CRS Partners with Standard Chartered Bank Kenya to Help Flood Victims in Nairobi Communities “rebuild their livelihoods”

In Mukuru and Mathare alone, at least 20,000 families were displaced by the floods and demolitions along the riparian reserve that followed, according to a May 24 report. 

The report also indicates that several roads in Mukuru and Mathare were rendered impassable by the floods, disrupting the food supply chain as food suppliers and vendors could not get their products to the markets.

In the interview with ACI Africa, Ms. Muathe said that the November 15 intervention that coincides with CRS community day will involve interactions with inhabitants of the two Nairobi communities.

Activities of the day will involve interactions with young people, including those with disabilities and young mothers, who were affected by the April-May floods, among other community members drawn from Mathare and Embakasi suburbs of Nairobi, she said. 

“This critical short term and long-term support to those who were affected by floods and are now rebuilding their lives aims to restore hope and improve the quality of lives of the beneficiaries,” the official of the of the humanitarian arm of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) told ACI Africa.

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According to a CRS press release shared with ACI Africa, the November 15 event is also to engage participants in a tree planting exercise as a contribution to environmental conservation in Mathare, which follows an informative session to the community on recycling. 

“There have been side discussions on financial literacy for youths, mental health targeting young women survivors of gender-based violence, as well as young mothers and fathers,” CRS says in the press release. 

In a separate note shared with ACI Africa, the CRS Country Representative, Darren Posey, says that the activities of CRS are "informed by Catholic Social Teaching, on promoting the life and dignity of the human person and option for the poor and vulnerable."

“CRS envisions a future in which vulnerable households are not merely surviving but are equipped with the resources and opportunities they need to live a decent life,” Ms. Posey says in the note.

Referring to the November 15 initiative, the CRS official says, “As we support these households today, we lay the groundwork for tomorrow’s empowered youth, stronger families, and resilient communities.”