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health
September 2024

Mathare Responsive Funds

Mental health awareness in communities is growing, emphasizing the need to remove stigmas and create supportive environments. This shift empowers individuals to take control of their mental well-being. Read more on how communities are leading this change.

health
September 2024

Cultivating change through creativity: Capturing Covid-19 experiences in Nairobi

This paper examines the severe impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on marginalized communities, particularly in Nairobi's Mathare Valley, where lockdowns exacerbated challenges like poor housing and high poverty. Through the Covid Collective programme, Muungano wa Wanavijiji's research assesses the pandemic's effects and the resilience of these communities in the post-pandemic recovery.

health
September 2024

Responding to water sanitation hygiene and solid waste management: challenges in Nairobi's informal settlements

The Household Address Initiative in Kiamutisya settlement promotes inclusivity and equitable access to essential services by providing accurate household identification. In informal settlements prone to emergencies like fires and cholera outbreaks, this system helps ensure effective response efforts and reduces inequities in aid distribution and routine health services.

health
May 2024

Local impacts of global vaccine inequalities: Post-pandemic informal settlement experiences

Global vaccine inequalities during the Covid-19 pandemic hindered effective vaccine rollouts in the global South, particularly in informal settlements. This blog highlights key findings from our Covid Collective research, which explored vaccine deployment challenges and lessons learned in informal settlements across four African cities—Harare, Lilongwe, Kampala, and Nairobi—based on two rounds of action research conducted between 2021 and 2023.

health
April 2024

“My business challenges are far worse right now, I will go for Covid-19 vaccine later”: Post-pandemic lessons from the Covid-19 vaccine rollout in informal settlements in Harare, Kampala, Lilongwe and Nairobi

This paper explores the Covid-19 vaccination rollout in informal settlements during the post-pandemic period (2021–2023), highlighting how global vaccine inequalities exacerbated pre-existing structural barriers. It shows how declining interest and access to vaccines, compounded by evolving perceptions of risk and emerging crises, hindered vaccination efforts and recovery in low-income communities.

health
April 2024

African cities in the wake of Covid-19: Impacts and grassroots responses in Harare, Kampala, Lilongwe and Nairobi

This paper examines the ongoing challenges in African informal settlements following Covid-19, focusing on the decline in incomes for informal workers and limited recovery despite temporary improvements in WASH services. It highlights grassroots strategies led by Slum Dwellers International (SDI) in Harare, Kampala, Lilongwe, and Nairobi to strengthen community resilience and access to vital services.

health
February 2024

Improving Accountability for Equitable Health and Well-being in Urban Informal Spaces: Moving from Dominant to Transformative Approaches

This article critically reviews the literature on urban informality, inequity, health, well-being and accountability to identify key conceptual, methodological and empirical gaps in academic and policy discourses.

health
June 2023

Art for Therapy: A tool to promote mental well-being in our settlements

Muungano wa Wanavijiji introduced 'Art for Therapy' in Mathare to promote mental well-being after the pandemic. Creative expression played a key role in helping residents recover emotionally. Learn more about the impact of this initiative.

health
June 2023

The Unyielding Resilience of Mathare Residents Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic

Despite the challenges of COVID-19, Mathare residents demonstrated remarkable resilience by adapting and innovating. From savings groups to shifting businesses, they found ways to cope with the crisis. Discover the full story of their perseverance.

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