and also keep their feet safe from injuries as they proceed with their studies.
“For several years now, we have been donating shoes to children. So far we have distributed close to 700, 000 pairs of shoes in various parts of the country but now we are lucky that the shoes we have started to distribute are long lasting and can be adjusted to fit the growing feet of the children,” he added.
He called on other well-wishers to partner with his organization in efforts to get school going children long lasting shoes.
“The government can also join us in getting this type of shoes especially for children in marginalized areas,” added the anti-jigger campaigner.
On her part, Director of Because-International Ms. Emily Allen lauded the partnership with Ahadi Kenya saying they will distribute the long-lasting shoes to many parts of Kenya.
“The partnership will go a long way in helping children from poor backgrounds to have shoes thus motivating them in their studies. The shoes we are donating are made in Kenya and it will be a boost for the manufacturing industry in the country,” she added.