2025.03.18 - 14.15 EAT

As the country continues to try and pick up from a big shock that US government has frozen the USAid funds, thousands of Kenyans, who depended on it for their daily livelihood, get to feel a fear that the decision was so abrupt leaving them jobless with nowhere else to turn to. I managed to meet Ruth Jemo, Kenyan SDG3 activist in Kibera, who has been worked with the USAID since 2016. Like many others, she found herself suddenly jobless this year, with little warning and no safety net. Ruth was working under "Tumikia Mtoto Project" which means in English: "Work with Children". She explains that in the project her main work was to monitor the HIV patients living in her community. 

She used to visit them to see how they are fairing,remind them to go for their appointment and also to take their medicines. She also checked their CD4 to make sure it’s OK. If it was not then the program would provide food to these patients to boost their immunity. Lack of the USAid funds has put Ruth out of work since January, in fact. This was her main source of livelihood. Ruth has two kids who are in school and now she’s uncertain if she’ll be able to pay their school fees for the rest of the year. She has been surviving through the help of friends but then she’s not sure for how long the friends will be able to help

"I am back to the square one" - she says. "I never imagined I’d have to start over like this." Ruth adds also that what she’s going through can’t be compared to what her patients are facing. She has managed to visit a few of them since she lost her job and she says the situation is worse for them. "Some were told they’d only receive half their antiretroviral dosage because there isn’t enough for everyone" - she explains. "People are scared and without the support we used to give, some are starting to lose hope." Ruth is one among many Kenyans who are facing the rath of US government. The freeze has made more that 5000 Kenyans jobless and most of them unsure of whats lies ahead.

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2025.03.11 - 13.15 EAT

Meet Ruth - a volunteer for one of the HIV/AIDS awareness programmes in Kibera, Nairobi. She says that Kenya was the fifth highest beneficiary of American support. Now this country is confused with funding cuts by the new US administration. Disappearance of the USAid affects millions of lives here, disrupts international development jobs, and strains Kenyan healthcare sector. Cancellation of the supply of basic medicines is so real. Life-saving drugs for HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and essential supplies for newborn care, are now running out. 

Kenyan media like CITIZEN assess that up to 80,000 patients are relying on antiretroviral therapy (ARVs). Now they are affected with an unexpected closure of about 160 clinics. Many of them operated in partnership with county governments, in fact. In Kisumu - the 3rd biggest city in Kenya, where HIV/AIDS services have been integrated with standard healthcare procedures, the shutdown of comprehensive care centers creates a big gap in present system. But the effects extend even beyond the health sector. It's been announced that the Fahari ya Jamii project - a five-year project funded by the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief and USAid - sends over 700 personnel working in Nairobi and Kajiado for a mandatory 3-month unpaid leave.

This way local healthcare stakeholders are urging President Ruto's government to reduce dependency on foreign aid in such an important part of democracy. They warn that unless Kenya increases real-world co-operation e.g. with the EU countries and mobilises its internal funding, critical programs in healthcare as well as scientific research, people will continue to suffer without any need. This call for a sustainable, self-reliant approach to basic health services - truly - has never been more urgent for us.

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2025.02.27 - 22.50 EAT

Today Poland celebrates 'Fat Thursday', a day dedicated to indulging in sweet doughnuts. While Kenya doesn’t observe this tradition, the love for deep-fried pastries is something both cultures share. In Kenya, mandazi - a sweet doughnut - is a staple treat, especially for children. Often prepared by grandmothers, mandazi serves as a quick snack for kids playing outdoors. With schools currently on a midterm break, villages are bustling with children running around with mandazi in hand. It's a scene not so different from Poland’s Tłusty Czwartek indulgence. Isn’t it remarkable how food connects cultures? When we look closely, Africa and Europe, despite their differences, share more than we often realize. Looks like long-lost siblings...

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2025.02.12 - 12.15 EAT

9 year old Tommy and 5 year old Jimmy haven’t seen their father for 5 years. The two boys who stay in Mombasa, at the Kenyan coast, long to see their dad but a job abroad is keeping him busy making him unable to visit his family back in Kenya. The father relocated from Kenya nearly 10 years ago to work as a low-cost laborer in a Dubai based company in the Middle East.

Tommy-and-Jimmy's story represents that of millions of Kenyan children whose parents migrate to start life abroad in bid to provide for their families back in Africa. There has been a high rise on the number of Kenyans who travel out to Europe, Asia, Australia and even United States for jobs. Jobs availability in Kenya is difficult.

"Good jobs in Kenya are quite hard to find at the moment. You must know someone who knows someone else to get a job here in Kenya, that caters for your needs and at the same time lets you save abit. I don’t really have any connections here that’s why I’m going for work abroad. On one hand I'm happy I can get it to take care of my kids and my parents who solely depend on me. On the other hand, I'm so sad..." - a Kenyan lady says in front of the Mombasa Terminus.

Even though most Kenyans are skilled and educated they end up with migrating to do simple manual jobs. Most of them are very intensive and you can get a better pay but it prevents you from building your family in a firm way. To tackle the problem of unemployment the Kenyan government has initiated a  program where youth are relocated abroad for jobs right now.

The Ministry of Labour and Social Protection Cabinet Secretary, Dr. Alfred Mutua has affirmed that thousands of youths who have already been vetted and successfully recruited for overseas jobs, will start working in their respective overseas countries before the end of this year. This means most Kenyans are expected in foreign countries as workers in the near future. But also many Kenyan families will experience a lot of tears.

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2025.02.02 - 13.45 EAT

Tasty, nutricious and healing. It's "dawa" - hot non-alcoholic drink you take in Kenya. It's not tea, but it's also not only warm water with ginger, honey, lemon and sometimes a milk. "Dawa" means "medicine" in Swahili. When you've got cold or flu, you drink "dawa". When you have low mood, you take "dawa". When you go to "JAVA" restaurant for their unique carrot and black-forest cakes, "dawa" definitely matches best. "Dawa" is good for physical and mental health. Just a top first aid for any kind of challenges piling up in front of your body and mind all year round. Enjoy!

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2025.01.18 - 13.20 EAT

Access to employment remains significantly limited in Africa. While the population is growing rapidly, the labor market is struggling to keep pace. Today, creating opportunities for people to work isn’t overly complicated - they simply need access to reliable credit scoring. For self-employment, street food like “Mayai Pasua” makes working solution, even for  single mums. This small-scale business involves selling hard-boiled eggs accompanied by a spicy “kachumbari”  salad, which can be done almost anywhere - especially near schools where their children attend. Entrepreneurs typically move around with a specific trolley, identifying strategic spots to set up. Business peaks in the morning but tend to increase even further in the evening, as many people buy one or two eggs after work to eat on their way home. This occupation requires minimal capital to start and doesn’t demand any formal license. Improving access to credit scoring systems, even for the unemployed, is essential to support and sustain such simple ventures for people in Africa.

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2025.01.01 - 17.55 EAT

St. Juliet’s School in Kibera slum in Nairobi has become the latest partner of Floor4Africa, a local community development program providing cleanable concrete floors to schools in rural and slum areas of Africa. The mission is to improve local health, education, and economic opportunities. This initiative supports SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDG 3 (Good Health), and SDG 8 (Decent Work) by creating safer, more hygienic learning environments. The F4A, active since 2018 across four African countries, has returned to Kibera for a second time. Comparative research conducted before and after the programme implementation highlights increased community satisfaction in local development prism. By enhancing schools like St. Juliet’s, Floor4Africa is laying the foundation for much healthier students, better education, and future in general. Simple concrete floor is a very big source of changes.

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2024.11.13 - 21.40 EAT

Kenya national team really succeeded with the fourth place in the "2024 Women's Amputee Football World Cup". Colombia was the host of that tournament, which seems to be very important in a social prism. Kenyan ladies lost only 1-0 to Poland in the third-place playoff match last Monday. Polish national team already at home with bronze medals. Media coverage on their success is very impressive. 

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2024.11.01 - 18.15 EAT

All Saints’ Day is not a public holiday in Kenya; we observe it similarly to Britain. However, this year, we celebrate the popular festival of Diwali on November 1st. This reflects the fact that Indian communities are well established across many sub-Saharan African countries, much like in the UK. For example, Priti Patel, born to a Ugandan-Indian family, even served as a Secretary for the International Development in the British government. The Hindu festival of lights always makes me think of Mombasa and the beautiful coastal areas of this beautiful country, with pearly white beaches and vividly blue ocean.

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2024.10.25 - 19.40 EAT

The 2024 school year has come to an end, allowing primary and secondary students to begin their holiday break. This little gentleman I have interviewed is Biden. After three years of attending the pre-primary, he will begin the Grade 1 in January 2025. He is very excited. Who wouldn't be, would they?! For him, this is a proud achievement. He already considers himself much older and much wiser, in fact. With dreams of becoming a journalist, Biden feels that yesterday’s graduation brings him a big step closer to his future. In Kenya, the academic year runs from early January to late October. I'm extending my best wishes to all Kenyan students as they really find the education as a very important step forward in their future in Africa.

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2024.10.18 - 12.25 EAT

Kenya’s Deputy President, Mr Gachagua, was finally impeached by the Senate - upper house of Kenyan parliament, following yesterday's voting. 53 Senators supported the motion out of 67. As said before, the impeachment charges include corruption allegations related to property acquisition. President Ruto has nominated the Interior Minister - Mr Kindiki as the new DP. Now we wait for the Parliament's voting to approve this appointment.

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2024.10.11 - 13.45 EAT

Kenya’s Deputy President, Mr Rigathi Gachagua, has been impeached by the National Assembly - lower house of Kenyan parliament, following a vote on October 8, 2024. 281 MPs supported the motion out of 349. The impeachment charges include corruption allegations related to property acquisition. He comes from one of the most populous regions of Kenya - Mount Kenya. The impeachment process now moves to the Senate - upper house of Kenyan parliament. It will be the second instance of the Deputy President being impeached under the 2010 Constitution of Kenya. Senators will decide whether to uphold or dismiss the charges. If two-thirds of the Senate vote finally in favour, the DP will lose his position. Until then, he remains in the Deputy President office while defending himself against the allegations with the support of about 20 lawyers.

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2024.09.30 - 11.30 EAT

It appears that Kenya is rallying behind Raila Odinga, one of the country’s most prominent politicians, as he campaigns for the position of Chairman of the African Union Commission. His main rivals are candidates from Francophone Africa. In light of this, Kenya’s President, William Ruto, has been meeting with leaders from countries such as Senegal during the 79th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York. Odinga, affectionately known by his Swahili nickname “Baba,” meaning “Father,” previously held a significant role as Kenya’s Prime Minister. Many Kenyans believe he is well-qualified for this position and deserving of victory in the AU race. Whether he will succeed remains to be seen.

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