Reintegration of Street-Connected Children & Youth in Kenya: Evaluation of Agape Children’s Ministry’s Family Strengthening Program

Background: In Kenya, the number of street-involved children continues to grow, with most recent estimates as high as 250,000 to 300,000. Most children who receive services return to the streets. Street-involved children are a highly vulnerable group, susceptible to adverse circumstances including abuse, substance use, early sexual activity, illiteracy, and lack of social supports. Services provided to street-connected children are needed to reduce risk, prevent further marginalization from mainstream society, and promote their best chances in life. It is globally recognized that children best develop in families, and there is preference for family-based care over residential care or residing on the streets. Since 2021, Agape Children’s Ministry has provided time-limited, crisis-oriented services to families recently reintegrated through its Family Strengthening Program (FSP), an in-home intervention deliveredby social workers following family reintegration and in response to a crisis. FSP consists of family and marriage counseling, and parent training. The overall goal is to keep families from collapsing following reintegration. Objective: We conducted an evaluation of Agape’s FSP to ascertain whether it is achieving the intended outcomes. Method: Participants comprised a non-probability, purposive sample of 30 families (n = 30 children, 67% = male, 12.9 ± 2.2 years of age; n = 38 caregivers, 75% = female) enrolled in the FSP between September 1, 2022, and October 31, 2022. Family functioning was measured using a modified version of the Family Togetherness Scale (FTS), a 30-item tool validated in Kenya that assesses for family distress. Well-being was measured using the Child Status Index (CSI), a 48-item index that assesses well-being and needs across six domains (food/nutrition; shelter/care; protection; health; psychosocial; and education/skills training). We conducted paired-samples t-tests to determine whether there were significant changes on the FTS and CSI from before receiving Agape’s FSP intervention to after receiving the intervention. Results: The mean of differences on the FTS was 2.49 ± 1.53. Paired-samples t-test indicated that this is significantly greater than zero (t(67) = 13.44, p<.001, 95% CI [2.12, 2.86]) and large in magnitude (d = 1.63). The mean of differences on the CSI was 0.47 ± 0.27. Paired-samples t-test indicated that this is significantly greater than zero (t(28) = 9.50, p<.001, 95% CI [0.37, 0.57]) and large in magnitude (d = 1.76). All but two children remained reintegrated at the end of the study period. Conclusions: Results highlight the importance of using a holistic family-based program that reunites children with their healthiest possible family environment with a plan tailored to their individual needs and unique situations. Recommendations: (1) Organizations working with reintegrated families should engage in the intensive work that promotes family organization, emotional closeness, communication, and problem-solving; (2) Organizations working with reintegrated families should ensure attention to the diverse needs of families following reintegration so that well-being continues to increase across domains; (3) Organizations that want to further study the effectiveness of family-based interventions should engage in research that uses randomized controlled trial or quasi-experimental designs to further study the effectiveness of these types of programs.