THARAKA NITHI, Kenya – While some Kenyans join their loved ones for merrymaking during this festive season, a group of elders in Tharaka Nithi have been severely affected by hunger following the ongoing drought in the region.
The lack of rain has caused crops in their fields to dry up, a situation that has left many families without enough food, while the elderly continue to suffer even more.
However, following the situation, the elders have a reason to smile after the Bheco Home Care group, an NGO, came forward to help them by providing them with food and medical care at an event held on Christmas Day in the Nkondi area.
The move is aimed at reducing the severity of hunger and health challenges that many elderly people in the area face.
Speaking during the event, the group’s leader, Franklaine Mwathi, called on community groups, the county government and the central government to collaborate and put in place effective strategies to ensure that the elderly have access to food and essential services, saying many of them have been severely affected by the hunger situation.
“We would wish that the government would come on board to support this initiative by extending the relief food it’s donating to other parts of the country so that we can donate it to our vulnerable senior citizens. The government can also support us in formulating our policies,” Mwathi said.
He also emphasised that there is a dire need for other NGOs, youth groups, and the two levels of government to support them with donations that can be shared out with our elders.
What is the Tharaka Nithi county government doing to support the elders
Dr. Mutegi Kabisani, a youth from Tharaka Nithi county, lauded the Bheco group for the initiative.
“I want to thank this group, where I am also a member, for remembering our elders because they face a lot of challenges in life. As a county government, we have plans to set up homes for our elders just as it is done in other countries. We must have places where our elderly people can live comfortably and be treated with dignity and honour,” explained Mwathi, who serves as economic advisor to the governor of the Tharaka Nithi county government.
He lamented that most of the elders in the area lack homes, and most of them sleep hungry because they lack the means and resources to support their livelihoods.
Moses budi a youth leader supporting the elderly in the county, said:
“We are really happy to have this event to bring hope to the elderly people. This group is very much organised despite the fact that it faces financial challenges. We call upon support from all quarters to come together and support us so that we can build this community together. As the youth, we need to grow up together with the elderly. We need to be there to take care of the elderly.”
Mwathi, who doubles as the group’s founder, said they came up with the initiative after realising that a majority of the elderly people had been discriminated against in society, thus leaving them living in abject poverty.
“We conduct these outreaches most of the time, and we felt that this December, we would conduct a unique festival celebration for them by cooking for them in one of their homes. Our core mandate is to sensitise the community to take care of the elderly. We must ensure that no elderly person is left behind. This is something that we want all the communities across the country to embrace,” Mwathi explained.
How the Tharaka Nithi beneficiaries reacted to the donations
The elderly and elderly mothers who received the aid have thanked Bheco Home Care for their dedication while asking the government to put in place comprehensive strategies that will also reach out to the elderly in homes who have not yet received assistance.
“We are grateful to Becho for the support they have accorded us. They have given us food and clothes, among other items. We are happy with the Christmas festivities because, despite the lack of rainfall, we have been provided with food courtesy of Becho, and now we can enjoy this holiday just like other Kenyans,” said Pastor Eliud Matoro, an elderly person who benefited from the initiative.
Another beneficiary, Japhet Kinyua, disclosed that a majority of the elders in the area didn’t have food due to the changing climatic conditions that have affected their crops.
“We now have a reason to smile because we have people to take good care of us. We have been looking for this kind of support for a very long time. I am also appealing to other people and organisations out there willing to support Bheco to do so because most of the elders are vulnerable,” explained Kinyua.
Kinyua further observed that the formation of the group in 2024 came as a big relief to the vulnerable elders, the majority of whom have been abandoned by their loved ones in their old age.
Tharaka Nithi residents are now calling on the government to accelerate efforts to combat drought and hunger to save the lives of the elderly and other vulnerable groups.
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