This archive report was first published on 16 July 2020.
At the height of their athletic careers, Esther Macharia and Margaret Muringe were competing in international marathons. But the COVID-19 pandemic has brought their dreams to a grinding halt, forcing them to take up banana hawking in Nyahururu town.
On March 2020, when the first case of COVID-19 was reported in Kenya, everything changed for the athletes training in Nyahururu. The health ministry closed all training camps, leaving many athletes without a source of income.
For Macharia, a marathoner who won the Dublin marathon in 2014, and Muringe, a long-distance runner, the pandemic has been a devastating blow. They had hopes of participating in international competitions, but those dreams are now dimmed.
‘We have bills to pay as well as feeding our families. That is why we chose to do business instead of staying at home,’ Muringe said.
On a good day, they can make a profit of Sh300 each, enough to feed their families. Despite their status, Macharia says she is not shy of hawking. ‘Every business is good as long as you make money. I have never imagined being a hawker but I am now proud of being called one,’ she said.
They are hopeful that the pandemic will end soon, allowing them to resume their daily routines. Just like them, prominent coach Robert Kioni has decided to venture into farming. ‘I had no other option but to find something else to do. I am now a maize farmer,’ he said.
