Mary Wamuyu Gathemia, a 41-year-old mother of two, runs a vibrant vegetable stall in Muthumi Village, Muguga Ward, Kabete Sub-County, Kiambu County. For years, Mary operated a small general shop selling household items and a few groceries. However, her shop struggled to break even, and she was on the verge of closing it to focus on being a housewife.
Every morning in Nairobi’s informal settlements, thousands of mothers head to the local market, searching for fresh vegetables to feed their families. For many, affordability is a top concern—but so is safety. Mary, a mother of three, recalls the time her youngest fell ill after a meal of sukuma wiki (kales). The vegetables had looked fine, but invisible risks like pesticide residues or poor handling were the real culprits.
Across the City, 27-year-old Joseph joins dozens of young men at a construction site, hoping to earn enough to make it through the week. With limited pay and rising costs of living, lunch often comes from a nearby kibanda—a roadside kiosk offering fast, affordable meals. It’s filling and convenient, but rarely is the question asked: Is the food safe?
As the world marks International Women’s Day 2025, we celebrate the resilience, ingenuity, and contribution of women in driving economic growth and improving household nutrition. In Kenya, one of the most visible yet often overlooked players in this space is the mama mboga (the last-mile vegetable vendor) who ensures families have access to fresh and affordable produce daily.
On 15th January 2025, the bustling town of Machakos in the lower eastern part of Kenya witnessed a transformative milestone in food systems in Kenya; the commissioning of the Marikiti Market Cool Room. This state-of-the-art facility was officially handed over by the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) to the County Government of Machakos in an event graced by H.E. Governor Wavinya Ndeti and GAIN Kenya Country Director, Ms. Ruth Okowa.
Kenya is grappling with a triple burden of malnutrition where undernutrition, micronutrient deficiencies, and overnutrition and associated diet-related non-communicable diseases coexist. An estimated 23 million Kenyans are undernourished. The Kenya Demographic Health Survey (2022) revealed that 18% of children under age 5 are stunted, 5% are wasted, and 10% are underweight. The survey found rates of obesity that were equally alarming—17% of women and 4% of men. These figures are far above global health targets, indicating that we still have a long way to go.
“Be the voice of the children” - that was a key messages of a panel discussion held at the 2024 Sankalp Africa Summit on a sunny morning in Nairobi. It focused on how investors and those who work with them can adapt their approaches to better support children’s nutrition.
Among the five panellists — representing GAIN, the World Food Programme, UNICEF, Save the Children, and a local enterprise, Shalem Investment Limited — the motivation for doing this was clear. Children are the future, comprising nearly half of the African population at present and growing fast — expected to reach 1 billion by 2055. They thus have the potential to accelerate development not only in Africa but worldwide. But that potential is currently limited by malnutrition.
A new five-year USAID-funded project called NAWIRI – Nutrition in ASALs Within Integrated Resilience Institutions – aims to tackle this, building resilience in the region, including through development of local food systems. In Swahili, NAWIRI means "to appear nourished" or "to thrive".
Every quarter, GAIN holds some Community of Practice workshops (CoP), which bring together representatives from private sector, government, and academia. These workshops are a key component of the GAIN Marketplace for Nutritious Foods programme in Kenya.
