While Covid-19 disrupted crucial activities, including education, when it struck in March 2020, it offered relief for the father of five, as he had no reliable source of income to keep the children in school.

Unknown to the 63-year-old man in Lowangila village in Ngaremara, Isiolo County, a paltry Sh2,000 he had saved with the group by the end of last year would enable him to pay school fees for the children when they resumed learning earlier this year.

Mr Ngilimo Lokongila, 63, with his children at his Lowangila home in Ngaremara on June 14, 2021.

“My children had been sent home twice before Covid-19 struck and the savings group came in handy because I received a loan that I used to pay their fees in January,” he said.

Like a majority of residents in Isiolo, the family has been struggling to get safe and nutritious food due to high poverty levels, leaving children malnourished.

No reliable income

“It has been a challenge providing for the family because I have no reliable source of income. My children have on several occasions been sleeping on empty stomachs, forcing them to sometimes eat wild fruits,” Mr Lokongila told the Nation.

Malnourishment, especially among children aged five years and below, remains high in the county, with recent statistics showing that stunting and wasting rates are at 13.8 and 16.7 per cent respectively.

The leading causes of malnutrition in the county include low uptake of supplements, high child morbidity and poor feeding practices due to food insecurity.

The 2019 SMART survey shows that 13.9 per cent of children aged five years are stunted, 13.6 per cent are underweight while 9.2 per cent are wasted, an improvement from 2014 findings when stunting, wasting and underweight rates were at 18.1, 13.2 and 16.3 per cent respectively.