At the time of writing (2nd September 2021) 237,000 people in Kenya have tested positive for Coronavirus and sadly 4,739 people have passed away.
Schools in Kenya were closed for the majority of 2020 but reopened in January 2021. Many of the children we support rely on school meals and so during 2020 they were at home and families were struggling to put food on the table. Most of the parents/guardians we support depend on casual work, which is typically on a local farm earning £1.50 – £2 per day. The COVID-19 situation also meant that less of this work was available, leaving many families with no source of income.
Thanks to the support of donors, GEF Globe Run participants and monthly child sponsors we were able to provide 80 families with a total of 8,946 days worth of food and essential items up to the end of October 2020. We did this by remotely placing orders at small shops across the country, paying electronically via Mpesa and asking one person from each family to collect the items. Items included rice, beans, maize, vegetables, sugar, tea leaves, cooking oil, cereal, flour, soap and hand wash and also seeds and fertiliser for growing food.
With educational institutions open again, things in Kenya are back to some sort of normality, however, the vaccination roll out is still in its early stages with 3.8% of the population having received one dose and 1.5% being fully vaccinated. We are helping as many families as possible through our Two Feet business start-up initiative, counselling services, house building/improvement, specialist food provision for the most vulnerable and of course school fee, uniform and book support.
The charity’s income is down by around 35% due to the postponement of volunteer trips and events such as our GEF Dinner, Ladies Lunch, Haddo cross country races and quizzes. More than ever we are grateful to and reliant on everyone who sponsors a child and supports us in other ways.
Tuko pamjo na tutapitia hii – ‘We are together and we will get through this’