Flourishing and Resilient Communities
Kenya Community Development Foundation
KCDF supports communities in Kenya to initiate and drive their own development priorities. #ShiftThePower
February 2025 Edition
Dear Friends and Partners,
Greetings from the Kenya Community Development Foundation (KCDF). We’re excited to reconnect with you in this February edition of Flourishing and Resilient Communities?and?share some incredible updates on how we’re supporting sustainable, community-driven development in?Kenya.
KCDF continues to work with communities, partners?and duty-bearers to address systemic barriers and promote long-term development. This month, we’re thrilled to highlight our exciting partnerships with NCBA Bank, TotalEnergies, and Isuzu East Africa,?which are?creating a real?impact among the young people in our communities.
Additionally, we have an update from this year's East Africa?Financial Resilience Resource Hub retreat, which focused on enhancing the financial sustainability of civil society organisations across East Africa.?
We invite you to read on and get?the full update. Let’s continue making a difference as we work toward building flourishing and resilient communities across the region.
Wishing you a month filled with success and inspiration.
Grace Maingi,
Executive Director, KCDF.
Empowering Widows in Kakamega County:
A Story of Transformation and Impact
The Kakamega County Widows Empowerment Project (KCWEP), founded in 2016, has been transforming the lives of widows, single mothers, and?teen mothers in Kakamega County.
Struggling with financial constraints and limited resources, these women found hope through KCWEP’s participation in the Local Fundraising and Sustainability Training by KCDF and Change the Game Academy .
Equipped with new skills, KCWEP launched a successful income-generating farm featuring a fishpond, tree nursery, greenhouse, and garlic cultivation. The farm now generates an estimated Kes 3,000,000 monthly, providing local women with financial independence and sustainable farming knowledge.
This project has improved food security, nutrition, and the community’s long-term resilience. With expansion plans, KCWEP empowers women to shape their futures and inspire future generations.
Read this inspiring?story HERE.
Reigniting Partnerships to Empower the Boychild: KCDF &?NCBA Bank
On 24th February 2025, KCDF reignited its partnership with NCBA Bank to support the?Mentenda Boys?mentorship programme at Upper Hill Secondary School.?
This initiative, which previously ran from 2015 to 2019, aims to nurture young men into confident, responsible leaders, unlocking their potential for future success.
Read more on this story?HERE.
Shaping Futures: KCDF and Isuzu East Africa join forces to Inspire both the Girl and Boy Child
On February 15, 2025, KCDF, in collaboration with Isuzu East Africa, launched the Inspire Her Girls Mentorship Programme at Embakasi Girls Secondary School to empower young girls to become future leaders.
In the same month, On Saturday, 22nd February,?the two partners also?launched the sixth cohort of the?Mentenda Kenya?boys’ mentorship programme at Aquinas Boys High School.
These?milestones mark the ongoing commitment of both organisations to nurturing young leaders and empowering the next generation through structured mentorship and guidance.
This is?a testament of?KCDF’s commitment to nurturing resilient, empowered communities.
Boys to Men: 200 Mentees Graduate at Jamhuri Boys High School
On February 14th, 2025, Jamhuri Boys High School was filled with hope and celebration as 200 young men completed the transformative MENTENDA mentorship programme by KCDF, supported by TotalEnergies.
This programme, supported by TotalEnergies Marketing PLC, equips young boys with leadership, life skills, and a strong sense of purpose, preparing them to take charge of their futures.
East Africa's Financial Resilience Hub Annual Meeting?
From January 28th to 30th, 2025, KCDF attended the 3rd Year Retreat of the East Africa Financial Resilience Resource Hub (FRRH) in Kampala, Uganda, alongside partners CIVFUND-Africa, FCS, and FORD Foundation.?
Representing KCDF at the retreat were Caesar Ngule - Programmes Director; Gabriel Kihara – Monitoring and Evaluation Team Lead; and Kennedy Odera – Coordinator, Financial Resilience Resource Hub.
The retreat focused on strengthening the financial resilience of civil society organisations (CSOs) across East Africa. Key discussions included progress reviews, strategies for long-term sustainability, and amplifying the Hub’s impact.?
The event also marked the leadership transition to CIVFUND-Africa for 2025, setting the stage for continued collaboration and support in advancing financial resilience through flexible funding and locally rooted business models.
You can read more HERE.
Shaping the Future of Giving: CSOs Meet Towards Building Strong?Community Foundations
On 10 February 2025, 12 community organisations, beneficiaries of KCDF's Strengthening the Community Foundation Movement as a basis for Sustainable Development,?came together for a co-creation session to deepen Kenya’s philanthropy ecosystem.
The programme, which the?Mott Foundation supports, helps?organisations transition into community foundations by ensuring they ultimately exhibit the key tenets of a community foundation. The workshop equipped the organisations with tools to build stronger, sustainable community foundations for long-term development.
Read the full story HERE.
Video Spotlight of the Month?
Promoting Community Voices in Development Through Participatory Grant-making
The Participatory Grant Making (PGM) project is an initiative?led?by Transform Trade in partnership with KCDF to promote local development in communities and give locals the power to choose the project that best addresses their challenges.
To implement the PGM project, CBOs had to contribute either in cash or in kind and Transform Trade would provide the additional funds needed. This strategy aimed at enhancing project ownership and sustainability.
The Upper Mbaaria Community Based Organisation in Meru County benefited?from the project by implementing drip irrigation on their farms. Transform Trade supported in purchasing the necessary pipes and hardware, while each group member contributed KES 6,000 towards connecting the irrigation system to their farms.
This ensured?a reliable water supply, leading to increased harvests and greater financial and food security for the members.
Overally, the project highlights the power of communities to make decisions and leverage their resources for local development.
Watch the video HERE
Empowering CSOs: Crucial Tips for Financial?Sustainability
In January and February, KCDF, through the East Africa Financial Resilience Hub and in partnership with Lightup Impact and Femi Foundation, hosted a boot camp series of financial management webinars focused on promoting financial sustainability among CSOs in East Africa.
If you missed any of the sessions, visit our YouTube channel to catch up or click on this link:?Sessions
Head, Monitoring, Evaluation, Learning and Technology | Data & Analytics Enthusiast
2 天前Looks amazing! Well done. Keep it up!
Community Based Organization
2 天前Great to see the latest updates in the Flourishing and Resilient Communities edition! It's inspiring to witness the impactful partnerships with NCBA Group Bank, TotalEnergies, and Isuzu EastAfrica Limited. Looking forward to learning more about the insights from the East Africa Financial Resilience Resource Hub retreat! Keep up the amazing work, Kenya Community Development Foundation
Ass. Exucutive Director - Leave No Youth Behind CBO / Young Care Leaver advocate/ SRHR & Mental Health Champion/ Event Management and Planning / Project management / Mental Health Advocate
3 天前This is indeed great work you are always doing as an organization. I personally work kn a non-profit organization aimed at working with young care leavers live to their full potential moreover equip them with schools towards resilience. The term Care leaver is to reffer to those who were not raised in a biological setup(kafalah, kinship, children homes and foster) I can attest most organizations are inclusive all gender are more of women empowering which theres nothing wrong about that ????given thevl fact what is happening now. Me seeing this post and about men empowerment is so encouraging giving me hope in the future men that are being natured. I honestly would love to be padt of what you do and possibly vendor into partnerships in the near future. Best regards, Joseph Karisa Mwangi