Green-fingered Kildare clergywoman raises awareness of poverty in Nairobi

A KILDARE clergywoman has been growing vegetables in repurposed containers in an effort to raise awareness of a Christian Aid funded project that’s helping to reduce poverty and malnutrition among low-income families in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi.

The Very Rev Isobel Jackson, Rector of Kildare and Newbridge Group of Parishes and Dean of St Brigid’s Cathedral, Kildare, was pictured showing off the lettuce and parsley plants she’s been growing in empty milk containers and tin cans.

Dean Jackson’s gesture is inspired by an urban farming project in Nairobi that’s helping people to grow vegetables in cramped city spaces, so that they can produce enough food to feed their families and surplus to sell for an income. With space in short supply, the vegetables are grown on rooftops, vertically on walls and on any available scrap of land, using containers such as plastic yogurt pots and discarded food cans.

Dean Jackson’s act of solidarity comes ahead of Christian Aid Week (10-16 May) which this year focuses on the charity’s work to help people living in poverty in Dagoretti, a low-income neighbourhood in the Kenyan capital.

In the densely packed streets and alleyways of Dagoretti, almost 300,000 people live in rented one-room homes built from corrugated metal sheets, without basic services such as toilets and running water. Secure jobs are hard to find, and most people earn less than a dollar a day which means that many parents struggle to buy healthy food to feed their children.

Among them is Fridah Moraa, a mother-of-three who became the sole breadwinner for her family following the death of her husband. Since joining a Christian Aid funded project, Fridah has been making the most of a small space near her home to grow a steady supply of fresh vegetables that she can cook for her family or sell on her market stall. Now Fridah is able to feed her children nutritious meals, as well as pay school fees and medical bills.

Christian Aid Week began in the 1950s and is thought to be the UK and Ireland’s longest-running fundraising campaign. Each year, tens of thousands of people across the UK and Ireland get involved in raising funds to support the charity’s work to reach people living in poverty and crisis across the world.

Dean Jackson supports Christian Aid through her ministry by organising fundraising events and encouraging her parishioners to donate.

Christian Aid Ireland’s Chief Executive Rosamond Bennett thanked Dean Jackson for highlighting the charity’s work and supporting the Christian Aid Week appeal. She said:

“Without the support of church leaders like Dean Jackson and parishes like Kildare and Newbridge, we would not be able to help mothers like Fridah to grow food. It’s thanks to their fundraising and their generosity that Fridah is growing her way out of malnutrition and poverty, creating a more hopeful and prosperous future for her children.” 

 For more information or to donate, please visit caweek.ie