The World Federation of KSIMC

CHEPs first conference was held on 1-2 March 2014 at Nairobi Jaffery Sports Club. The World Federation is very pleased to have had the opportunity to be part of this milestone, by contributing towards this event. Funds were raised during the Najaf2Kerbala (N2K) Walk 2013 organised by The World Federation to uplift the community in Northeast Kenya – this event being one of the projects undertaken within Kenya.

The theme of this conference was ' Education and Community Development'. The conference was attended by over 30 people including CHEPs sponsored students, academicians from various Universities in Nairobi, senior managers of NGOs, CHEPs sponsorship alumni, CHEPs members and other members of public.

The Centres for Health and Education Programmes (CHEPs) emphasises on education as a tool for community development. Its goal is to empower, promote access and improve quality of health and education for the benefit of under resourced individuals and communities. CHEPs runs multiple projects all over Kenya, under its six pillars namely Healthcare, Education Agriculture, Environment, Development and Humanitarian relief. The goal of CHEPs’ education programmes is to improve access & quality of education among needy people in Kenya. The programmes include students’ sponsorship, student community projects, books distribution to schools, provision of solar lights to deserving students in remote areas without electricity, setting up of libraries in schools, establishment of student mentorship centres, organising conferences and workshops for students, digging of wells in schools lacking water supply, and advocacy through media, scientific publication and conference presentations.

The organisation has supported over 120 students and is currently supporting about 60. These students undertake community projects as part of their agreement with CHEPs. This also provides them with experience, skills and an attachment for development in needy communities and supporting the underserved and disregarded individuals.

The conference provided a platform for the presentation and discussion on various projects undertaken by CHEPs sponsored students. Students made excellent presentations on their projects. Expert academicians participated to add value to the conference and guide the discussions and encourage the students. Ideas were generated for viable community service projects. Furthermore, discussions were held with representatives of various organizations to explore possibilities of partnership and collaborations.

The event also provided an opportunity for CHEPs administration to discuss re-launching of its student sponsorship program with new regulations aimed at formalizing, and growing the program to accommodate more deserving students. The main change would be to convert the grant sponsorship into interest free loans whose repayment can be waivered partly through good academic performance, community service, timely and good quality reports etc. The balance would thereafter be repaid in cash instalments after the student graduates. The students were supportive of this change. Details of the scheme would be shared with all students once finalised and approved by the CHEPs Managing Committee.

To read more, click on the PDF that has been attached.