Impacting Lives through Corporate Social Responsibility

The Company continues to dedicate a part of its profit to social responsibility activities aimed at enhancing the living standards of those living close to its installations and all Kenyans general. Areas of focus included Education, provision of water, environmental conservation, support to sporting activities and health care provision.

Water Provision

Today, Kenya is classified as a water-stressed country.  Like in many African countries, lack of safe drinking water is the cause of socio-economic problems including, starvation and disease. The challenge is even more pronounced in rural areas where women and children walk long distances daily in search of water, which is sometimes polluted. Waterborne diseases are still a concern as many people succumb to them annually. One of KenGen’s CSR programme areas of focus is provision of water to communities through establishment of water collection points, support to water distribution infrastructure, and construction of sand dams for water storage.

The projects that have been supported by various community projects around Olkaria, Seven Forks, Sondu,  Turkwel  Seven Forks. The Sondu water project has been a huge success, with more than  20,000 people benefitting from it.

At the seven forks, the innovative sand dams are helping local communities to access water for livestock, agriculture and domestic use


Education

With a focus on education as part of its corporate social responsibility, the company continued to offer scholarships for both secondary and university students from schools near its installations The scholarship programme, started in 2005, continued to  provide  bright, disadvantaged children with an opportunity to change their destiny, enabling them to access education by meeting all tuition and boarding fees. 

Currently, the company is sponsoring eighty 80 students in secondary school and 60 in public universities.

 

Environmental Conservation

In Kenya, the effects of climate change and other environmental challenges are having an enormous impact not only on human life, but also on businesses.  The pressure on natural resources and the environment in general is huge and calls for concerted effort to alleviate the situation. For its part, KenGen has actively participated in environmental conservation initiatives aimed at conserving catchment areas and other delicate ecosystems. The Company continues to support “To Hell’s Gate on a Wheelbarrow”, an initiative by KWS to conserve Hell’s Gate National Park and other conservation initiatives.

Sports

Sporting activities are known to provide physical and emotional benefits and KenGen has continued to support sports in the country through the sponsorship of several events.  KenGen has continued to support sporting activities which include the Nakuru Squash tournament.

Health

Developing countries, including Kenya, are faced with the daunting task of providing health services to an ever increasing population in the face of limited resources. As a result, available health services are often overstretched. In areas of its operation, KenGen continues to offer subsidized health services to local communities through its dispensaries, while supporting other health initiatives aimed at improving the well-being of vulnerable groups, including medical camps and health walks aimed at addressing various types of diseases.

Disaster Response

In the recent past, the country has experienced a number of disasters – both natural and man-made and KenGen has offered support to initiatives aimed at alleviating the suffering occasioned by these calamities. Among disaster relief efforts that have been supported by the company include the famine relief Kilifi District and Masinga and Mbeere Districts where relief food, as well as support to the “Kenya for Kenyans” initiative targeting famine affected communities in north-western Kenya.

Peace Building

Some parts of East Africa, particularly the northwestern region of Kenya, have suffered years of insecurity occasioned by a scramble for limited resources. The result has been loss of lives and underdevelopment.

Over the years, KenGen has worked in partnership with other stakeholders to bring peace to some of the regions. These include Turkwel and Moroto in Eastern Uganda where the company has supported trans-boundary peace initiatives.