Parents have turned their children as young as 6 years old into early morning and night hawkers forcing them to miss classes and even drop out of school.
An exposé by Citizen TV on Sunday, March 5, revealed how some of the young school-going children in Kisii had been turned into breadwinners, going to the market at 5:00 am to sell different products before going to school.
Moreover, the students were forced to miss classes on some days to beg for food at the Daraja Mbili market for their families who were burdened with financial needs.
A father of two such children, Isaac Makori, admitted to sending his children to hawk paper bags stating that he did not have a stable source of income and needed help to provide for his family’s needs including paying for rent and his children’s education.
"We have not been able to pay rent for six months now, we are very poor. I help other people on their farms and the children sell paper bags in the market but the money is still not enough to sustain us,” Makori stated.
Moreover, Makori’s children stated that their parents struggle to buy them food and clothes forcing them to offer a helping hand.
On the other hand, their teachers revealed that they were forced to go out of their way to provide food for children adding that they could not sustain providing for them because the number of students in need was growing.
“Although the government is supporting these students, most of them are not able to afford basic needs forcing them to come to school without taking any meals,” Nancy Wanwa, a teacher at Daraja Mbili Primary School stated.
Kisii County Director of Education, Pius Ng'oma stated that the county government had been working in collaboration with the authorities at the Daraja Mbili market to send away children who were found selling during school hours.
“Some of these children are forced into child labour. We have spoken to the market authorities to ensure that no child is subjected to those conditions where they (they go to the market) when they are supposed to be in school,” Ng’oma stated.
Moreover, Kisii County Commissioner Tom Anjere added that he had alerted area chiefs to take charge of the issues noting that other authorities were also further investigating the matter.
Anjere further issued a warning to parents who sent their children to sell at different markets stating that the authorities would take severe measures against them.
“We halve already talked to the county’s children’s officer, we have also liaised with the county director of education and agreed that the departments will come together to ensure that all school-going children go back to school,” Anjere stated.
