March 26, 2023 – Page 2 – Djibouti News Gazette

March 26, 2023

Agency Rolls Out Programme To Promote Science, Technology And Mathematics

The Centre for Mathematics, Science and Technology Education in Africa (CEMASTEA) has rolled out a mentorship and outreach programme to schools to motivate learners to excel in Science, Technology Education and Mathematics (STEM) subjects.
Through the initiative, the State Corporation also aims to empower teachers across the country to deliver on the subjects at the same time spark interest in learners to support the government’s development and industrialization agenda.
CEMASTEA National Trainer Martin Mungai said through working with teachers, the State Corporation domiciled in the Ministry of Education had identified gaps in teaching methodologies adding that through the outreach program, teachers were being exposed to various models and resources that can be used to teach the subjects.
The models, he added, have been designed to simplify various concepts in Physics, Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics, robotics and coding, Climate Change and Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) to regenerate interest amongst learners.
CEMASTEA, he said, was empowering teachers with skills to use locally available resources to develop the models to aid in practical learning.
‘We realized that the biggest challenge was the lack of a practical approach to teaching STEM subjects. We are therefore demonstrating how teachers can use locally available resources to teach a concept in a very practical manner,’ he said.
The goal, he added, was to renew interest in the subjects through demonstrating their importance to students with a view to encouraging as many students as possible to pursue them.
‘As a country we may not have an opportunity to advance as fast as countries in the west if we do not embrace STEM subjects. So, there is a need to continually encourage our learners to show them the importance of STEM in the development of the country,’ he said.
Speaking during one of the outreach activities at Ken Obura Secondary School in Kisumu, Mungai said the hands-on activities with students will enable teachers to unpack concepts in easy and practical ways.
‘We are trying to connect what they are learning in class to the outside world and the opportunities available if they take up these subjects,’ he said.
CEMASTEA, he disclosed targets to reach at least 50 schools across the country this financial year expressing optimism that the outreach programme will have a ripple effect on performance in the subjects.
‘We have been inviting teachers and students to our innovative laboratories in Nairobi but you realize that most schools are limited with resources and are therefore not able to come,’ he said.
He challenged the teachers to take advantage of the skills acquired through the programme and be innovative to boost performance in the subjects.
‘Creation of an interest in a subject solely depends on the teacher. We encourage our teachers to create a positive attitude amongst the learners particularly in subjects like chemistry and physics and demonstrate to them why they need to pursue them for future possibilities,’ he said.
The trainers also visited St. John’s Christostom Secondary School, Bishop Abiero Shauri Moyo Secondary School and Lions Day Secondary School where students had hands-on experience with various concepts in STEM subjects.
Mungai said the exercise had wooed back students who had opted to drop some of the science subjects urging teachers to inspire hope and encourage more learners to take up the subjects.
‘When you see a number of students revising their choice of subjects after being exposed to these models it shows that there is hope in changing the attitude towards science and mathematics,’ he said.
Speaking during the same occasion, Kisumu Central Sub-County Director of Education Mr. Charles Ang’iela said the outreach programme was critical in reigniting interest in science and mathematics.
Through the programme, he said, more teachers and students will benefit from skills and practical knowledge to boost performance.
‘It is very expensive for a school to transport students and teachers to CEMASTEA headquarters but when they come here, they get in touch with many students and teachers. The equipment they bring to induct the teachers is very effective,’ he said.
The exposure given to students, he said, will help transform their attitude towards the subjects since some of the concepts which hitherto looked difficult have been simplified.
Elvira Gero, a Mathematics and Physics teacher at Bishop Abiero Shauri Moyo Secondary School said the approach by CEMASTEA was set to transform how the subjects are taught in secondary schools.
‘Most of us teachers are competing with coverage of the syllabus so we tend to overlook some practicals, Today I have learnt that if you approach a topic in a practical way, it is grasped faster than when you just do theory,’ she said.
Most of the schools in the area, she said, lacked basic laboratory equipment making it difficult for teachers to break down some of the concepts.
The sensitization by CEMASTEA on use of locally available resources to come up with teaching aids to demystify concepts in science and mathematics, she added, will go a long way in boosting performance in the subjects.

Source: Kenya News Agency

March 26, 2023

Turkana Council Of Elders Choose Their Leaders

The Turkana Council of Elders has new office bearers after the second official election was conducted on Saturday.
The election was conducted yesterday at Ceamo Village Lodwar in the presence of Ag. Director of Culture, Lemmy Ejorewoia and a host of culture and administration officers
A total of 70 members, representing all the sub-counties, agreed to elect the officials through secret ballot with Ejorewoia presiding over the elections as the Returning Officer.
Abraham Lokuwom emerged the winner after garnering 54 votes out of the 70 votes cast, while his only opponent Ekaran Abok garnered 16 votes.
Also elected was Samuel Eregae as the Vice chairperson, Cosmas Namaa as the Secretary and John Kaatho as the vice secretary.
During the treasurer’s position election, two contestants were competing namely Ekalale Lochakula who garnered 58 votes against his opponent Ekunoit who managed 10 votes. Benjamin Ebenyo was elected as the vice treasurer.
Also elected was the coordinator Peter Lomiinyi who garnered 53 votes against his opponent Philip Eyanae Emathe who managed 15 votes.
Speaking after the endorsement, Lokuwom decried the erosion of Turkana culture, which he vowed to restore during his tenure.
He said the roots of Turkana culture and their origin was slowly diminishing and, unless prompt action was taken, the community would not have anything to be proud of, in the coming days.
As a community, he added, the Turkana people have a wealth of cultural traditions that for decades had shielded them from engaging in wrong doing, but instead fostered unity of purpose.
‘We have to call several meetings aimed at restoring some cultural values that used to keep us together as a community,’ said Lokuwom.
He further said, ‘As a people we have to trace our origin and establish were we have come from and where we are heading to, else if we were not careful, a time will come when we will look back and regret.’
The Chairperson asked the culture department to allocate funds to train the elders on the content of the constitution to be used in management of council affairs.
Also present were members of the local security team led by the Officer Commanding Station David Mutegi and the Turkana central police boss Lemmy Njiru.

Source: Kenya News Agency

March 26, 2023

Sickle Cell Cases Surge In Western, Nyanza Regions

A pediatrician at the Bungoma County referral hospital Dr. Dickens Lubanga has attributed the rising number of sickle cell patients in the region to myths and lack of awareness.
Lubanga has said that sickle cell anemia is a frequently diagnosed disease among children and is often viewed as a curse by many people in different communities.
He regretted that the disease has widely spread mostly in Western and Nyanza regions, citing Bungoma hospital which has been registering approximately 1000 such patients in every given month, excluding the numbers being experienced in Webuye and Kimilili sub-county hospitals.
The pediatrician said if screening was intensified and tests made available to more citizens, chances were high that there could be more cases, rising to approximately 4000 and above.
Joy Watitwa, 36, a resident of Sinoko village, Bungoma County is one of the patients suffering from sickle cell anemia.
Watitwa narrated to KNA how the disease was first discovered on her at the tender age of four months and that since then, life has not been easy.
‘I often fell sick and my parents would rush me to hospital each time it happened, thinking it was just malaria, but when the situation persisted, further tests were done and it was then discovered that l was a sickler,’ she said.
Watitwa says she would later find out that she inherited the disease from her parents, who were both carriers leading to her acquiring an SS, which is a full carrier of the genes of both parents.
‘My parents had the same disease, they were both AS carriers meaning they were not full carriers, which genetically resulted in me being a full carrier SS,’ she expounded.
Sickle cell anemia is one of a group of inherited blood disorder known as sickle cell disease. It affects the shape red blood cells which carry oxygen to all parts of the body.
The red blood cells become sickle shaped, hence die early resulting in frequent infections, swelling in the hands and legs, pain, severe tiredness, and delayed growth or puberty among the affected patients.
As a hemoglobin SS sickler, I experience pain in the body and joints due to the abnormal formation of the hemoglobin, which causes the red blood cells to become rigid, she added.
At the same time, pain caused by the abnormal formation leads to sickle cell crisis, causing reduction in blood flow in the body, making one to experience severe pain unlike any other normal pain.
‘The pain runs through the whole body, even to the joint until one is not able to move due to the immense pain caused by inadequate blood flow,’ Watitwa said.
During the crisis, supply of oxygen and nutrients is very low causing the person’s eyes to become yellow and also extreme pain is felt in the bones and back due to quick shredding of the red blood cells in the body, unlike the normal red blood cells of a human being, which take 90-120 days to shred.
In her case, she is advised to manage herself in terms of safety precautions physically and health wise, because anything small that may endanger her may lead to a crisis.
‘As much as we take those measures we are advised to take medicine such as Paludrine so that in case of a mosquito bite we won’t be infected with malaria,’ she noted.
Watitwa says financing her medication has been very expensive, adding that her parents have played a big role by supporting her physically, emotionally and financially.
‘In December 2022, I was admitted in hospital and doctors had to drain all my blood and put in fresh one. It was an expensive process since I had to be in hospital full time, but it was helpful,’ said Watitwa, adding that the process of replacing blood costs about Sh250000 for persons without medical insurance.
Watitwa says that she had to travel to Nairobi to get the service done, since Bungoma medical facilities lacked the requisite machines.
On a positive note though, Dr. Lubanya says diagnosis of the disease was currently being done frequently due to the availability of HB electrophoresis screening machine at the county level.
However, the Bungoma based sickle cell clinic still lacks major drugs like Hydroxyurea, which is administered after the diagnosis to increase the patient’s blood level.
Equally, there has been shortage of Prophylaxis and folic acid for the treatment of malaria and bacterial infections respectively.
‘The drugs, especially Hydroxyurea are unaffordable by many sickler patients because of their high prices and also remain unavailable in our clinic,’ said Lubanga.
The pediatrician is now calling on the Bungoma county government to intervene and provide the essential facilities to help sickle cell patients access treatment with ease.

Source: Kenya News Agency

March 26, 2023

Health PS Urges County To Conduct Extensive Screening To Curb Increased TB

Health Standards and Professional Management PS Dr. Josephine Mburu has called on the county administration of Uasin Gishu to conduct mass screening at the community level in order to curb the increasing cases of TB in the county.
Speaking during World TB Day commemorated at Huruma grounds, Eldoret, Dr. Mburu noted that the data collected from screening in the last week revealed that TB transmission was ongoing.
‘When we started screening 132 to 420 households last week, among them we had presumptive of 2430, for those we took X-Ray were 610 among our households, suggestive Xray were 81. Among the 132 we got 112, that tells us within this locality we are not going to stop screening,’ she noted.
‘I am requesting the governor to do it for another 2-3 weeks because it proves that among the screened, we have 5 per cent cases,’ she added.
The PS urged the governor through the CECM for health to mobilize the Community Health Volunteers (CHVs) to go to the community to identify and start contact tracing to help curb the transmission sequence.
Noting that the Kenya Kwanza administration agenda on health is on upscaling preventive and promotive health care at the primary level, Dr. Mburu lauded the county government of Uasin Gishu for the commendable steps it has taken in establishing proper health infrastructure by investing in TB diagnostic equipment.
At the same time, the PS reiterated the need to strengthen surveillance at the point of entry for the Marburg Virus Disease (MVD) that had recently been reported in the neighbouring countries.
‘As a border from this side we are screening at the point of entry from the border and the airport for Marburg fever, this week we have seen reported cases of Marburg fever that had been diagnosed at Equatorial Guinea and Tanzania and each country has reported 7 cases. We are not going to stop surveillance even here in Eldoret, it is a point of entry,’ she said.
‘We need to work together with the national team to strengthen surveillance through primary health care and we will achieve the Universal Health Coverage (UHC),’ added Dr Mburu.
Uasin Gishu Governor Jonathan Chelilim revealed that the county experienced a 30 percent increase rate of TB cases, the highest ever in the county in the last 10 years.
Following the increase in case notification last year which placed the county at position 6 countrywide, Chelilim pointed out that his administration came up with key strategies to combat the disease and moved with speed to purchase TB diagnosis equipment and quickly instituted screening in all public and private facilities and also to increase community awareness.
‘Last year in our county 1910 people were diagnosed with TB which translated to a 30 percent increase rate and the highest in the last 10 years. My administration has moved with speed to improve diagnostic infrastructure through acquisition of 2 naïve bayes classifier machines for turbo sub county and introduction of a sample referral network through the GeneXpert Molecular Diagnostic Testing System in MTRH, Huruma and Moi Barracks hospitals,’ said Chelilim.
He mentioned that TB is a highly infectious and killer global disease that claims approximately 1.5 million lives annually, as he called on every citizen to take preventive measures such as cleanness and focusing more on good ventilation as one way to minimize the transmission sequence.
He noted that TB screening is currently ongoing in all the health facilities in Uasin Gishu as he urged every citizen to pay a visit to the nearest facility for screening when experiencing suspected signs and symptoms of TB.
‘Our current treatment success rate stands at 89.5 percent as we edge closer to the national rate of 90 percent. We are determined to ensure all the informal settlements are captured in the health statistics and also provided with access to health interventions,’ he said.
He urged all the key players to have strong commitment to involve the community through volunteers and public health officers as they are critical in locating the health cases at the grassroots and refer them to the nearest facility.
Chelilim indicated that his administration was working closely with the national government in collaboration with TB partners to support the achievement of the WHO vision to have a world free of TB by the year 2035.

Source: Kenya News Agency

March 26, 2023

Kisumu County To Promote Tourism Through The Fish Fiesta Festival

Fish lovers have every reason to smile this Easter as the County Government of Kisumu has organized a fish festival to sample the best freshwater fish from Lake Victoria.
County Director of Tourism Thomas Ouko said the signature event targets to woo visitors to the lake side county as efforts to revive tourism in the western circuit gain momentum.
Visitors will have a chance to eat various types of fish on the shores of Lake Victoria besides participating in other events lined up during the celebrations.
The event slated for 6th-9th April 2023 will bring together state and non-state agencies to promote tourism and chart the way forward on conservation of Lake Victoria.
Visitors will be treated to the best Luo cuisine, traditions and music with the Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI) displaying some of the various fish species found in Lake Victoria.
‘This lake used to be home to over 200 species of fish, but due to pollution and human activity the number has reduced significantly. That is why we are creating conversations around this matter to help conserve the lake,’ he said.
This, added Ouko, was in line with the county government’s agenda to promote Kisumu as a tourist destination of choice.
The department of tourism, he said, has launched a campaign dubbed ‘Kisumu My Pride’ with a goal to market the best the county has to offer to the world.
‘Lake Victoria is a key attraction. That is why the county government wants to promote it through various activities to attract visitors. Just the way people go to Mombasa to holiday we want them to come to Kisumu,’ he said.
Through partnership with the Osiepe Sango organization, a cleanup along the shores of the lake has been planned ahead of the key event.
Other events lined up during the festival include fireworks, boat racing, tug of war, photo contest, Mr and Mrs Tourism, Mr Flex, Mr Strong, Luo Traditional Wrestling, lake excursion and exhibitions.
Ouko said auditions for the events have been finalized and the winners in the various categories will compete during the celebrations to be held at Hippo Point Public Beach in Kisumu City.
Visitors and participants, he said, will also have a chance to engage in talk shows, symposia and a tour of the lake.
Besides promotion of tourism, the county director said the event will present an opportunity for the participants to exploit their talents with a view to earning a living from them.
‘Our goal is to expose the talent out there and support our youth to make a living out of it. Already some organizations have approached with the intention of absorbing some of the youth who have been participating in the Sub county auditions,’ he said.

Source: Kenya News Agency