By Education News Reporter
Nine Kenyan students, four girls and five boys, are preparing for a new challenge: to scale the heights of Mount Kenya. To prepare for this challenge, they begin with an escapade on Mount Longonot.
This initiative is part of the Our Rights, Our Lives, Our, Our Future (O3 Plus) Programme that was launched at University of Nairobi and at Mount Kenya University by UNESCO Regional Office for Eastern Africa.
For a successful ascension towards Mount Kenya’s zenith – Lenana Point at 4985 metres above sea level – the students enrolled in April 2022 for a rigorous programme of six rehearsal hikes to ensure they will be well acclimatized to the high altitudes.
This took them through Mt. Kilimambogo and Kijabe Hills on 14th May and 30th April respectively. They are now preparing for Mt. Longonot, Elephant Hill, Satima-Dragon’s Teeth, Mackinder’s Quest and finally Mt. Kenya on 14th – 17th July 2022.
They are taking in their backpacks the vision of the O3 Plus Programme where all adolescents and young people will attain positive health, education, and gender equality outcomes.
This fitness challenge aims to create awareness on health and well-being among young people in higher and tertiary education institutions in Kenya, particularly by developing their life skills such as knowledge, attitudes, and competencies required for preventing HIV, reducing early and unintended pregnancies, and eliminating gender-based violence.
Mount Kenya is a significant landmark in the country owing to its long association with freedom. After independence in 1963, the Kenyan flag was symbolically hoisted at Point Lenana. A copy of the Kenya Constitution 2010 and the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals are deposited at the same Point Lenana, further demonstrating the significance of this mountain.
The bold step by the nine students to scale the heights for health on behalf of young people and draw the attention of the country to the needs of young people is commendable. Healthy young people with resilience and capacity to reach their full potential is an asset if Kenya is to reap from her demographic dividend. As she braced the hot sun during the Kilimambogo hike that took place on 30th April 2022, Lucy Gathoni, a student of business studies, remarked that “It is so sad that girls in my campus experience gender-based violence and think this is the norm”.
As she rummaged the Kijabe Hill on 14th May 2022, Jane Mirigo, a Bachelor of Arts student shared a post: “Parents need to provide financial support to their children while in university to protect them from unhealthy behaviours”, noting that “some girls end up dating older men to get money but are abandoned immediately they become pregnant or contract HIV or other sexually transmitted diseases”.
Speaking from the high grounds, the inspiring students will be sharing their experiences through multiple social media platforms that resonate with young people and keep the conversations with their peers on health and well-being. A high-level Mt. Kenya climb flag-off event is scheduled to take place on July 13, 2022 at the University of Nairobi.
Mental issues have increased exponentially during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly among the youth, with physical inactivity considered as a parallel pandemic, contributing to five million premature deaths annually.
