Kenyans Applaud Govt's Covid-19 Response, but Want More Relief for the Vulnerable

5 September 2024
Afrobarometer (Accra)
By Daniel Iberi, Erick Murithi and Paul Kamau

More than half of households report losing a primary source of income due to the pandemic.

Key findings

  • More than half (55%) of Kenyans say they or someone in their household lost a job, business, or primary source of income due to the pandemic, while 7% say a household member became ill with or tested positive for COVID-19.
  • Three-fourths (75%) of citizens say the government has managed the pandemic response "fairly well" or "very well." o Around six in 10 respondents are satisfied with the government's efforts to minimise disruptions to children's education (57%) and to ensure that health facilities are adequately resourced to deal with the pandemic (62%). o But only 36% think the government has done a good job of providing relief assistance for vulnerable households. o A large majority (73%) suspect that "a lot" of the resources intended for the COVID-19 response were lost to corruption.
  • Among 28% of respondents who say they are unlikely to try to get vaccinated against COVID-19, the most commonly cited reasons are not trusting the vaccine or being concerned about receiving a counterfeit one (23%), fear of negative side effects (17%), and worries about the short timeline in which vaccines were developed (15%). o Six in 10 citizens (59%) say they trust the government "somewhat" or "a lot" to ensure the safety of COVID-19 vaccines.
  • Two-thirds (67%) of citizens approve of using the police or military to enforce public health mandates during a pandemic. o But a majority (56%) disapprove of media censorship during public health emergencies, and nearly three-quarters (73%) "disagree" or "strongly disagree" that elections should be postponed.
  • Only half (50%) of Kenyans think the government is "somewhat prepared" or "very prepared" to deal with future public health emergencies. o Almost six in 10 (58%) say the government needs to invest more in such preparations, even if it means fewer resources are available for other health services.

Kenya's Ministry of Health (2020) confirmed the country's first case of COVID-19 on 13 March 2020. In response, the government introduced a raft of containment measures to curb the spread of the virus, including the declaration of a state of emergency, temporary closure of learning institutions, and prohibition of social gatherings (Doyle & Ikutwa, 2021). Public health measures included mandatory wearing of masks, hand hygiene, and social distancing. (Yusuf, 2020). Between 25 March and 6 July 2020, a dusk-to-dawn countrywide curfew was in effect (Munda, 2020).

Health facilities were stretched thin by the increasing number of infections and dwindling supplies of personal protective equipment and other materials due to disruptions in international supply chains (Kamara & Essien, 2022). By the end of 2022, the Ministry of Health (2022) reported that about 16.3 million vaccine doses had been administered. Nevertheless, as of August 2024, the country had experienced 344,109 confirmed cases and 5,689 deaths related to the virus, according to the World Health Organization (2024).

On the economic front, the lockdowns and restrictions on movement reduced demand for goods and services (World Bank, 2020). The informal sector, a significant contributor to employment creation, was adversely affected by job cuts, reduced working hours, and a lack of social safety nets (Federation of Kenya Employers, 2021).

The toll on individuals was immense. More than 1.7 million people lost their jobs in the first three months of shutdown (Munda, 2020). By November 2020, an estimated 2 million more Kenyans were forced into poverty (World Bank, 2020).

In response to anticipated economic shocks, the government introduced tax relief and stimulus packages. These included adjusting value-added tax downward (from 16% to 14%), restructuring loans, providing corporate tax cuts, and adjusting income tax rates (Miriri, 2020). The president and some senior government officials took voluntary pay cuts.

In addition, the government introduced social protection programmes to lessen the burden on vulnerable population groups. The Inua Jamii initiative involved direct cash transfers to the elderly, disabled citizens, and orphans and vulnerable children. The Kazi Mtaani programme, a labour-intensive public works project, was implemented to create temporary employment for youth, especially those in urban informal settlements (Doyle & Ikutwa, 2021).

How do ordinary Kenyans assess the government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic?

Findings from Afrobarometer's Round 9 survey in Kenya show that most citizens are satisfied with the government's overall response. But a majority think that relief efforts for vulnerable households were inadequate and that resources intended for the COVID-19 response were lost to corruption. Nearly half of respondents worry that the government is ill-prepared to deal with future pandemics, and a majority want officials to invest more in preparations for such an eventuality.

Daniel Iberi Communications coordinator for East Africa

Erick Murithi Erick Murithi is Afrobarometer's data quality officer for East Africa

Paul Kamau Paul Kamau is the national investigator for Kenya.

Read the original article on Afrobarometer.

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