Mama Dota Foundation Steps Up Support for Needy Students in Langas
She said some children were struggling to attend school because their families could not meet basic needs, including school fees and other requirements.
Photo: Courtesy.
By Eve N Njeri
The Mama Dota Foundation has intensified efforts to support vulnerable children and low-income families in Langas and neighbouring areas of Uasin Gishu County, with education and household empowerment at the centre of its community initiatives.
The foundation, led by Florence Akiny Onyango, popularly known as Mama Dota, is providing assistance to needy learners who face difficulties remaining in school because of poverty and other challenges affecting their families.
Speaking during a community engagement, Mama Dota said her decision to establish the foundation was driven by the challenges she witnessed among children in the area.
“I came to Langas’ school to look after our children, the needy and to educate them,” she said.
She said some children were struggling to attend school because their families could not meet basic needs, including school fees and other requirements. The foundation has therefore stepped in to provide support to selected learners while also addressing challenges affecting girls, including access to sanitary products.
According to Mama Dota, ensuring that children remain in school requires more than paying fees. Learners need an environment where they can study with dignity and without being forced to stay away from classes because of basic necessities.
She also highlighted the need for greater investment in public education infrastructure in the rapidly growing area.
She said there was an urgent need for a public school to serve residents of Langas, Kapkendui, Mweruti and Kitwe, areas that have experienced significant population growth.
Many families in the neighbourhood struggle to raise school fees and provide lunch for their children, making community-based interventions important in keeping learners in school.
Ambrose Jauko, a member of the foundation’s support team, said the initiative was also seeking to address the economic difficulties faced by parents.
Jauko said Mama Dota’s own humble beginnings had influenced her approach to helping families become economically independent rather than relying entirely on donations.
“We will empower the parents to eat at home,” Jauko said, stressing the importance of helping mothers establish small businesses that can generate income and support their households.
The approach is intended to complement the foundation’s direct assistance to learners by addressing the economic circumstances that often contribute to children dropping out of school.
The foundation has also extended assistance to families with children living with different abilities, as well as providing food support and other forms of relief to vulnerable households.
Community members and parents who have benefited from the programme expressed appreciation for the intervention, saying it had eased some of the financial pressure facing families.
The school involved in the initiative has about 1,800 learners, underlining the scale of the educational needs in the area.
One parent said Mama Dota’s personal experience had helped her understand the struggles faced by families unable to afford education.
“She is a woman who has come from far away. She knows the meaning of school fees,” the parent said.
Through the Mama Dota Foundation, the initiative is seeking to combine immediate assistance with longer-term economic empowerment, particularly for mothers struggling to provide for their families.
The foundation’s activities come at a time when rising household expenses continue to make it difficult for some families to meet the educational needs of their children.
By supporting school fees, sanitary products, food and vulnerable learners while helping parents explore income-generating opportunities, Mama Dota’s initiative is positioning education and economic empowerment as interconnected priorities for the community.
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