When Signe Møller first came to the Kibarani dump in Kenya 10 years ago, 100% for the Children was born. Since then, we have worked more and more with children with special needs. Too many children from the landfill are disabled due to malnutrition and poor hygiene. We work together with Association for the Physically Disabled of Kenya (APDK) to improve conditions for some of these children.
Aisha Kale is a psychotherapist at APDK. She is one of the people who is in daily contact with the children and their parents. We asked her about her motivations for working in this field, which is both stigmatised and resource intensive.
"It motivates me that I can give parents a reason to smile after they have lost hope for their children." What brings smiles to Aisha's lips are the children: "The children help each other even though they have challenges. For example, I see a child - despite his walking difficulties - rolling another child in a wheelchair." On a daily basis, she experiences 4 essential problems that we at 100% for the Children try to help with: Lack of money for materials and - at times - insufficient expertise.
"My passion is working with children who have different abilities," says Dickson Yegon, an occupational therapist at APDK. He enjoys seeing how children who were completely dependent on their parents become more and more independent. At the same time, he sees the programme changing the parents' relationship with their children:
"Parents begin to see their children in a new, positive light where special needs are not a curse."
