Kakamega: Stakeholders have called upon the government to set aside enough funds to support children’s services for proper upbringing. Speaking during the commemoration of the Day of the African Child at Approved grounds Kakamega, the stakeholders asked both the National and County government to ensure that children are protected, access uninterrupted education, medication, and social welfare.

According to Kenya News Agency, the County Executive Committee Member for Social Services, Youth, Sports, Gender, Culture and Library services, Jackline Masicha, noted that Kakamega County government has set aside Sh8 million to support children in the county. “We are looking at having a children’s rescue center so that the rights of children are protected and also ensure their basic needs are well taken care of,” she added.

The CECM further mentioned that the county government, together with other partners, is carrying out sufficient sensitization to ensure that children in the community are protected from abuses in
their homes. “We are also sensitizing parents to ensure that they are present to take care of their children,” she added.

Masicha expressed concern over the increasing cases of child labor in the county, warning that it could affect the proper upbringing of children in society. The Programme Manager for Women in Water and Natural Resources Conservation (WWANC), Chrispinus Shamwama, called for the allocation of funds to address all the needs of children in the country, such as health, education, immunization, and more.

“We are simply encouraging and insisting that budgets must capture issues of children,” Shamwama emphasized. He highlighted the necessity for the government to allocate funds to strengthen family structures, such as economic status, enabling families to adequately care for their children.

Shamwama also stressed the importance of involving children in budgeting for their needs. “Children must also be taught and sensitized about budgeting, let us budget with children, let’s not be adults’ budge
t for children,” he added. “Let children bring out their issues, let children bring out their needs so that they know there is something called a budget and that the government plans for them and budgets for them,” he noted.