Kwale county government is planning to spend Sh450 million on mitigating the socio-economic impacts of the coronavirus pandemic on poor residents.
Governor Salim Mvurya said 67 per cent of the county's more than 600,000 people were vulnerable due to the Covid-19 outbreak.
He appealed to well-wishers and sponsors to contribute so that the county government can reach out to the vulnerable residents.
Mvurya said employment opportunities have been halted and the few jobs available are in no position to sustain people's livelihoods.
“Jobs are not stable and with the ongoing disease, the situation has deteriorated further because many people are at home,” Mvurya said.
The governor said the county and the national government cannot raise enough funds to help residents hence the need to engage other stakeholders.
He spoke on Tuesday at the county headquarters in Matuga.
Mvurya said the money will be used to provide food, shelter and medical services if need be.
He said they were looking forward to revising the county budgets and making some adjustments to prioritise more investments on crucial projects.
“We have already written a letter to the county assembly to have an emergency session to consult on how to review the budget and comprehensively respond to the impact of Covid-19,” Mvurya said.
He said they were expecting Sh200 million from the budget after reviewing it to assist the vulnerable.
By next week, health officers will be deployed at the entrance points starting with Ng’ombeni checkpoint to monitor the status of those moving in and out of the county.
Mvurya said the screening will help reduce the risk of infection by quarantining suspected patients.
He said the county government had ensured doctors and nurses were well protected against infection while handling patients.
The governor warned public service vehicle operators against hiking fares saying he had waived parking fees among other revenue collections to lessen the economic burden.
“We exempted you from certain fees so that it can compensate for the loss. Why would you overcharge economically challenged citizens,” Mvurya said.
Edited by Peter Obuya
