Diana Wanyonyi interviews Edel Wafula (an independent home-based caregiver to young children) and Lucy Minayo (a lawyer who served as the first Director of NurtureFirst). Ms. Wafula describes her work with the children and how she got into the field. NurtureFirst, formerly Home-Based Childcare, aspires to be a global resource and advocacy organization for childcare systems that help and support care of children in homes, whether the child’s own home or that of the caregiver. Ms. Wafula emphasizes the essential nature of home-based care and its invisibility and minuscule remuneration as a form of work. She notes that Kenya’s government aims to replace charitable institutions with more home and family-based childcare.
The Women’s International News Gathering Service (WINGS) has been covering the global women’s movement and related issues for community radio since 1986. WINGS may be contacted at [email protected].