The Dear Diary Initiative Kenya
Project Proposal
Dear Diary Communication, Sensitization and Empowerment on Disability. Introduction
The Dear Diary Initiative Kenya is a community based not for profit making campaign that was established in 2011 to advocate for the rights and welfare of people with
disability. The idea was coined by Nafisa Khanbhai a physically challenged lady who had a passion fo
r making sure that the disable people are handled with dignity and not sympathy. Her story reads like a moving novel owing to her cultural background which did not
appreciate the genesis of disability. As a youth who expected fair treatment form the
society she had come into personal contact with prejudice and underestimation owing to her physical challenge. Together with some coast based performing artist they decided to amplify the challenges she and other disabled people were going through using the media of stage theatre, they wrote a script “Dear Diary” about her life in 2006; it was first performed in Mombasa at the Little Theatre Club then moved to Nairobi around 2009 where it was performed at the Kenya National Theatre. Among other activities the dear diary initiatives has been advocating for the rights of
disabled people locally, it has been involved in sensitization on the community through arts on disability and support disabled people who have been neglected by their families or whose families are not at a position to cater for their basic need and medication. Currently it has supported more that fifteen disabled individuals. Our partners who include local private companies, sole business people and charitable organization that supported the Dear Diary Initiative include Nakumatt Holdings Limited, Association of the Physically Disabled on Kenya, Little Theatre Club, Fairdeal Bobmil, Statprint among others. Our Vision is to be one of the leading institutions that make community knowledgeable on the challenges the disabled persons go through and institute mechanism on
overcoming the pre-determined challenges; this will be off course with respect of the relevant arms of the law including the Disability Act of 2003, International Laws and
Conventions of Disability. Our Mission is to Inform, Educate and Empower the community on disability issues through the medium of discussion, performing arts, peer education, counseling and workshops. Background
Dear Diary is a conceptualization of the daily life if a disable young lady, her desires, aspiration, challenges and even the way she wants to be treated. Nafisa Khanbhai sought the services of a re-known playwright and creative director Joel Godiah to write a stage play about the plight of people with disability. Godiah is a teacher at Aga Khan Academy joined the imitative to realize the objective of addressing the plight of the Disabled people. Godiah therefore pulled into the project Mr. Hillary Namanje; a creative and
artistic director who has worked for more than ten years in stage and screen
productions within Kenya and moved all over the East - African community to beef up the dream team in making Dear Diary a reality. Together they brought in Abel Sauti a Stage Manager with Kwezi Multimedia to
completely put a full house in place to prepare a team of innovative cast to take Dear Diary round the whole country. After successive tour of Mombasa and Nairobi Ms. Nafisa has received
overwhelming response from people who visit the dear diary website and urged her to continue
battling out relentlessly to see the change in the society where disabled people will be
appreciated that when he sought the services of Mr. Nolly Wilson Raye; a Personal and Organizational Development Consultant with Libertos Enterprise to bring in the
professional expertise of making the Dear Diary Initiatives Kenya a reality. We have a strong team of individuals whom in spite of them being disable they are
willing to contribute their expertise to make the communication strategy of the initiative
coming into reality, we have the confidence of respective arms of the Government some of whom have attended our shows and commended our job, we have willing
supporters, financers, donors and friends willing to see the project a reality. We are looking forward to institute Dear Diary into a continuous initiative, looking
after its awareness, sensitization and advocacy project in a professional manner with
professional input to make the society a better place for the disabled. We are upping our fundraising efforts because we need resources to realize the objects of the
organization
Goals and Objectives of the Project
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To equip the disabled to be self sustainable
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To identify, document and publish matters on disability
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To build the capacity of the persons with disability to cope with their day to day challenges
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To offer psychosocial support to post disability trauma
