Mwingi West Member of Parliament Charles Ngusya Nguna alias CNN has appealed to communities around Kenya to support the elderly in a bid to enable them register sufficiently for the ongoing Inua Jamii program which kicked off on Friday across different parts of the country.
Speaking at Migwani Baraza park over the weekend ,the second term Wiper Democratic Party lawmaker called upon the government to ensure beneficiaries receive the monies through their mobile phones saying this will ease the burden and agony of travelling to their respective banks for withdrawals.
“Today at Migwani Baraza park, I officially launched Inua Jamii cash transfer programme whereby over 3,000 senior Citizens (Over 70+ years) from all over the Constituency are expected to benefit.In my speech, I promised to put proper logistics in place to facilitate the implementation of the programme at the grassroot level in the next 15 days.Let’s sensitize the community to bring out those senior Citizens to enlist in huge numbers” he wrote
The program which currently benefits over 1.2 million Kenyans, including 353,000 orphans and vulnerable children, 833,129 elderly citizens, and 47,000 persons with severe disabilities across the country is facing a hitch of insufficient enumerators to handle the needs of hundreds of Kenyans turning up for the exercise.
However,the Principal Secretary for Social Protection and Senior Citizens affairs Joseph Motari has affirmed commitment by the ruling administration to actualize the success of program which remains one of the key priorities of President William Ruto’s administration in bettering the lives of the poor and vulnerable through Bottom-Up Transformation Agenda (BETA).
“The success story of the Inua Jamii program is undeniable. It stands as a testament to our dedication to empowering households with older citizens, orphans, vulnerable children, and individuals with disabilities. Together, we are enhancing livelihoods and igniting hope.” he said
Inua Jamii programme is the government’s flagship National Safety Net Programme whose objectives are to uplift the lives of the poor and vulnerable citizens through regular and reliable bi-monthly cash transfers.
The government released Sh2.8 billion which has been credited into the accounts of over 1 million beneficiaries, who will receive Sh2,000 as payment for July.
The programme includes Cash Transfers for Orphans and Vulnerable Children, Older Persons Cash Transfer, Persons with Severe Disabilities Cash Transfer and the Hunger Safety Net Programme.
“Our officers will be moving to every corner of the country to ensure that all deserving Kenyans are enlisted with the cash transfer programme. We will start with 500,000 this year and then register 800,000 more Kenyans at the start of next year,” noted Cabinet Secretary for Labour Florence Bore
Her sentiments were echoed by Motari who emphasized need for streamlining of the Inua Jamii cash transfer programme in order to increase coverage and accountability.
He assured the beneficiaries of timely and efficient payments noting that the delayed payment of the two payment cycles was occasioned by the transition from the previous administration to the Kenya Kwanza Government.
“We wish to assure the beneficiaries of the Inua Jamii programme that the government will disburse their money at the appropriate time to cushion the vulnerable and elderly persons in the society against poverty,” added Motari.
Besides the Inua Jamii programme that will continue to help eradicate poverty, hunger and malnutrition, the government has also reiterated its commitment of improving the health of senior citizens.
