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Title [Martial Arts Globe] Penetrating the Grassroot- Siaya and Homabay County

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    08-04-2019
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Photo by Seth Doyle, no direct linkage with the below writing.

 

 

 -Lona Abiero

 

The Annual Siaya county schools karate joint training was held on 26th and 27th February 2019. The main aim of having this joint training was to bring many youths on board and help them with behavioral change through karate. The next target area is Homabay County with a high HIV/AIDS prevalence.


Penetrating the Grassroot

Siaya County is one of the 47 counties in Kenya.  It lies within the arid and semi – arid climate. Majority of the population consist of members of the Luo tribe, an Ethnic group in the Western region of Kenya. The mission of Siaya County which has 6 constituencies is to offer, uphold and organize quality education and training, integrationof science technology and innovation in sustainable socio-economic development process, with focus on youth empowerment, preservation of African culture and nurturing talents and sports.

 

 

Currently the education trends in Siaya have been on the decline, student unrest instead has gone up. In terms of martial arts, sports and development, Siaya County is among the top counties in Kenya to embrace karate. Schools like Nyamira girls’ high school, Barding boys’ high school, Sawagongo boys’ high school, Ndigwa mixed secondary school and Maranda boys high school are the schools which have fully embraced and supported Karate. On 26th and 27th February 2019, Siaya county schools had their Annual Siaya county schools karate joint training at Barding Boys high school and I was happy to be among the guest instructors who took part in this noble course to improve the lives of youths in this great county.


The joint training which took two days was successful. The turnout was much bigger than the one which we had in 2018, with a total of 3 schools (Barding boys’ high school, Ogande Girls high school, Sawagongo boys’ high school), 1 club (Siaya dragons karate club), and 1 technical institution attending(Siaya technical training institute). The main aim of having this joint training was to bring many youths on board and help them with behavioral change through karate. Siaya County is among the counties that are struggling with unemployment, teenage school dropouts and early teenage pregnancies. Involving them in karate will help improve their discipline, academic performance, mold their behaviors and even be a source of employment to them.


Siaya County is the first county in Kenya that we have visited in our mission of taking karate to the grass root level. With the help of sensei Joshua Orlando, (chief organizer) the instructor of Nyamira girls and Ogande girls high school, and Mr. Anumo of Barding high school, Mr. Gregory Oluoch, coach of Kenya prisons, Austin Wanga, sensei of Kisumu karate academy, Thomas Sankara of Kisumu polytechnic karate club, we managed to divide the participants among ourselves and ensured a successful two days training. Plans are underway and hopefully with the same team, we have plans of visiting Homabay County with the same mission of rescuing our youths from crime, early marriage, teenage pregnancy and health matters. 


The reason as to why our next target area is Homabay County is because this is the area which the HIV/AIDS prevalence is the highest in Kenya. According to the Homabay county report on the HIV implementing partners online reporting system (HIPORS), for the financial year 2016/2017, Homa Bay County which has a population of 1,101,901, comprising of males (48%) and females (52%), HIV prevalence is nearly 4.5 times higher than the national prevalence at 26.0%. The county contributed 15.1% and 14.0 % of the total new HIV infections in Kenya among children and adults respectively(Kenya HIV Estimates 2015).  



How Karate can Benefit the Students of Soaya and Homabay County

  • In order to control or reduce poverty rate in Siaya County which is mostly caused by unemployment, karate can be used to create employment. This can be done by holding instructor and coach courses for these youths, who can in turn apply for coaching jobs in schools and institutions of higher learning.


  • Karate as a main tool to improve discipline is very helpful for any teenager. Student unrest (strikes) is a very popular bad tendency, not only in Siaya County, but in Kenya as a nation. Most of the times we get news of students burning down a school, burning down the school bus, or even demolishing property because their needs have not been met by the administration. With karate as a tool of discipline and promoting peace, teaching these students this art of discipline will honestly reduce the rising number of school students’ unrest.


  • Exercise such as martial arts (karate, taekwondo, wushu, jiu jitsu) positively impacts children and adolescents’ academic presentation, according to the Journal of Pediatrics. The University of Madrid conducted a three-year study, which included 2,038 individuals aged 6 to 18. As physical fitness improves individuals’ health, it also positively affects the brain.  Irene Esteban-Cornejo, MSc, and Autonomous University of Madrid stated high levels of cardio-respiratory and motor fitness had the ability to decrease the risk of school failure.  This study indicated exercise can enhance students’ ability to perform well in school.


  • Success in all angles and aspects of life comes from achieving a series of smaller goals which ultimately culminates in the accomplishment of larger goals. In school, at work or at home, this could mean finishing an essay or assigned duty on time. In karate, it means passing an evaluation and earning a new belt. A karateka learns to enjoy the satisfaction of accomplishing goals and this will spur them to seek out opportunities to replicate in school and at home also.


  • With all the opportunities and channels of entertainment available to today’s kids it can get difficult to focus. But in order to cope with schoolwork, students must learn how to listen to the teachers and not get distracted by their surroundings. Karate can help your child to develop focus and concentration. When in karate class, they learn to shut out distractions, whether they’re external or internal. This will in turn raise the education standards and performances in this county.


  • In addition to improving physical fitness in individuals, karate can improve mental and emotional health. As you learn the moves, you get to improve your self-confidence and reduce stress. With reduced stress levels and greater self-confidence, we can face life easily.

REF: MAISHA, (February 2018), Homa Bay County Report on the HIV Implementing Partners Online Reporting System(HIPORS) for the Financial Year 2016/2017, HIPORS, Retrieved March 19, 2019 from https://www.google.com/url?q=https://nacc.or.ke/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Homa-Bay.pdf&sa=D&ust=1553001919389000&usg=AFQjCNEsNZN7ZYF6UelBlp0C93GTx4-xBw.

REF: Elsevier Health Sciences. (2014, June 19). Improving academic performance with physical fitness. ScienceDaily. Retrieved March 19, 2019 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/06/140619095922.htm

 

 ※ This writing does not reflect the opinion of UNESCO ICM.