First Lady pushes for protection of girls from harmful cultural practices
First Lady Margaret Kenyatta has called for concerted efforts to promote girl-child education, saying girls must be protected against harmful cultural practices that hinder their progress.
She emphasised that girls should be given an equal chance at attaining education.
“We must support and protect our girls from early pregnancies that affect their development into strong and healthy women. Our girls alongside our boys have the potential to become anything they wish to be,” she said.
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The First Lady spoke Friday in Narok county when she presided over the opening of Oloserian Women Empowerment Centre and inaugurated two new classrooms at Olkuroto Primary School, which was renamed Margaret Kenyatta Olkuroto Primary School in her honour.
She, at the same time, underscored the importance of women empowerment, saying its ripple effect impacts positively on families, communities and the country at large.
“I have personally seen the impact of similar projects around our beautiful nation. I am, therefore, confident that the Oloserian Women's project and the adult literacy classes will provide women of this community with knowledge and independence because women and mothers are the backbone of their families and communities,” she said.
The First Lady commended Catholic priest Francis Rodrigues and other donors for sponsoring the Olkuroto projects.
“Your dream of lifting the livelihoods of women and promoting girl-child education has today been fulfilled. I am sure that the entire community will experience the life-changing impact of the projects that we have inaugurated today,” the First Lady said.
The school has a solar-operated borehole that provides clean drinking water to 210 households and their livestock while women from the area can make handicrafts at the empowerment centre and sell them to tourists to generate income.
The First Lady, who assured of her continued support for community projects in the area, said the water project will save women the long hours of walking in search of water from streams and rivers.
Narok Governor Samuel ole Tunai pledged his support for the Olkuroto projects and assured of his commitment to continue promoting girl-child education in the county.
