WHO IS

Saint Martin - Catholic Social Apostolate

St. Martin Trust

St. Martin – CSA is an organisation, which is registered as a trust. About 800 community volunteers work at the field level in close contact with the beneficiaries. They are supported by a team of about 80 staff members, 10 regular volunteers and 75 volunteer committee members.

An organisational structure upside down

In order to reflect the importance of the work of the community volunteers, they have been put on top in the organisational structure of the organisation. They are the heart of the organisation, as they are the ones who serve the beneficiaries. This set-up underlines that “the greatest are the ones who serve more” as we pray with the St. Martin Daily Prayer. The trustees, directors and management board feature at the bottom. This is to visualise that their role is to only facilitate the efforts of the community. (Read more)

Different programmes

St. Martin – CSA is a religious grass root organisation, which has been started in response to the problems of several vulnerable groups of people in the communities, who seemed to have been neglected and forgotten. The organization does not directly target the beneficiaries. Instead, it aims to promote solidarity in the community by building a capacity of volunteers that can take care of the needy among them. The work in St. Martin – CSA has been organised in individual programmes that complement each other, which are Community Programmes for:

People with Disabilities: aims to reduce the incidence of disabilities and to improve the living conditions of disabled children through social and medical rehabilitation.

Street and Needy Children: aims to reduce the number of street children through awareness raising and by providing guidance and counselling to potential street children and their families. It also rehabilitates existing street children in Nyahururu town and rescues children in need of care and protection.

Active Non-Violence and Human Rights: aims to reduce violence through promoting active non-violence principles and human rights. A legal help-desk ‘Bega kwa Bega’ and counseling services are also available.

HIV/AIDS, Alcohol and Drugs abuse:aims to prevent those problems through awareness raising activities. It also supports the ones infected and affected (through counselling, home-based care and assistance to orphans).

Savings and Micro-Credit: aims to economically empower beneficiaries of the other programmes by providing savings and credit facilities.

Relief and Emergencies: responds to natural disasters (e.g. droughts) by implementing relief projects as well as by empowering victims to become self-reliant.