Kenya Scouts Association has appealed to parents in Kilifi County to enroll their children to scouting programmes as a way of cushioning them against social problems such as drug abuse and early pregnancies affecting the county.
Speaking to KNA during Units Leaders training week at Kenya Scouts Association offices in Kilifi, the National Executive Commissioner Moses Danda said parents are going through a lot of constraints of life and are unable to engage their children well but scout programmes could provide the platform.
He said that the programme trains young people to become responsible citizens through peer education and making firm promises that limits them not to engage in bad behaviors.
“Scouting provides that platform for young people all the way from age 6 to be properly engaged through non-formal education courses that develop them, makes them useful, obedient to their parents and adults, organised and courageous,” he said
He added that early scout engagements of young people make them become exceptionally good leaders and produces people who are more trainable and more employable.
Danda said that through the programmes, young people become vocal and aggressive in pursuing their life dreams stating that scouting open their lives. “There are a lot of young people who fail to get what they need because they cannot negotiate their own space in life. Scouting opens them out so that they are able to shout and negotiate their space in life,” he added.
He also explained that scout training has added a great advantage to many young people in securing jobs in the military, nursing and many other fields both locally and internationally.
Kilifi County Scout Commissioner Hassan Kilalo said in the year 2018-2019 the members of the scout association in Kilifi carried out seminars sensitising on sex education which resulted to remarkable drop of early pregnancies in the county.
Kenya Scouts Association receives support from the Ministry of Education for both funds and volunteer staff who serve in various capacities of the association.
In the previous financial year, the association received Sh100 million which was used to run various activities all over the country.
By Jackson Msanzu
