Program in Kenya gives young a lifeline

More than 250,000 young people from Kenyan shantytowns have been earning a living during the coronavirus pandemic thanks to a national hygiene program.

Participants in the program — known as Kazi Mtaani, or “jobs in our hoods” — can earn $4 a day, enabling them to meet their basic needs, while ensuring they adhere to control measures against the virus.

So far, $92 million has been put into the program, according to the World Bank, the program’s key financier.

“Kazi Mtaani has been a gamechanger for so many families across the country, particularly at a time when the economy has contracted due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic,” Charles Hinga, principal secretary in the State Department for Housing and Urban Development, said in a statement on Monday.

In the first phase of the program, which ran from April 29 to June, more than 26,000 jobs were created under the Kenya Informal Settlements Improvement Project, at a cost of about $3 million.

The jobs were established in 27 settlements across eight counties that were deemed the most severely constrained by the movement restrictions brought in at that time. The counties included those covering the major cities such as Nairobi and Mombasa and smaller centers like Kiambu.

Under the first phase, those recruited earned a daily wage of $6. The amount was later reduced to $4 following appeals for the program to take in more people. They get paid via mobile transfers.

Labor-intensive work

The participants are engaged in labor-intensive work such as street and drain cleaning, garbage collection, bush clearance, fumigation and disinfection. Their efforts help to make the environment cleaner and improve public services.

Janet Yalla, who lives in a slum in Kibera, said the program has not only improved livelihoods but also reduced crime and drug abuse in the community.

“Initially, many young people were idle in the streets, mostly in groups where they could strategize on crime activities,” Yalla said. “Some would sit in groups chewing khat (a popular local drug) throughout the night or abusing other drugs. Others were drinking too much alcohol and causing conflicts in their houses.”

Jacob Owuor, a beneficiary of the program who lost his job in the pandemic, said he is now able to meet basic needs.

“I’m truly grateful to the government for launching the program,” he said. “Many of my friends who were engaging in crime due to joblessness have now become responsible. I hope the government will continue creating such opportunities.”

He said the program, in addition to offering a source of income to vulnerable people, has ensured a clean environment in the shanty neighborhoods.

Mary Mwende, a former hawker and a single mother, said the program has enabled her to feed her family.

“When the coronavirus compelled me to stop hawking secondhand clothes in Nairobi’s central business district, I was frustrated and didn’t know how to fend for my family going forward,” Mwende said. “Luckily, the government rolled out Kazi Mtaani and I was enrolled. I’m grateful to the government because we have had a meal on the table daily.”

The second phase of the program is expected to run for six months, It covers all 47 counties and focuses on sustainable work activities such as the construction of public spaces and facilities.