Coronavirus response in Kibera

With your help, we have been able to achieve so much since our normal programmes were closed in March. Here's a snapshot:

• We've provided 3,840 food vouchers to families in Kibera struggling without the free school meals their children normally receive at our centres.
• We've sustained 19 free handwashing stations to help community members wash their hands regularly despite not having running water in their homes
• We've supported over 100 children to keep learning at home by sending work packs home
• Our students have taken part in the My Home My Playground Campaign by Futbolmas Kenya and learnt new life-skills and engaged in  fun, positive activities while outside of school
• Our Social Workers have checked-in regularly with each family to support their wellbeing

The Ministry of Education called for the phased reopening of schools in October so we have reopened the Fountains of Hope School for 40 students in Class 4 and Class 8. 

We're happy to report the reopening process has gone smoothly. The school staff and students are working together to make sure we stay COVID safe with everyone wearing masks and observing social distancing. We also fumigate our school regularly with an impressive machine that looks a lot like it could launch a bazooka!

Since reopening, our team have run art therapy workshops with our students so that they can process some of their challenging experiences during their time out of school. 

We are looking forward to January 2021 when we hope to reopen our programmes fully for all our students. In the meantime, we continue to support the 111 families whose children are still waiting to return to school with weekly food vouchers. 

Thank you so much for enabling our response to coronavirus in Kibera. At the time of writing, we are just about $500 away from reaching our fundraising target. Would you consider giving another gift to help us reach that target? We will use the funds to continue providing free handwashing and support the over 100 children who remain out of school until January.

Thank you!

Thank you so much for supporting us to respond to coronavirus in Kibera. You’ve helped us to do so much to stand with the community we serve. The first cases of coronavirus in Kenya were reported in March and schools (and therefore all our normal programmes) were closed immediately. Since then, with your help, we have:

• Provided 1,733 food vouchers to families who have lost jobs and incomes
• Distributed 234 face masks to the families we serve
• Run 19 handwashing stations around Kibera that serve 665 people each day
• Distributed 273 posters spreading useful information on coronavirus, how to stop the spread and how to correctly use a face mask.
• Providing worksheets and teacher support to help children continue learning at home

Since schools closed, our social workers have kept in regular contact with each of the 150 families we normally work with in Kibera. While a few have managed to keep their jobs or sustain their small businesses, most have lost their usual sources of income from casual labour. Normally their children would receive 2 school meals each day at our centres, now most families are only eating one meal a day to stretch out the little they have. Like 10-year-old Alex, both of his parents have lost their jobs and there’s rarely enough food in the house for Alex and his siblings. You have helped us to provide a weekly food voucher to the hardest-hit families including Alex.

We’re distributing these vouchers through local shops in Kibera, this means Alex and his family can get whatever they need close to their home and we support small-businesses in Kibera at the same time.

We’re continuing to provide free handwashing stations around the slum enabling people to wash their hands regularly at no extra cost. We’re partnering with small business owners who watch over the ad hoc handwash points made out of recycled cooking oil bottles. Three of our student’s mums are making the 125l of soap needed each week to supply the stations.

We have not yet reached the peak of infections in Kenya and schools are not expected to open until January 2021. We are determined to continue supporting the families we work with and the wider community as best we can. If you could make another donation to help us sustain this work, or share about what we’re doing with a friend, you would be making a huge difference.

Thank you.