Page 6 - World Food Day and ADRA Canada

Different, But Able
Different, But Able

Kenya

Alfred is 59 and a Person Living with Disability (PLWD). He lives on the shores of Lake
Turkana in the Kenyan Rift Valley. He is a divorced father of two sons, ages 24 and 28. When
Alfred’s children left home, they also left him with two grandchildren, ages 4 and 5 years old.
Alfred relied on help from his stepbrother, a small-scale fisherman, to provide for him and his
grandchildren.

Alfred is an amputee. He recounts how his life came to a standstill after his leg was
amputated because of an acacia thorn wound. He says were it not for his brother, he
would already be dead as he could not provide for himself. Alfred, with support from his
stepbrother, has been mending fishing nets. They mend nets for their own use and other
community members at a fee. However, the income generated from mending nets is not
sufficient to meet their household needs. Sometimes their only option for a meal is to ask for
food from their neighbours. There were many days when they went without meals. The signs
of malnutrition were beginning to show on Alfred’s grandchildren.

ADRA’s Building Resilience Against Crisis Effects (BRACE) project used a community-based
targeting approach with the help of local administrators to identify Alfred as one of the most
vulnerable people to be included in the project’s cash transfer program.

When he received the first voucher of Kish. 6,662 ($75.00 CAD), Alfred was overjoyed. For the
first time, he could not only provide for his family, but also for his brother who had supported
him through hard times. In addition to meeting his dietary needs, he also used a portion of the
cash for a long overdue medical check-up and to purchase clothes for his grandchildren.

“I’m so grateful to ADRA Canada and this cash transfer program. Thank you for the aid. I pray
ADRA continues supporting me and my family.”

Photo: © 2021 ADRA | ADRA Kenya