Rehabilitation and integration of abused children: A case study of public and private rehabilitation institutions in Nakuru District, Kenya

Abstract

The increasing number of child abuse cases in Kenya does not only affect the future socio-economic development and well being of the country, but also its security and safety. In Nakuru district, identified abused children are taken to rehabilitation institutions for care, protection and later integration back into the society. However, little documented information exists on the actual rehabilitation process in these institutions and later integration of the children back into the society. This study sought to evaluate the rehabilitation and integration of abused children in public and private rehabilitation institutions in Nakuru district, Kenya. This study adopted an ex post facto research design. The target population included all the abused children, managers and caretakers in the three rehabilitation institutions, and government officials from the children’s department, probation and municipal welfare office in Nakuru district. A sample of 149 children, 6 managers, 9 caretakers, and 3 government officers was selected and included in this study. Primary data was collected through administration of two sets of questionnaires (children, managers and caretakers) to the selected respondents and an interview schedule with the government officials (children’s department, probation and municipal welfare officer). Collected data was analyzed using descriptive statistics with the aid of a computer programme - Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 11.5 for windows. Data presented in this study supported the following findings: the main causes of all forms of child abuse in the study area stem from the family and the society; the services offered in the rehabilitation institutions are adequate enough to rehabilitate and later integrate the child into the society; public and private rehabilitation institutions have different criteria of admitting children even though all of them are supervised and regulated by the government; rehabilitated children are adequately prepared for integration back into the society; and both the rehabilitation institutions and the government agency responsible for handling child abuse cases face challenges in undertaking their responsibilities. Based on these study findings, three key recommendations were made: there is need for the society and families to re-evaluate the plight of children in the society in order to stem child abuse; there is need for the government to develop uniform criteria for admission of children into private and public rehabilitation institutions so as to treat abused children equally; and there is need for the society to be more involved in the integration process of the rehabilitated children so as to ensure swift and efficient acceptance.