Projects
Our focus is to provide the basic needs of a community in order that it can grow. These are projects that help to provide the basic needs of life - clean water, a decent level of nutrition, basic healthcare and sustainable agriculture. We also believe that education is vital to the development of a community and support student sponsorship programmes in Kenya and Mozambique. Typically we support small to medium scale projects that have long term benefits.
New Ways has four main areas of focus for the development work we support: water, infrastructure, nutrition, agrilculture and fishing, education. These themes can be seen in the projects that we continue to support.
Nutritional Rehabilitation Centres
We fund the running costs and maintenance of 26 nutritional rehabilitation centres for children aged 2 - 5 years old. The focus of these centres is to provide each child with nutrition, clean water and an opportunity for them to learn basic skills. More recently we have embarked on an agricultural programme to ensure every NRC will eventually be able to grow some food for its own use.
Student Sponsorship and Education
Education is recognised in the developed world as the single most influential factor that benefits the economic and social well being of a country and its people. So too in Turkana, we believe access to education at all levels is key to the empowerment and eventual independence of the communities we support.
Water Resources
Each year we help to fund the drilling of boreholes, dam construction and infrastructure that bring benefits to many communities among the nomadic and semi-nomadic people of Turkana.
Agriculture
The nomadic and semi-nomadic people of Turkana in North West Kenya are mainly pastoralists wandering the vast inhospitable plains in search of food and water for their communities and livestock. This makes them particularly vulnerable to drought and famine. Over the past four years we have been supporting the introduction of small scale farming to these communities that will in time help provide an additional and sustainable source of food and economic independence while helping to reduce the impact of drought and reliance on aid.
Fishing
Lake Turkana is the largest desert lake in the world covering 6,750 square kilometres, approximately four times the size of London. It supports a rich wildlife and almost 50 species of fish. Around the north western shores of the Lake in Turkana, fishing is a valuable source of food and livelihood. The Fishing Programme we support helps to build and repair boats and provide training in boat maintenance and business skills.
Health
Access to health services is severely limited in the region of Kenya where New Ways projects are located. The work we support there includes a mobile clinic and a primary health care programme that ensures even the remotest communities are able to benefit from health care and medical services including seminars and training that help reduce the incidence of disease.
Community Leadership
To ensure real empowerment of the people in Turkana is sustainable it is vital to provide training and skills for the leaders of these communities. Our community leadership funding helps to support regular skills seminars across the region and the establishment of infrastructure to support the communities in the long term management of their projects.
