Social Support for Orphaned Children in Busia Township: Challenges and Prospects
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SOCIAL SUPPORT FOR ORPHANED CHILDREN IN BUSIA TOWNSHIP: CHALLENGES AND PROSPECTS BY NETONDO WEPO MISIKO A RESEARCH PROJECT SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT AND MANAGEMENT DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY AND ANTHROPOLOGY MASENO UNIVERSITY ©2017 DECLARATION I declare that this work has not been previously submitted for a degree at Maseno or any other University. The work reported herein was carried out by me and all sources of information have been acknowledged. Netondo Wepo Misiko Reg. No. EL/ARM/00265/2012 Signature…………………………… Date……………………… This Project Report has been submitted for examination with my approval as University Supervisor Dr. Omondi Ahawo. Department of Sociology and Anthropology Maseno University Signature…………………………… Date……………………… ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I wish to extend my appreciation first and foremost to Mr and Mrs Gunner Ischir (Sigrid Zumbach and Gunner Ischir) of Baden Young Men Christian Association (YMCA), Germany, for the financial support and encouragement. Dr. Omondi Ahawo of the School of Arts and Social Sciences, Department of Sociology, Maseno University who was the course coordinator and my supervisor, for the encouragement and friendly engagement to ensure that I complete this undertaking. Dr. F. Ikanda, the Chair of the Department, for his invaluable guidance, my colleagues, Diida and Sylvia and the faculty in general, thank you all. This work is a reflection on how I would have loved to be supported as an orphan at the age of 8 months and tries to capture realities lived by Orphaned and Vulnerable Children in our communities. Lastly, Iwish to express sincere gratitude to my respondents who provided information for the study, specifically Matayos Sub-County children‟s officer who availed the sampling frame and guided me to locate the beneficiaries. iii DEDICATION I dedicated this paperto my late father, Diddum Netondo (RIP), grandmother, Susana Nakhumicha (RIP), my mother, BiliahNafula, my wife, Rose and my children, Derick and Faith for their love and support iv ABSTRACT Worldwide, there are more than140 million children under the age of 18 years who are orphaned because of HIV/AIDS and other causes. More than 46.6 million of these children come from Sub-Saharan Africa and more than 2 million in Kenya with challenges such as poor nutrition, poor shelter and lack of access to educational facilities. Busia County is among the top five counties in Kenya with the highest HIV/AIDs prevalence rates and deaths. County statistics indicate that there are thousands of orphans particularly in Busia Township in need of assistance. There are several social support programmes that are offered by both the government and non-governmental organizations. However, it remains unclear how these programs select their beneficiaries, and more importantly, their interventions in relation to the needs and priorities of the orphans. The main objective of this study was to investigate factors that undermine social support systems for Orphans in Busia Township and to establish the prospects of such programmes in the County. Specifically, the study sought to examine methods used by organizations in identifying and selecting orphans into social support programs in Busia Township, to identify challenges faced in the delivery of social support services and to determine the social protection interventions provided to orphans in relation to their needs and priorities. The study was guided by the welfare economic theory. The study employed cross-sectional descriptive design to describe factors undermining social support programs for orphaned children in Busia Township. The study targeted a total of 916 households with registered orphans from which 260 were selected based on Krejcie & Morgan table. Multistage sampling technique was used to sample the 260 households from the target population. In addition, 7 key informants from relief organizations were selected to participate in the study. Data was collected using semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions and key informant interview guides. Descriptive statistics such as percentages were used to analyse quantitative data with qualitative analysis employed to analyse qualitative data. Findings indicate that social support systems in Busia Township are confronted with several challenges ranging from targeting process, resource constraints and poor coordination. In addition, most of the interventions provided by organizations are largely protective. The study recommend a thorough review of targeting approaches, enhancement of preventive interventions as well as provision of institutional care for those children living in the streets. v TABLE OF CONTENTS TITLE PAGE…………………………………………………………………………………..i DECLARATION ...................................................................................................................... ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ..................................................................................................... iii DEDICATION ......................................................................................................................... iv ABSTRACT ...............................................................................................................................v TABLE O CONTENTS………………………………………………...…………………….vi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ................................................................................................ viii DEFINITIONS OF TERMS .................................................................................................... ix LIST OF TABLES .....................................................................................................................x LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................................. xi CHAPTER ONE ......................................................................................................................1 INTRODUCTION....................................................................................................................1 1.1 Background to the Study .................................................................................................. 1 1.1.1 Social Support Programmes in Kenya ...................................................................... 3 1.2 Statement of the Problem ................................................................................................. 6 1.3. Objectives of the Study ................................................................................................... 7 1.4. Research Questions ......................................................................................................... 7 1.5. Justification of the Study ................................................................................................ 7 1.6Delimitationof the Study ................................................................................................... 8 1.7 Limitations of the Study................................................................................................... 8 1.8 Theory .............................................................................................................................. 8 1.9 Organization of the Study .............................................................................................. 10 CHAPTER TWO ...................................................................................................................11 LITERATURE REVIEW .....................................................................................................11 2.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 11 2.2 Empirical Review........................................................................................................... 11 2.2.1 Beneficiary Targeting Approaches ......................................................................... 11 2.2.2 Challenges encountered in delivery of social protection services .......................... 13 2.2.3 Social Support Interventions ................................................................................... 15 2.3 Literature Overview and Research Gaps ....................................................................... 16 CHAPTER THREE ...............................................................................................................18 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY .........................................................................................18 3.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 18 3.2. Research Design............................................................................................................ 18 3.3. The Study Area ............................................................................................................. 18 3.4. Target Population .......................................................................................................... 19 vi 3.5 Sampling frame .............................................................................................................. 20 3.6 Sampling Techniques and Sample Size ......................................................................... 20 3.7 Data Collection .............................................................................................................. 22 3.8 Piloting