RAPID
Relief Aid for People
in Despair
Instituted in 2020 to respond to the emerging COVID-19 pandemic in Kenya, Relief Aid for People in Despair (RAPID) is MLIFE's flagship initiative providing unconditional small grants to families in need in Kenya.
Our Goal
Halt extreme poverty.
In 2015, 41 percent of people in Sub-Saharan Africa lived in extreme poverty. By 2030, the share could be as large as 87 percent, making extreme poverty a Sub-Saharan Africa problem. Of the world's 28 poorest countries (those with the highest rates of extreme poverty), 27 are in Sub-Saharan Africa, with rates above 30 percent.
MLIFE's RAPID program provides unrestricted small cash grants to families in desperate need of basic needs and supports entrepreneurs and solutionists to realize goals that matter to them.
"Talent is equally distributed, opportunity is not."
Leila Janah, Social Entrepreneur
The crisis
in Kenya
While the global COVID-19 pandemic had devastating effects on every country, Kenyans were particularly hard hit economically due to insufficient government funding and a history of colonialism and disinvestment.
Our
response
When the pandemic hit, the Elder Board canceled MLIFE's programming through October 2021 across our three campuses: San Francisco, Nairobi, and Kilifi, and provided pay to all employees through June 2020.
Our
impact
We provided fast, unconditional financial assistance to needy families. MLIFE provided direct cash support and water to Kenya's hardest-hit communities by creating the Relief Aid for People in Despair (RAPID) program. RAPID provided clean water to 400 families for six weeks, financial grants to four primary schools, and supported 40 families with a quick-response direct cash transfer program.
We instituted the first fully funded Tech Center in an under-resourced school in Kenya Kawangware Primary School was one of the schools devastated by COVID-19 because the school lacked the infrastructure to support distance learning. Through the generous support of the Rugged Elegance Foundation and other partners, MLIFE Foundation funded the creation of the LEAP Tech Center at Kawangware Primary School to activate learning during COVID-19 and build a model that supports 24/7 education that can be replicated throughout Kenya during COVID-19 and beyond.
Currently, LEAP Tech Center serves 500+ students.
Living
with
COVID-19
For many Americans and citizens of the western world, life is returning to normal. The latest data from Kenya's Ministry of Health shows that only 2 percent of the entire population is vaccinated. The economic and health toll of COVID-19 has just started.
Our plan to lessen the impact of COVID-19
Support global efforts to increase mass testing and vaccination for the entire population.
Institute a funding facility to provide unconditional one-time grants of $250 to $750 to small traders to purchase new inventory or learn a new skill.
Institute additional tech centers across our programs; LEAP, MLOVE, Ecclesia, and Spaces of Grace.
