Working in The Province of Kenya

Mother's Union was started in Kenya in 1918. The Province was formed in 1970, and now has 29 dioceses. Members are keen to remain relevant in their country and are involved with many activities responding to the needs of their communities and showing God's love to those around them.

Cultural and ethnic diversity makes Kenya a richly vibrant country but not without its tensions. Mothers' Union strive to provide support and activities within their local community that can enable different groups to come together and often bring about reconciliation.

Mothers' Union members work hard to raise vital HIV/AIDS awareness and also work closely with families to encourage stable and good family life. The Mothers' Union Parenting Programme was launched in Kenya in 2005. The programme is open to the entire community, and specialist material is available to support single parents, senior citizens and orphans. HIV/AIDS, increasing awareness of nutrition, food security, ensuring education for girls and supporting women are also on key components. To read more information on the Parenting Programme see our Parenting pages.

In 2004 Relief Fund grants were sent to several dioceses in Kenya towards purchasing emergency food supplies for people affected by famine. The famine was caused by low rainfall and prolonged drought in some areas, with devastating floods in others. This meant that crops in many areas of Kenya failed leaving many people facing starvation.

Many people were travelling long distances on foot each day in the hope of finding food, some even resorted to eating wild fruits, and/or contaminated maize which is a health hazard. Women, children and the elderly were worst affected by the crisis.

The grants made from the Mothers' Union Relief Fund have gone a long way towards easing the food crisis, but there are still some people in need of help. The Diocese of Kitale has been particularly badly affected by the food crisis. The Diocese is home to a large refugee camp with more than 70,000 people living there. The Diocese has welcomed them and Mothers' Union Workers from Kitale diocese regularly visit the camps and work with the women there. However their needs are great, made even worse by the drought that has affected the region.

A further Relief Fund grant has recently been sent to the Diocese of Kitale to enable them to purchase more emergency food supplies to distribute to those still in need.