AFRICA/KENYA - Food and hope for those in need of slums: the intervention of the Church

Tuesday, 5 May 2020 slum   poverty   coronavirus   human rights  

Nairobi (Agenzia Fides) - Flour, sugar, oil, soaps, disinfectants and protective masks were delivered to the families most in need of slums in Kibera. Thanks to this joint initiative, promoted by the Justice and Peace Commission (CJPC) of the Episcopal Conference of Kenya, Caritas offices and the Justice and Peace Commission of the Archdiocese of Nairobi, the poor families in the territory of the parish of Saint Michael Otiende have received basic items in this time of pandemic which entails further marginalization for populations that always live in precarious living conditions.
The executive secretary of the CJPC episcopal commission, Beatrice Odera, told Fides that the distribution of aid aims to overcome the difficulties of those who attend the parish but who have not obtained support since the government imposed the lockdown and issued the order to close places of worship, assemblies and other meetings as preventive measures for the spread of Coronavirus.
Odera thanked the Catholic International Development Charity (CAFOD) in Kenya, led by the representative of the Country, Catherine Ogola, for bringing a smile in particular on the faces of the poorest. Beneficiaries were encouraged to follow government guidelines in order to avoid contracting or spreading Covid-19. These include hand sanitization, the use of face masks in public places and social distancing in addition to respecting the curfew, from sunset to sunrise.
"CJPC and CAFOD have brought hope to the needy who have always relied on the Church for their support", remarked Sister Modesta Karori, deputy director of Caritas Nairobi, expressing gratitude to the two organizations. (AP) (Agenzia Fides, 5/5/2020)


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