Nine thousand pupils from forty-two Primary schools have received shoes in an initiative spearheaded by the Kenya Red Cross Society West Pokot branch in partnership with Toms Shoes Company, to help them deal with the jigger menace.
Some of the schools that benefitted are BCFC, Chewoyet, Kalamaywa, Keringet primary schools among others.
Areas that are affected by the menace are Mbara, Alale, Chepareria, Keringet, Sook, Seker among others.
West Pokot Kenya Red Cross Chairperson Mr. Solomon Merireng cited that the donation is in line with the campaign and fight against jiggers in the County, targeting mostly schools.
He said that for the last four years the organization has distributed more than 50,000 shoes in the area. Merireng said that the organization is targeting children from poor families who cannot access shoes. He called on the leaders and the community to join hands in the fight.
The chairman further called on residents to join the movement to help in alleviating poverty and help in frequent calamities that happen in the region.
Speaking during the launch of the anti jigger campaign, area Governor Simon Kachapin observed that the County had benefited a lot from the Red Cross Society, saying their response to various calamities like landslides, hunger, fire, ambulance services, emergency disasters among others has been positive.
The Governor thanked the Red Cross for their donation, saying this would boost education in the area and called on other well-wishers to assist, saying more shoes are needed.
He called on the teachers, parents and the community to ensure that proper hygiene is put in place in their respective schools and homes, saying a lack of hygiene resulted in an influx of the jiggers problems and in the long run, threatens education.
Kachapin said that many pupils have dropped out of school due to jigger infestation.
He said pupils in rural areas are most affected because they go to school barefoot, adding that due to poverty, parents cannot afford to buy their children shoes.
Mr. Kachapin called on the leaders and the community to join hands in the fight. He told residents to ensure they wash their feet well before wearing shoes.
Concerning the ongoing nurses’ strike in the country, Governor Kachapin urged health workers to emulate teachers and Red Cross volunteers who work in difficult conditions. He urged nurses to go back to work and help the suffering patients in hospitals.