Tucked away in the serene highlands of Meru, Aina Village is more than a children’s home; it is a sanctuary, a school, a safe space, and a testament to what love and resilience can achieve.
Our recent visit to Aina Village was more than just another field mission. It was a powerful reminder of the quiet strength of communities rising to meet incredible needs, one child at a time.
Rooted in Compassion
Founded in the 1990s by the Consolata Sisters in a village called Ikoji, Aina Village emerged as a response to one of Kenya’s most vulnerable groups: children affected by HIV and those facing abandonment, abuse, and neglect. Over time, it has evolved to serve both children and the broader community, serving as a beacon of mercy and stability.
Children here are not just housed, they are healed, educated, and prepared for independence. Many are on the path to partial or full reintegration with their families, closely guided by caregivers, mentors, and a board of management supported by AINA Onlus, an Italian association with Catholic roots and a heart for Kenya.
This partnership, alongside individual Italian donors and project-based funding, makes it possible for the children to be clothed, fed, educated, and given medical care.
Where Love Lives Loudly
Within the centre, they have a counselling team who works daily with the children, helping them process trauma, learn about their health, and build confidence despite the stigma they often face outside the gates. The stigma around HIV has reduced over the years, thanks to continued education and community outreach, but it has not disappeared entirely.
The reality is: Aina Village spends a lot on food. While they try to grow some crops and manage external supplies, feeding nearly 100 children and staff daily is no small task. But through it all, the spirit of the place remains full of grace. Laughter echoes through the classrooms, children play in the dusty fields, and dreams are nurtured even against the odds.
Despite malnutrition risks and occasional developmental concerns, the children are remarkably healthy, cared for, and deeply loved.
Today, Aina Village is home to 90 children, many of whom are HIV positive, facing stigma, or have survived difficult beginnings from cases of defilement and incest to physical abuse or abandonment. Despite this, the home is filled with laughter, learning, and dreams.
A School That Serves the Community
While the home houses 90 children, the attached school educates over 420 students from across the region, including children from the wider community. Education here is more than a right; it’s a gateway to healing and hope.
Some children are as young as one year old and are not yet in school. The youngest in the school is Shantel, a bright spark already showing promise.
Admission into Aina Village is a structured legal process requiring a chief's letter, an OB number or a court order, and eventually, a committal order through the children’s officer. The team continuously follows up with families, especially when it comes to medication adherence for children living with HIV.
Many children have successfully reintegrated with their families, while others are supported through high school and even college. As of now, 30 youth have progressed to tertiary education, supported by individual donors and partners such as DREAM Kenya.
Water is A Daily Struggle and a Lifeline
One of the most urgent challenges Aina Village has faced over the years is access to clean, safe water. Despite the presence of a borehole and nearby forest springs like Kuuru Stream and Kinyaridha River, the school and dispensary were not directly serviced by the borehole, and water was often drawn from contaminated sources.
During the rainy season, water contamination becomes a crisis. Overflowing sewage systems, runoff from nearby areas, and debris in the stream often make the water completely unusable. The consequences have been dire: regular outbreaks of diarrhoea, dysentery, and a heightened risk of cholera. Community members often have to search for alternative sources, putting children and families at even greater risk.
The government insists the sewage is treated, but the reality on the ground tells a different story. Every year, at least 50 people fall ill from contaminated water in the area. The children’s home does what it can, using WaterGuard and boiling water when possible, sanitising tanks occasionally, but the situation calls for a sustainable, long-term solution.
After conducting our pre-installation survey, we were both shocked and sobered by the scale of the water demand. The home, school, and dispensary together use an estimated 50,000 litres of water every single day.
To respond to this urgent need, the Maji Zima team installed the MS-MZ water filter system, a high-capacity filtration unit that can purify thousands of litres daily, making water safe for drinking and cooking. The installation was successful, and we were encouraged to know that every child and every individual walking into Aina Village would now have access to clean drinking water.
However, we quickly ran into an unexpected challenge. The village has hundreds of pipes and taps branching throughout the compound, which significantly reduces water pressure. Within hours, the home experienced a temporary water shortage, and with the management expressing how easily such shortages could turn catastrophic, we knew we had to act fast.
To avoid risking the health and safety of the children, we decided to disconnect the filter from the full water line and instead reconnect it in a way that allows the staff to fetch drinking water directly from the filter. It’s a temporary but effective solution that keeps clean drinking water flowing while preserving their overall water access.
Should the home decide in the future to create a dedicated tank for drinking and kitchen water, we will be more than glad to migrate and fully reintegrate the MS-MZ system for seamless access.
A Call to Action
Our visit left us inspired but also challenged. Places like Aina Village are doing the hard, often invisible work of keeping society’s most vulnerable children alive, educated, and thriving. But they cannot do it alone.
They need: Reliable access to clean water; Continued advocacy to fight stigma; More hands and hearts to support this sacred work.
In the words of one caregiver, “We don’t raise orphans. We raise children who are loved.” And in the heart of Meru, along the banks of a struggling stream and under the shade of Kuuru Forest, that love is making all the difference.
