Kitui County is exploring a partnership with GiveDirectly Kenya to support vulnerable households through direct cash transfers, in an initiative expected to strengthen livelihoods and stimulate economic activity across the county. The proposed intervention was discussed during a meeting between the organisation’s delegation and County Executive Committee Member (CECM) for Culture, Gender, Youth, ICT, Sports and Social Services, Phoebe Mutemi.
During the meeting, GiveDirectly Kenya Head of Programs Esther Gatimi explained that the organisation uses mobile money transfers to deliver financial support directly to eligible beneficiaries, enabling households to address their most pressing needs. She said the initiative is designed to uplift poverty-stricken families by giving them the means to make decisions about their immediate priorities.
Gatimi further outlined the organisation’s ambitious one-billion-dollar programme, which targets two million families across the country. She noted that comprehensive community sensitisation would be undertaken to inform residents about the intervention, with refugees also included in the programme. The support, she clarified, would be a one-off cash transfer intended to provide vulnerable households with an opportunity to improve their living conditions.
Welcoming the delegation to Kitui, CECM Phoebe Mutemi expressed optimism that the initiative would make a meaningful difference in the lives of struggling families. She observed that the financial support would not only help beneficiaries meet essential household needs but could also inject money into local markets, benefiting traders and other small-scale businesses across the county.
The proposed initiative comes at a time when direct cash assistance is increasingly being explored as a way of empowering vulnerable communities and strengthening household resilience. Mutemi was accompanied by Acting Chief Officer for Culture, Gender and Social Services Esther Mutemi and other county officers during the engagement, which focused on the potential of the programme to improve livelihoods and advance poverty alleviation in Kitui County.
