By Kipkemboi Toroitich
A community-based organization, Shining Hope for Communities, Shofco, is planning to establish a rehabilitation centre for youth struggling with alcohol addiction in Nyeri.
The Nyeri-based CBO says this will supplement government initiatives aimed at helping substance-dependent youth overcome or control their habits.
Founder and CEO Dr. Kennedy Odede said there have been rising concerns over the rates at which young people, including school children, were falling into alcohol abuse in the region.
It comes after a recent report indicated that Nyeri was among the forefront counties that suffered immensely from alcoholism and substance abuse.
“We intend to reach all the eleven Central Kenya counties to try and help youth overcome alcohol dependence,” said Odede, adding that Nyeri would remain the focal point of their activities.
He was speaking when he distributed bursary cheques to needy families courtesy of his organization, which also is engaged in healthcare, gender-based violence and water provision programmes, among other welfare activities in the region.
Thirty students from Muthinga and Majengo slums benefitted, as a promise of 25 more scholarships was made.
