These days, everyone struggles to get money in whichever way
it could be; ranging from working in the markets to working in the farms. They
try to work hard to get income to support their families in buying food,
medicines and paying fees. This has eventually affected their parenting role.
Young children are left on the mercies of older ones; whose ratio is 1-4 under
the care of 7-10 children.
As a result, children are found loitering along the road with
no one to take care of them. One morning, I found Masika Rita, an 8 year old
girl in Kyempara one village carrying a 3 years old child who had been left in
her care as the mother had gone to the farm which is about 8 kilometres from
their home. The little girl was miserable because she had missed school on this
day as she said “My mother said that I
should not go to school today because she was planting G.nuts. I am scared that
tomorrow; our teacher will beat me for missing school”. Scared as she was,
she had no hope for the next meal! “Mother
did not leave for us anything to eat, I am going to my grandmother’s place to
see if she is there because we are too hungry” Rita said with a pale long
innocent face!
Another girl called Sifa, 10 years of age was left to take
care of her brother who was 2 years old and other children from the
neighborhood of Kyempara village as it was a market day, where almost every
parent had left to the market to involve in small businesses. When I asked her
why she had not gone to school, she said “My
mother left home at 6am this morning and assigned me all the house work. She
said I should not go to school but instead stay home to take care of the
children.”
All these children are left with no food or anyone to provide
for their food. Their parents come back home late at night. So, most of these
children do not eat food for 24 hours during market days. This leaves them weak
and vulnerable to malnutrition and also can eventually lead to school drop out
of those children who are left home to take care of the younger ones.
The most affected is the girl child whose role is to “take
care of the children” while her boy counterpart is in class all the days of the
week. These two cannot compete well academically in the same way.
As a trained Human rights activist, I have started bringing
these issues in the Neighborhood Assemblies so that community members can
appreciate that this is a big problem that is affecting our children. Since NAs
are a mode of creating awareness and they are attended by most of our community
members, I believe change will be realized. I also have identified these homes
whose cases are so severe and have booked the Sub county Community Development
Officer so that we can together visit these homes for proper targeted
sensitization.
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