Kenya Drylands Education Fund

KDEF provides promising secondary school students from vulnerable families in Northern Kenya with the resources they need to complete four years of study in high quality boarding schools, without distractions or want for food clothing, school and personal supplies, and safe housing. KDEF focuses primarily on educating girls (70% of our students are girls) because boys have traditionally had more educational opportunities than girls in Kenya with this focus we can begin to address the imbalance.

KDEF sponsors an annual 3-day program focusing on life skills, health and social issues, career guidance and individual counseling. The facilitators are Kenyan teachers, community leaders and government officials selected for their experience and their eagerness to mentor students at this formative stage in life. Participants return to their villages and schools, spreading their newfound knowledge as they model new life skills and healthy behaviors.

We offer educational opportunities to students from Marsabit and Samburu Counties, Kenya.
Our mission is to raise awareness of women's health issues, and to promote gender equality, thereby increasing the odds of women and men acting together to make important contributions to the vitality of northern Kenya.

In order to attract and retain learners, KDEF creates a conducive environment by equipping schools with classrooms, kitchens, sanitation facilities and water systems. Generous donations from KDEF supporters have enabled the purchase of a water truck that supplies schools and villages with water during seasons of drought and other natural disasters. Donating towards water also provides the funds needed to construct wells, water catchments and other sustainable water solutions for communities and schools.

With the Corona Virus looming around the corner, communities in the Drylands of Northern Kenya are worried and frightened. A few small health facilities serve the entire area and basic supplies such as masks and gloves are in short supply. With the government's "Stay at Home" and "Wash your Hands" directives, lack of water is a real concern. It is needed for drinking, cooking, and hand washing. Women and girls make long, daily walks to access water and this has a become impossible with local authorities on the lookout for rule breakers. KDEF is working hard to meet these needs. So far 7,000 households have received deliveries of water, soap and hand sanitizers. Multiple hand washing stations have been set up in each village along with posters in local languages describing precautionary measures. Our goal is to reach 20,000 more households as quickly as we can.
How you can help:
$10 per day - Pays the stipend for a Community Health Worker, who is deployed in community door to door campaigns to distribute soap, hand sanitizers and information
$25 - Provides protective equipment for Community Health Workers raising awareness and fighting the spread of COVID-19.
$40 - Buys a hand washing station. Staffed by volunteers, these stations serve as key access for health awareness information, soap and hand sanitizer.
$50 - Distributes soap and hand sanitizer to families living in the Drylands of Northern Kenya.
$125 - Pays for the delivery of a 12,000 liter truckload of water to villages in the Drylands