A hand up – not a hand out
Rafiki Social
When a child returns home from Rafiki Mwema, we want them to stay safe. But in Kenya, extreme poverty puts children at much greater risk of abuse and of ending up on the streets.
Rafiki Social is our social enterprise program. We help families start small businesses and earn a steady income. When parents aren’t searching every day for money to survive, they have more time to care for their children – and their children are safer at home.
Break the cycle. Build the future.
At Doyle Farm in Nakuru, Kenya, we give children who’ve survived unimaginable trauma a safe, loving and therapeutic home. Our therapeutic care continues for the children who live with us and for those who’ve safely returned to their families.
But healing is only the beginning. Life in Kenya is tough. Work is hard to find, wages are low, and there’s no welfare, childcare or other safety net. It’s even harder for single mothers, aunties and grandmothers, who must earn a living and care for children at the same time.
We want every child to have a safe home to return to, and a real future when they turn 18 and leave our care. That’s where Rafiki Social comes in.
Break the cycle. Build the future…
Sounds great but what does that mean to our Rafiki Family and how can you help make it happen?
We are so very proud of the safe, loving and therapeutic environment we give our children in Nakuru, Kenya who have experienced unimaginable trauma. We provide ongoing therapy to work through the trauma and break the cycle of abuse with the children living with us along with those who have been able to safely return to their families in the community.
RAFIKI Social
But then what..?
What about our children when they leave us or graduate at 18 years old?
We are so aware that life is really tough in Kenya.
We would like to provide a sustainable future for our children as they leave us, move into adulthood and back into the communities where they will build their futures.
This is where our program Rafiki Social comes in.
Our Rafiki Social program will bring the next step to life as we develop social enterprise opportunities, along with funding vocational training and job experience programs through local businesses.
Our program will bring stability and independence as we support our children in the next stage of their lives.
This program aspires to:
- Develop social enterprise opportunities for children who are 18 years old and ready to leave Rafiki Mwema.
- Fund vocational training and job experience programs through local businesses for our children.
- Establish businesses for our outreach families who have our Rafiki girls living with them to ensure there is no risk to our girls due to living in poverty.
- Allow further research and planning in the area for a small, multipurpose shop front, which will be adaptable to the skills and services needed in the surrounding villages.
Poverty is one of the biggest denominators in sexual abuse. With your help we can empower, educate and mentor our graduating children and outreach families to start small businesses, break the cycle of abuse and build bright futures.
You can help by donating each month
Your money will be used towards:
- Building and equipping a hairdressing space for retail and training on Doyle Farm.
- Setting up a Rafiki shop to sell our produce and other essential goods not easily available in the area we are located.
- To cover costs of vocational training for our children who are graduating from Rafiki Mwema and ready to venture into the world.
- Supply tools to run small businesses for our outreach families and Rafiki graduates including sewing machines, weighing scales, charcoal and small vegetable stalls.
Join the Rafiki Social movement and receive exclusive updates in your inbox for as little as $20 a month.
Rafiki Social updates
Each month we send out an update on the project, letting you know how much your contribution matters and what you’ve made happen in the past month.
Guaranteed good feels!
Lives are already changing
Our social enterprise is already up and running thanks to many generous donors who donated to our #GivingTuesday campaign. We have identified and supported families in our outreach programme and set them up in small viable businesses to build a better life for our children in their village homes.
