World Vision Kenya has embarked on a landmark campaign, “ENOUGH,” aimed at combating child hunger and malnutrition in Kenya.
The campaign aims to ensure that children have access to nutritious food for their well-being and development.
Speaking today during the launch in Nairobi, Her Excellency the First Lady of the Republic of Kenya, Rachel Ruto lauded World Vision for the initiative, noting that advocating for enough nutritious food for every child, both at home and in school, through ethical and sustainable sourcing is commendable.
“There’s no greater indignity than children attending school hungry. We’ve made significant strides, reducing stunting from 26% in 2014 to 18% in 2022. Overall, nutrition has improved. Yet, 847,000 Kenyan children under five face acute malnutrition, down from 14.5% in 2023. We must unite to scale interventions in food security, health, nutrition, and finance to reach our goal of less than 5% childhood wasting by 2025,” she said.
Nearly 900,000 Kenyan children aged 6 to 59 months need assistance with acute malnutrition and food security. Malnutrition persists in arid counties due to multiple failed seasons, inadequate child-feeding practices, and high disease rates.
According to the 2023 Global Hunger Index (GHI), Kenya ranks 90th out of the 121 countries included in the Index, with a score of 22.0, indicating a serious level of hunger.
World Vision’s goal is to improve the nutritional status of vulnerable children in Kenya through targeted interventions, reducing hunger in the most affected communities through the three-year campaign.