Vital supplies from Tearfund partners are reaching camps set up for those who have been forced to flee Kenya’s violence.
Blankets, cooking utensils and anti-malaria nets are among the essentials distributed in the last few days to 1,535 people in a camp at Narok, a town west of Nairobi.
Tearfund partner, the Diocese of Nakuru (Narok Integrated Development Programme), is co-ordinating the supplies and their staff are also working with aid charity World Vision to provide sanitation.
Just over two weeks into the crisis sparked by a disputed general election result, latest estimates are that 255,000 Kenyans have been displaced by violence and around 600 killed.
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reckons that at least 100,000 children have been forced to flee their homes
The United Nations has asked for US $42 million to provide some 500,000 people with food, water, shelter and other priority needs over the next six months.
There are growing concerns about the impact of the unrest on access to health services, particularly for people living with HIV who take anti-retro viral drugs.
Despite the horrors that have driven people to flee to the camps, reports on the ground suggest those living in them do want to return home when the security situation has stabilised, which is a positive indicator for long term tribal reconciliation.
Encouraging dialogue and mediation is another important strand of Tearfund’s work in Kenya.
Tearfund’s regional adviser Peter Gitau and disaster management adviser Reuben Nkuzi have been bringing church leaders together to speak with one voice in calling for peace and political talks.
But the political process seems to be going backwards rather than forwards.
Three days of demonstrations called by opposition leader Raila Odinga have been marked by more bloodshed and violence across the country.
At least 18 people have been killed as the security forces have shown little restraint in using live ammunition to take on the protesters.
Former UN secretary general Kofi Annan is due to arrive in Kenya in the next few days to try and get both sides talking to each other.
Meanwhile, evidence is emerging of the high economic cost Kenya is paying for the instability. Prices for basics, such as sugar and fuel, have more than doubled.
Kenyan newspaper the Daily Nation reports that the property sector lost 100 billion shillings in value following the destruction of buildings during the violence.