KenGen has launched a food drive to the tune of Ksh.10 million targeting residents of nine counties in various parts of the country.
The food drive, which targets contiguous communities in areas where the NSE- the listed company operates electricity-generating power stations, has been going on since November 2022 and seeks to alleviate the suffering of millions of families most affected by the prevailing drought.
According to the Ag. Managing Director and CEO, Abraham Serem, the food donations were targeted to marginalized communities and special interest groups including people living with disabilities, youth, children, and women saying they were hardest hit by the food crisis.
The nine counties targeted for the campaign include Machakos, Embu, Kilifi, Turkana, Nakuru, West Pokot, Migori, Kajiado, and Kitui where KenGen has an active presence as host counties of various power installations.
Through the campaign, KenGen said it has distributed food rations to about 200 schools so far in a deliberate move to keep the students in schools.
The move comes against the backdrop of poor hydrology precipitated by five successive seasons of drought when the country received poor rainfalls leading to poor crop output and crop failure.
Speaking during the flag-off of the food donation caravans to various counties, Serem said the failure in rains had also affected most of the KenGen power generation plants which he said relied on water to produce electricity.
“Failure of the long and short rains in 2022 has greatly affected us in the hydropower stations where we have not been able to operate at full capacity due to low inflows of water in the large dams that feed our hydropower stations,” said Serem.
The CEO said the company had spent Ksh.10 million to provide relief food to ensure students have enough food to keep them in school as schools opened across the country after a long break.
During the food distribution in schools within the Seven Forks catchment area, several community leaders who witnessed the distribution exercise led by Embu Senator, Alexander Mundingi lauded KenGen for supporting communities during good and bad times through the company’s CSR program.
“I want to commend KenGen for the good relations with the community, especially in efforts of water provision towards the community which was very scarce. I want to thank KenGen for the partnership they have had with both the County and National Government as well as the communities around them through their CSR program,” said Senator Mundingi.
