THE MONETIZED EFFLUVIUM

           THE MONETIZED EFFLUVIUM

With schools being closed for end of term, students and pupils are likely to be playing around, going for tuition and others traveling but that was not the case with Raymond Omondi and his friends. Raymond spends his free time at Kenya's biggest dumpsite, the Dandora dumpsite foraging through the garbage in the hopes of yielding financial rewards for his family.

The number of children in child labor has risen to 160 million worldwide – an increase of 8.4 million children in the last four years – with millions more at risk due to the impacts of COVID-19, according to a new report by the International Labor Organization (ILO) and UNICEF. Georgio,2005 developed a model to explore the interaction between technological innovation and investment in human capital and child labor.

 The model indicates that child labor is either attributed to companies' reluctance to innovate, households' unwillingness to educate or both. Moreover, it suggests that compulsory schooling laws or a prohibition on child labor are welfare reducing in some instances and that a subsidy for innovation is the best way to reduce child labor and increase welfare.

“I come here on holidays and weekends wandering around looking for something to sell. I wouldn’t say it’s a hobby or something I enjoy but something out of my depth. We mostly collect plastics, cotton, copper and glass bottles then sell them to middlemen who in turn sell them at a higher price. The highest we get in a day is 100shs when the sky is blue and 50shs when You’re the hapless victim of the day” Says Raymond Omondi, an 11 year old active scavenger at Dandora dumpsite. 

Dandora dumpsite is the destination of about 850 tonnes of solid waste generated daily by around 3.5 million inhabitants in entire city. It is in the heart of the Nairobi slums of Korogocho, Baba Ndogo, Mathare and Dandora. It is also one of the largest in Africa and was once a quarry that the City Council of Nairobi sought to use temporarily. It was opened nearly forty years ago, and declared full in 2001, yet it is still  operational.

Raymond started this biting-the-bullet life when he was 11 years old. He is a resident at Dandora. He resorted to it in order to help his family meet the financial demands. He goes to the site as early as 7am and not even the repulsive and vomit-inducing stench could stop him. If hope had a face in such a scenario, it would definitely be grotesque.

“I often begrudge other kids. Having fun and playing around without worrying about anything is a luxury for me. We have so many kids here too working hard to probe the socio-economic disaster. My life on the right is catastrophic and on the left I’m in the devil's den that’s full of broken dreams, anguish and despair.” Raymond continues 

Raymond and his friends have often contemplated dropping out of school. They say that they’re hanging by a thread. Raymond lives with his mum who is a single mum and anemic struggling to raise the three of them singlehandedly.

“The biggest issue we have at home is paying school fees for me and my two other siblings. We get chased away every now and then and I could only take refuge in this place which is quirkily comforting. I haven’t given up on school because it’s the only way for us to have a bright future apparently even though it often feels like they’re selling us hope. It’s disappointing going home for lack of fees every time when others stay learning. It often makes us feel like we’re children of a lesser god.”

A study shows that Scavengers working in the municipalities’ open dump sites still encountered factors affecting health and safety. They are exposed to various health risks (infections, injury, disability) while working. There are many waste management problems that lead to a lack of support and interest by local organizations. As regards their behavioral health risks, it was found that most did not use PPE, some used their bare hands to collect solid waste, and some experienced small injuries from sharp objects. They were not aware of the need to clean and waited until the job was finished each day. They worked in poor sanitary conditions with overheating, vibration, dust, poor ventilation, obnoxious odors, and disease-causing animals. 

“We’ve had so many kids who have been ran over by these garbage trucks and died on the spot. There is no accountability whatsoever, they just die unnoticed and unworthy and those lucky enough get to be buried. One of our friends died last year by these trucks but the story had to be buried and the mother tipped off. She had no choice since the place is naturally dangerous and her kid apparently was not supposed to be there. One needs gumboots to be working here and walking around but we can’t afford them so we often get cuts by these glasses lying around and get serious injuries. We have been exposed to so many diseases like pneumonia on extremely cold days and different type of flus. The major problem here has been the gang members and cartels that run this place. There are often gun fights openly to mark territories and not cross a certain region. We had to look for safe days to come here. It’s mostly dangerous at night. We’re basically living in fear.” Raymond explains in a shaky voice.

Raymond and his friends are an example of a system failure. The children's future that everyone dreams of lies in places of unrecycled and non reused trash. Almost Every dump site in Kenya is located at the heart of poor communities. Where does it end for kids like Raymond?