Residents of Nationokar in Lopur Ward, Turkana West, have received a new Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE) centre after Plan International Kenya completed and handed over a two-classroom facility to the Turkana County Government.
The new block comprises two ECD classrooms and offices, alongside a sanitation block with separate two-door toilets for boys and girls and a hand-washing point.
The facility is expected to ease access to early learning for children in the area, where families previously faced long distances to access education.
The project was supported by Danmark Indsamling through the three-year Nurturing Futures Project, which runs from April 2024 to March 2027.
New Centre Eases Burden on Families
Deputy Governor Dr John Erus received the facility on behalf of the County Government from Plan International Kenya Country Director George Otim during a handover ceremony attended by representatives from Swisscontact, Water Mission and APAD, which are co-implementing programmes under a consortium.
Parents welcomed the new facility, saying it would save children the long journeys they previously made to access early learning.
Sam Eipa said children from Nationokar had previously been forced to seek learning opportunities in the nearby refugee camp, placing an additional financial and logistical burden on their families.
Samuel Ebei said parents had also been concerned about their children’s safety because of the distance they had to travel.
He added that some children had eventually dropped out of school because of the challenges associated with accessing education.
Facility Completes Learning Pathway
According to the institution’s head, Edward Lobuin, the new ECDE block has transformed the school into a more comprehensive learning institution offering education from early childhood through junior secondary school.
The institution now has an ECD section, lower and upper primary classes and a junior secondary school.
“Transition rates will most likely improve since the facility provides education for all levels before proceeding to senior secondary,” Lobuin said.
The expanded learning pathway is expected to encourage more children to remain in school by reducing the need for families to seek different institutions for different levels of education.
Erus Urges Parents to Enrol Children
Dr Erus said the timely completion of the facility demonstrated the value of implementing development projects through local civil society organisations while using technology that can be adapted to local conditions.
He urged residents to make full use of the new facility by ensuring that all eligible children are enrolled.
The Deputy Governor also reaffirmed the County Government’s commitment to working with development partners to advance the objectives of the Turkana Integrated Socio-Economic Development Plan (KISEDP) and the Shirika Plan.
Plan International Calls for Expansion
Otim described the facility as part of broader efforts to improve the well-being, nutrition, protection and holistic development of crisis-affected children aged between zero and eight years in Kakuma refugee camp, Kalobeyei Settlement Scheme and Lopur Ward.
However, he warned that the new facility could face pressure from the area’s growing population and called on development partners to consider supporting its expansion.
“What we, Plan International and co-implementing partners, have done is a drop in the ocean. The classroom best fits 100 learners at most at any particular learning period. However, this is a densely populated area that requires additional facilities to serve the already huge and constantly growing numbers of the refugee population and host community,” he said.
More Support for Host and Refugee Communities
Before the handover, Plan International showcased health outreach services and its Parenting Under Pressure programme, which targets both host and refugee communities with life-saving interventions and support aimed at strengthening parents’ capacity to protect their children.
Plan International also runs a programme connecting schools to boreholes to improve access to water and sanitation.
The new ECDE facility is therefore expected to complement wider interventions aimed at improving education, health, child protection, water access and the overall well-being of children and families in Lopur and surrounding communities.
