350,000 Kenyans Who Lost Jobs Due to Covid-19 Pandemic to Get Sh5,000 Monthly Allowance

The government is set to provide a monthly stipend to over 350,000 Kenyans who lost their jobs as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Labor Cabinet Secretary Simon Chelugui said a total of 352,943 people who were rendered jobless following the outbreak of the disease will benefit from the program.

Chelugui pointed out that at least 1.2 million Kenyan workers have been sent home since March 12th, when Kenya reported its first Covid-19 case. 

The 352,943 individuals have been identified as vulnerable and will receive a monthly allowance of Sh5,000 each for a period of three months to cushion them from the harsh financial effects of the pandemic. 

"We are doing this, with our source of information being the recent household survey by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics. We have also carried out our own engagement with the social partners, that is the Federation of Kenya Employers (FKE) and the Central Organization of Trade Unions (COTU),” said Chelugui.

He added: "My ministry keeps on receiving notices of redundancies and it ties well with what we have in our survey." 

The support will be wired to them via mobile money platforms such as M-Pesa and Airtel Money once the program is officially rolled out, said Chelugui.

"Our focus is living, to ensure livelihoods are sustained so, in that case, we would also have to go out of our way to ensure that we support these people.”

"That is briefly, actions and plans that we as Ministry of Labor and Social Protection have taken to ensure that we minimize the pain caused to these vulnerable groups," he added.