Hey all…just a quick update. As I’m sure that any of you who actually read this, also read the news, I’ll spare this entry from too many details of the current mess here in Kenya.

We have well over 100,000 people currently displaced in the country; the death toll now exceeds 300 by some reports. I (and the organization I’m working for) am targeting some of the overwhelming needs within Nairobi with a consortium of other relief agencies.
One of the main inhibitors to accessing the people without shelter, food or water is the insecurity, primarily in the huge slum areas in this city. Just in the Kibera slum alone, there may be upwards of 700,000 people. That’s the scale we’re talking about. And with such disparity, in times like these, many serious issues come to bare that may often be less apparent or are even dismissed. Violence is a very, very real issue. Mobs and riots, and all that goes with them, are widespread.

I’ll be leading a multi-agency distribution early tomorrow to about 1,800 people. This is small compared to the scale of need, however, we are using it as a test to see how it runs. We are keeping our strategy quiet, and aim to do this very quickly, to avoid any insecurity that can quickly occur when hungry, scared crowds think they might miss out on food for their children. If this goes off without a hitch, we will then begin to ramp up our operations with this distribution style to more of the vulnerable families during these hard times in Kenya.

Will keep you posted as I’m able. Paz.

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