COVID-19 Response Appeal
Thanks to our wonderful, generous supporters we smashed the target for our Daymark Covid Appeal and raised £16,250 which The Daymark Fund then doubled in full.
Many thanks to everyone who supported this campaign. Donations ranged from £5 upwards and every penny counted. We even had supporters who ran sponsored relay-marathons in their garden and other sponsored runs! We feel incredibly blessed by our Friends of Nasio.
This money will make a lifesaving difference in Kenya.
This money will make a lifesaving difference in Kenya. It will help us complete our programme of Covid and poverty relief including education around hygiene and sanitation to help people prepare for the virus. Already the education Nasio has given on handwashing has reduced complaints such as diarrhoea, scabies, worms and typhoid presented in our clinic by up to 90% compared with the previous six months, but more importantly is creating awareness of new, safer habits for the community when the virus comes.
The success of this appeal means we can take this programme to the next level and source basic PPE, higher quality face masks, handheld thermometers so we can take people’s temperatures from a distance, and other vital supplies, including food for the most vulnerable, to keep our staff and the community safe.
We can also complete the door-to-door campaign educating the local community about COVID-19 which the County Level Ministry for Health has asked us to lead. The Nasio team have trained 340 local Government’s Community Health volunteers and 16 Community Health Extension Workers, who along with our newly extended team of Peer Educators (now 700 strong!), are covering all of the Mumias West sub county – an area that spans around 165 square km and is home to over 111,850 residents. This group, especially the young Peer Educators, are amazing and are working tirelessly with such passion and resolve.
Already we have realised that many in the region have not even heard about COVID-19. They don’t have TVs or radios but now they are being educated about coronavirus and how to protect themselves. We are also collecting critical data about the region, including how many pregnant women there are and how many children under 5 so that we can ensure these vulnerable groups continue to receive the help and the immunisations they need.
This data about the Mumias West region will be critical as the virus takes hold to help monitor and raise awareness as the virus spreads and will give these communities a greater chance to withstand the pandemic.
