Josephine’s story: Covid hits Kenya

Published: March 11, 2021, 8:50 a.m.

Josephine is a single mother of four in Kibera, the sprawling slum in Nairobi, Kenya. At the beginning of the pandemic she was working as a cook, but soon lost her job, and when the BBC's Ed Butler spoke to her a year ago her situation was dire. In this episode, the first of a short series about Josephine and Kibera, we hear how she struggled to start a small business to help feed her family. Also in the programme, Kibera community organiser Kennedy Odede explains how those first few months of desperation impacted the slum's residents. And economist Edward Kusewa, explains how those early months of lockdowns in East Africa are still affecting lives. Producer: Frey Lindsay. (Image: A woman walks home through empty streets after the 7pm curfew in Kibera, Nairobi; Credit: Kabir Dhanji/AFP via Getty Images)