A local philanthropist will open the second hot kitchen at Rhonda slums to serve free meals to the vulnerable families who have been hard-hit by the coronavirus pandemic that has eroded their meagre earnings due to massive job losses.
The Trustee of the Street Children’s Assistance for Nakuru Networks (SCANN), Shamsher Gilani said the second Hot Kitchen that will be opened next month at Rhonda slums will serve an estimated 500-600 people daily.
Interviewed by KNA, he said a similar hot kitchen started last year at Kisulisuli serves over 300 meals every day and after noting the difference it has made in the area they decided to assist other low-income areas.
‘’The coronavirus has been a double tragedy to the poor and it has made their lives more difficult with the majority having only one meal a day and we hope the hot kitchen will help, especially for the children,’’ he said.
He noted with concern that the estimable African culture of supporting the susceptible children and elderly has been wind-swept by the capitalist attitude in urban areas, and it was nowadays common for neighbours to ignore the poor.
Gilani urged the government to partner with the private sector to improve livelihoods during this challenging and demanding period facing the entire world to ensure that, irrespective of the hard economic circumstances, at least nobody sleeps hungry.
The Gilani family who manages a popular supermarket in Nakuru town, also, donate loaves of bread and medicine to elderly people who have been abandoned by their families.
The World Bank State of Economy Report for the year 2021 stated that more than forty per cent of Kenyans live in extreme poverty, and with the loss of casual jobs, things have gotten worse.
By Veronica Bosibori
