Mandatory masks at the entrance to supermarkets in Kenya.
As always the law has been made and made public, now it will be up to the responsibility of Kenyans and foreigners in the country to respect it and to the institutions in charge of ensuring that it is followed to the letter.
The Government has decided that the prevention of new coronavirus infections is absolutely essential to the use of protective face masks. Thus, in addition to starting local production and promoting affordable sales (between 5 and 10 shillings each) as soon as possible, it invites companies and individuals in the country to donate funds for production and distribution. Transport CS James Macharia confirmed yesterday that masks distribution will come from every single County.
Denmark will today provide aid of 320 million shillings for this initiative, while at local level county health departments and associations such as the International Red Cross are already spending money to raise donations and distribute them.
Not to mention that having reusable fabric masks produced locally can provide a job opportunity for many people who live on the edge of survival and who, thanks to the sale of the masks at low prices, can take something home every day to feed them and their families.
In this perspective also the Italian NGO Karibuni in Langobaya, inland Malindi, has started a production involving the local population that until a few weeks ago had something to support themselves thanks to the agricultural and poultry projects of the farms set up by the NGO.
"We have created in a few days a cooperative of women to produce masks - explains the President of the Onlus Gianfranco Ranieri - old pedal cars, some women have more difficulty in copying the samples that Laura Allegri has prepared in these days and more than 250 pieces per day are not made ... every day the women are paid according to the production and it means a lot because they will all have an income for the family ... we are organizing the logistics with our staff who go to the nearby villages to collect, take to the farm, count and prepare for distribution the following day ... for now we are distributing to the people who go to the dispensary, to the police, to the children, but they already have requests for more than 5000 pieces. They are washable, we use local fabrics in cheerful colours, for the children it seems like a new game. Private individuals and local associations order them from us to be distributed in the villages where they work. We have decided a political price of 50 sh, they cost more but it doesn't matter, about 5 euro for 11 pieces... every day we are trying with women who have the machines to teach how to produce, we hope to reach at least 500 per day because we estimate a request of thousands of pieces. But many will also be given away by us. A new heavy commitment, not foreseen. As long as we have the funds, we'll go forward."