As Kenya struggles to curb the spread of the coronavirus, the East African country is facing another outbreak: teenage pregnancies. During three months of lockdown, 152,000 Kenyan teenage girls became pregnant, a 40 percent increase in the monthly average
In Nairobi’s Kibera neighborhood, those who depend on day-to-day wages have been hit hardest by the economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic. While Kenya’s government is providing some support, a local charity has formed to pick up the slack. The “Adopt a Family” campaign connects well-off Kenyan families with those less fortunate during the COVID-19 pandemic. So far, the initiative has connected more than 400 families, providing relief to many families in desperate need
Families in the slums of Kenya’s capital are using a virtual community currency to pay for food during the coronavirus pandemic. More than 500 people a day are signing up to Kenyan Red Cross-supported community inclusion currency (CIC), known as Sarafu, to get food, soap and other essentials. Mohammed Yusuf reports-VOA NEWS
Kenyan police have confirmed a police officer is to face charges over the killing of a 13-year-old boy during enforcement of a coronavirus curfew. Yassin Moyo was shot in late March while standing on his family’s apartment balcony in Nairobi – a tragedy that a police spokesman described as an accident. But activists have long accused Kenyan police of brutality and unlawful killings, with little to show in the way of action
The coronavirus pandemic has left truck drivers in Kenya especially hard-hit. There are fears the drivers themselves have the virus and moving goods has also slowed due to the spread of COVID-19. Mohammed Yusuf introduces us to one driver who has been affected
Nairobi, the residents of Eastleigh, a predominantly Somali neighborhood celebrated Eid al-Fitr, the end of Ramadan, in lockdown after the government extended the movement in and out of the area for another two weeks. Some families say they have never experienced an Islamic celebration like this one
In Kenya there has been a positive change of pace, the government, through the Street Families Rehabilitation Trust Fund (SRFTF), a government-based foundation for the rehabilitation of street people, has contacted several reception centers in Nairobi to welcome the children
Kenya has stepped up efforts to find a local treatment for COVID-19. The Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI), East Africa’s leading medical research facility, is testing the efficacy of an herbal medicine known as Zedupex. Kenya itself has seen more than 1,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus disease so far, and about 50 deaths
Kenyan authorities forcibly evicted over 7,000 people from Nairobi slums this month, despite a court order, and in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic, resulting in a small riot. Authorities say they demolished the homes because they were built on public land. But some of those who were evicted claim to have bought the land. Critics note mass evictions during a pandemic are inhumane and could further spread the virus
This month, Kenyan authorities locked down the Somali-majority Nairobi neighborhood of Eastleigh because of a jump in confirmed coronavirus infections. The restriction of movement was imposed to slow the spread of the virus. But businesses in Eastleigh are struggling to get by