RefuSHE's Response to COVID-19 in Kenya
To our RefuSHE family, supporters, partners, and community,
As many of you know, last week we had to make the very difficult decision of cancelling our Fashion Challenge 2020 event. While we were navigating that, our Kenya team woke up on Friday, March 15th to the first confirmed case of COVID-19. As of today, there are now four confirmed cases and the Kenyan government is working hard to contain the situation.
We are deeply concerned about the health and well-being of our girls, young women, children, and staff. Last week, our team quickly rolled out a contingency plan to mitigate the situation as best we can. The Kenyan government is also rolling out protective measures, which we are following, including requiring all institutions of learning to be closed.
Following the government’s decree, our campus is closed until further instruction from the government – this includes all classes, our daycare, and the Artisan Collective workshop. Access to our Safe House has been restricted to essential staff only, who are staying for longer shifts to reduce movement. Our nurses are onsite and on-call. All administrative staff who are not direct caregivers are being asked to work remotely. In addition to training all staff and participants on preventative measures, we have purchased additional cleaning supplies and hand sanitizer.
For girls who do not live in the Safe House, we will be providing them with emergency funds to ensure they can pay for rent and buy basic necessities, like food, water, baby formula, and diapers while our campus is closed. Additionally, we created a WhatsApp group so they have the ability to communicate with one another and our staff. Our Case Managers and Counselors will also be conducting routine calls with the girls and are ready to be dispatched should anyone begin to feel sick or overwhelmed by the situation.
Our team is continuously responding to information from local and national health agencies and taking action to minimize the risk to our staff and program participants. Like the U.S. and Europe, Kenya is now facing a shortage of necessary supplies as the virus spreads across the country. Adequate healthcare services is already challenging for refugees, and our team will be working tirelessly to advocate for our girls to receive the care they need and deserve. We are urging our girls to only venture out if necessary and to stay indoors, however, the reality is that in Nairobi refugee communities are situated in densely populated slums that are under-resourced and at highest risk for contamination and spread.
We recognize the global economic impact is likely to be more devastating than the virus itself. We know people have already been impacted financially. We understand that during times like these, it is natural to conserve resources to ensure that we can take care of our own families and communities.
However, if you do have the capacity to give, now more than ever, our girls could use the reassurance that our community is still with them. Together, we can work to keep them safe and healthy while ensuring their education remains uninterrupted once they can come back to school.
To anyone already impacted by this virus – we see you, we hear you, and we are with you. As the world slows down, our silver lining of hope is that perhaps we all finally see that we are in this together. Borders may make us feel more secure, but the reality is we all inhabit this beautiful planet. Working together to keep our earth and each other safe and protected is the best way to ensure our own health and happiness.
We thank you for your continued support and ask that you stay committed to RefuSHE as we navigate these unprecedented times. Please take care of yourselves, your families, and each other.
In solidarity,
Jailan Adly
Chief Executive Officer, RefuSHE
Geoffrey Thige
Executive Director, RefuSHE Kenya