This archive report was first published on 24 May 2020.
On May 24, 2020, Kajiado County Governor Joseph Ole Lenku launched a digital food distribution system capable of reaching over 20,000 families in record time.
The innovative system, dubbed M-Riziki, was designed by Empiris Creative Communication and Fashionnaire Corporation Ltd. to help vulnerable poor people receive food aid from pre-selected shopkeepers.
According to Governor Lenku, the app will send a pin to beneficiaries' phones, allowing them to access food from a pre-selected shopkeeper. An invoice is automatically generated when a hamper of pre-selected food items is accessed, and payment is released to the shop owner.
Shopkeepers will download the app to verify and validate beneficiaries before offering them the food allocation. The governor noted that the new digital system reduces the county's logistical nightmares of food transportation to far-flung areas.
“We have decided to up our game following the Ministry of Health guidelines and regulations of social distancing and also avoiding gatherings during food distributions,” said Lenku.
With the digital system, money is tracked online, receipting, and payment to shop is online. Even pre-selected beneficiaries without smartphones can access the relief food.
The digital food distribution comes as dozens of residents in the county go hungry following prolonged drought and the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.
