Furaha Support Group

MDGs—HIV/AIDS, Poverty
 
About Us
Furaha, which means “happiness” in Kiswahili, is registered as a community-based organization. We have a volunteer staff of five, and reach a total of 43 people currently. All people in the group have AIDS, and are working together to support each other financially. The goal is to continue to improve our support strategy so that we can better meet the needs of the sick in the group.
 
Our Community
Furaha is founded in an agricultural area outside of Nakuru, Kenya. The rural area, spelt Murunyu or Murunyo or Methodist (though not found on maps) is a twenty-minute bus ride from Nakuru.
 
The area has been hit hard by AIDS, poverty, and environmental degradation, such as the deforestation of the Abedare Mountain range.
 
Our History
We were founded in 2007 and have been running a series of programs ever since.  Each month, we meet as a group in someone’s home.  There, we encourage each other and collect and disperse funds as necessary.  Our “Kibarua” program is a system in which healthy members work manual labor on farms and then donate their earnings.  These funds are used to purchase a basic crop or something to sell (maize, kale, etc.).  Members who are not well enough to farm then take the purchased crop and sell it.  Everyone keeps a small amount from their efforts and the rest of the funds are returned to a communal pot for recycled efforts.