Mukoma-Hardy Coronavirus Support

The residents and businesses in the comfortable Langata suburb of Nairobi have started an initiative to help support our vulnerable neighbours in the adjacent town of Ongata Rongai. Many of these live hand-to-mouth, day-by-day, and others have lost their jobs following the shut-down of much of Kenya's economy. Girls who did laundry for families marginally better off than their own are now out of work, while grandmothers are weighed down by the burden of supporting many grandchildren.


We provide support by means of telephonic Cash Transfers, which are a proven means of helping households survive crises. Vulnerable people are identified by any one of three local chiefs, all of whom we know, and their phone numbers forwarded to us. We then call each of the potential recipients (focusing on women) to confirm their needs, and then, funds permitting, start helping them.


We guarantee to pay each recipient 2,000 Kenya Shillings (about $20) for a minimum of three months, and small though this amount may sound, it makes a huge difference to the lives of many desperate people. Currently, we are supporting 300 households, and aim to increase this to at least 500. Unfortunately, our Coronavirus numbers in Nairobi are climbing fast and various forecasts all put our peak as several months away. At the same time, many of us on the wealthier side of the divide, particularly those in the hospitality industry, find their own incomes dwindling fast.

So we have resolved to solicit help from outside Kenya to boost the numbers of beneficiaries, particularly from those who have good memories of times in this country. Two of our residents raised over $7,000 for us through a personal GoFundMe campaign, and while none of us is promising to shave our heads if we reach our targets (which they did when they reached theirs), we would be incredibly grateful for any help you can give us.