My Story

Anita was born out of wedlock after her mother’s husband had passed away. Her mother had two daughters with her husband before he passed away in the mid-1990s. Her situation became difficult when her in-laws started mistreating her because she had not given birth to a son to pass on the family name. Therefore, as is the case in most Kenyan communities, Anita’s mother was perceived to not have value. Anita’s mother left her matrimonial home and went back to stay with her mother, who does not own any land. They have been living illegally in the government protected forest. Anita and her younger brother Emmanuel were born outside of wedlock. Their fathers are not known. For Anita’s mother, providing for the needs of all four of her children and her elderly mother is extremely challenging, and has proven to be hopeless. She relies on illegally extracting forest wood and selling it as charcoal to support her family. This has never been adequate in meeting basic and educational needs of Anita and her siblings.