Emergency Relief Food and Non-Food Program in Gataka and Kuwinda slums

When the global pandemic Covid-19 hit the country in March 2020, thousands of vulnerable
families in urban informal settlements were severely affected by loss of income and daily
livelihood.

The government proposed and imposed measures to curb spread of the corona virus: Schools
were closed, trips into and out of the country were restricted, workers in private and public
sectors were required to work from home. As a result, lots of livelihood was lost.

The social economic life of people was greatly affected. The economy got strained as business
were closed and millions of jobs lost Informal settlements and slums nationwide were the hardest hit by the pandemic. As if being densely populated is not enough, these areas grapple with the challenges of water and sanitation, waste water management, overcrowded public transport system among others.

Additionally, the residents in these settlements have unstable incomes and minimum savings
and thus were unable to access basic human necessities like food, water, house rent and even
medical facilitation.

The Camillian Disaster Service International – Kenya (CADIS-KENYA) responded to this
emergency by introducing a 3 months program of providing relief food and non-food items to
the most affected poor people in kuwinda and Gataka slums. CADIS-KENYA main goal was to respond to the hunger impacts of the Covid 19 pandemic By targeting the sick, the aged, nursing mothers, and unemployed youths the relief food and non-food program kicked off in May 2020.

Assessment, data collection and feasibility study for this intervention was carried out whereby
Kuwinda, Gataka and Langata’s Kibra areas were earmarked for the relief program
In the sprawling slum of Kibra, Cadis-Kenya in conjunction with the ministry of Health and
interior Coordination offered relief to 120 households whose breadwinners had contracted the
virus Cumulatively, 600 beneficiaries, 300 in each slum were offered food and non-food items in
an interval of 3 weeks for 3 months.

This project for humanitarian intervention was funded by Camillian Disaster Service
international. With an approved total budget of 45,000 euros, CADIS Kenya was able to distribute food items
like maize flour, rice, cooking oil, sugar, beans and maize.

Nonfood items such as masks and soaps enough to last each household with 5 members on
average were distributed. With the help of Servants of the Sick Kenyan delegation, Camillian Sisters Kenyan delegation
and the Lay Camillian family in Kenya, all the stakeholders and more so our donors, the food and non-food relief emergency response to the people of Gataka ,kuwinda and Kibra was
successfully implemented.

Rev Fr Francis Maina, MI & Rev Fr Samuel Oleck, MI CADIS – KENYA TEAM