Govt Supporting 1.3m Vulnerable Households- Chelugui

NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug 26- The government is currently providing financial support to 1.3 million vulnerable households in Kenya.

They are supported under the National Safety Net Programme (NSNP) which was allocated Sh30 billion.

Labour and Social protection Cabinet Secretary Simon Chelugui says the beneficiaries get at least Sh2,000 every two months.

“The numbers of beneficiaries have grown from 500 about 2 decades ago,” he said.

The programme was launched in 2012 to consolidate and enhance efficiency in the delivery of the four, public funded cash transfer programmes – the older persons’ 0cash transfer, the orphans and vulnerable children cash transfer.

Others are the people with Severe Disability Cash Transfer and the Hunger Safety Net Programme which had been operating individually for over a decade.

“The Hunger Safety Net Programme in particular demonstrates our government’s commitment to reduce poverty as articulated in Kenya Vision 2030,” the Cabinet Secretary said.

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Since March 2020 when the first case of COVID-19 disease was recorded, some 300,000 people have lost their jobs.

“Currently, these programmes are reaching an estimated 12 percent of vulnerable populations in our country, which is a substantial increase from the 500 households of orphans and vulnerable children targeted at the start of the programme, two decades ago,” he said.

He said that beyond the now regular and predictable provision of cash transfers to the NSNP beneficiaries.

In July 2021, the government provided Sh26.3 million top-up payments to 12,054 benefiting households who met the eligibility criteria for the nutrition through cash and health education (NICHE) programme.

“To further protect and mitigate the impacts of the COVID 19 pandemic on the majority of households in the country, and as part of the response mechanism, in April, 2020 our government introduced the pandemic Response and Management Bill, 2020,” he said.

The ministry is meeting a parliamentary committee on Tuesday to discuss the Bill initiated last year. 

Chelugui said the bill seeks to create an emergency response for pandemics with a kitty and staff.