US Ambassador Meg Whitman praises Shining Hope For Communities
US Ambassador to Kenya Meg Whitman and Shining Hope For Communities Founder and CEO Dr Kennedy Odede.
US Ambassador to Kenya Meg Whitman has praised a Nairobi-based charity organisation for changing lives in slums.
Her latest visit to Shining Hope For Communities (Shofco) in less than two years since it hosted another high-profile diplomat, has cemented the organisation’s place as a benchmark for humanitarian programmes.
During her visit to Shofco offices in Kibera, Ms Whitman lauded its efforts in creating jobs for women and young people.
“Last week, I enjoyed hospitality from Kibera residents when touring Shofco community empowerment projects that are creating jobs for women and youth and improving sanitation and access to clean water. Remarkable!” the ambassador tweeted.
Whitman’s visit comes a month after Dr Kennedy Odede, the founder of the NGO, was named a member of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Advisory Board.
He will serve for three years on the committee that has leading experts representing NGOs, the private sector, academia and civil society drawn from across the globe.
The appointment came less than two years after Mr Odede hosted USAID boss Samantha Power at the inaugural World Communities Forum where he shared with her, alongside other global leaders, how his focus on community-driven change improved the lives of more than three million slum dwellers.
Founded in Kibera, Nairobi, in 2004, Shofco now has a presence in 24 counties, has more than two million members across Kenya and boasts of improving the lives of three million vulnerable people every year.
The network identifies with distressed life that characterises slums.
It prioritises employment to slum dwellers, provides tuition-free education to disadvantaged girls, and free meals in school. It has built seven medical clinics and 29 water kiosks.
