Our Programs

Literacy for Women in Africa

BSK has an adult literacy program dubbed literacy for women in Africa. This program mainly targets a group of women of child-bearing age (15 years and above) who have not had the opportunity to learn to read and write.

BSK has an adult literacy program dubbed literacy for women in Africa. This program mainly targets a group of women of child-bearing age (15 years and above) who have not had the opportunity to learn to read and write.
Other persons targeted by the programme include men, young girls, and elderly women. This could also include women who have already had the opportunity to learn to read ‘second chance.’

Turkana County has low literacy levels of 20% considering that it has a population of 926,976 speakers of the language. Non-literates account for 741,580.

The Literacy for Women in Africa programme is currently being implemented in the County with 20 active adult literacy classes spread across Loima, Turkana Central, Turkana North, and Turkana South sub-counties. The program has grown tremendously since 2018 when it began with 10 pilot classes. So far, 1920 learners have been trained with 65% of them being women.

The reason why the program majorly focuses on women is that in the marginalized communities women or girls are denied a chance to go to school, as priority is given to men. Women are seen as people who carry out house chores, bear children, go through practices e.g. female genital mutilation (FGM) and early marriages thus denying them a chance to access education or any form of schooling.

The uniqueness of this program is that it is a non-formal mother tongue-based education meant to impact adult learners with basic reading and writing skills. The main goal of the program is to enable the marginalized communities to read the Word of God in their heart language and be transformed by it.

BSK partners with the Church to implement this programme. The Churches provide venues that are used as classes, they identify passionate people who are trained as teachers, and they assist in monitoring. The Directorate of Adult and Continuing Education office has also come in handy in helping learners to transition to formal schooling to learn other subjects.

other Programs & projects

Open the Book & Programme For Pastoral Instruction PPI

Braille Bible Distribution to the VIP’s Programme

Faith Comes By Hearing (FCBH)

Mwimbi Bible Translation

Young Samaritans Programme

Literacy for Women in Africa

Bibles Eagles Club

African Biblical Leadership Initiative (abli)

Marginalized Children

 

Gikuyu Study Bible Project

Banyala Bible Translation Project

Teso Bible translation project

 

Empowering adults with reading and writing skills

Written by BSkenya

February 16, 2018

The Bible Society of Kenya (BSK) has a mandate of availing scriptures to people in different languages. In a bid to reach adults with literacy skills, BSK is conducting literacy projects among the Maasai, Turkana, and Pokot communities.

The Maasai, Turkana and Pokot communities have Bibles in their local languages. A large percentage of them are not able to read. BSK is uplifting the literacy levels in these communities through producing materials that will ensure learners are equipped with literacy skills. We have also reached primary schools with easy reading bible literacy portions called New Readers Portions.

Through these projects, over 1000 learners have graduated since 2010 and are now equipped with skills to read, write and do transactions. Despite drought and migration in these areas the people who have gone through these classes have recorded great transformation in their lives.

I joined the adult class in 2013. “I was encouraged by a local pastor to join the adult class. Initially I used to rely on

Joshua Makui one of the learners who has benefited from the adult literacy programme

listening to proclaimers and other preachers to build my evangelism messages. Though not fluent in reading, I cannow read bible verses in Maasai language. Before joining the class, I was a full time herdsman but I am now able to trade and manage my animals properly. Adult learning has helped me in evangelism since even those who disregarded me as uneducated now respect me when I speak to them about the word of God.” Joshua, African Inland Church evangelist

 I joined the adult class in 2011 after being encouraged by my sister in-law. I am a second wife and a mother of four boys and three girls. Prior joining the class I couldn’t write my name nor do simple addition arithmetic. I am now able to write my name and comfortably read a bible verse in Maasai. My aim for joining the class was that I could read the Bible for myself and now I am able to. I am also able to check my lower primary children’s homework. When my relatives go to hospital, they always trust me to check the doctor’s comments because they now consider me educated. I am so happy to receive such recognition from my relatives. Thank you Bible Society of Kenya for empowering me with such great knowledge” Elizabeth Likana.

 

Elizabeth Likana is very delighted to be a beneficiary of the BSK literacy project

We thank our donors for their continued support towards these projects. We will continue to conduct these classes so that many people may get empowered as well as learn the God in their own language.

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