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Kenya

WFP Kenya Country Brief, April 2025

Attachments

In Numbers

  • 1.1 million people assisted
  • 4.7 million in cash-based transfers distributed
  • USD 155.47 million six months' net funding requirements (June-November 2025)
  • 2,333 mt of food commodities distributed

Operational Updates

Differentiated Assistance for Refugees

• The Government of Kenya’s rollout of the refugee data collection and registration into the Enhanced Single Registry (ESR) in Kakuma (April 2024), with plans to expand to Dadaab, marks a critical step in aligning refugee inclusion efforts with the Shirika Plan and Refugee Act 2021. The Government’s Shirika Plan is a transformative multi-year strategy to advance the socio-economic inclusion of refugees. By registering all 138,000 refugee and asylum-seeker households into a unified government database, the ESR operationalizes the Shirika Plan’s vision to transition camps into integrated settlements through socio-economic inclusion and data-driven governance. Jointly led by the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection, National Social Protection Secretariat, with financial and logistics support from WFP, UNHCR, and ILO, the exercise is collecting demographic and socioeconomic data to prioritize interventions based on household vulnerabilities.

• While the ESR provides the optimal framework to achieve the Shirika Plan’s objectives (particularly social-economic inclusion), and for WFP’s implementation of the Differentiated Assistance Framework, resource constraints have necessitated discussions on adjusting the implementation timelines of the Differentiated Assistance by stakeholders — initially planned for rollout in May 2025. The resource constraint has impacted the planned food rations, services, and livelihood investments under the Differentiated Assistance approach (a framework for providing support to refugees, tailored to their specific needs and abilities, rather than offering blanket support based on their refugee registration status). WFP continues to collaborate with the government and stakeholders to refine timelines and methodologies.

Resource Constraints: The Ripple effect on Food assistance

• WFP provided food assistance to over 709,976 refugees (49 percent women) in the Dadaab and Kakuma refugee camps, and Kalobeyei settlement comprising in-kind distributions and cash-based transfers at 40 percent of the minimum food basket (MFB) requirement.

• In 2025, WFP in Kenya faces a severe funding shortfall, with expected contributions plummeting by over 65 percent compared to 2024. This significant decline occurs amidst persistent high humanitarian needs, particularly for refugees and Kenyans in food-insecure and drought-affected regions. As a result, WFP will be forced to scale back critical life-saving assistance, including food and cash-based transfers. Tough prioritization decisions will be necessary to support the most vulnerable populations. Starting in June 2024, WFP plans to suspend the cash-based transfer component of monthly assistance, and food rations may be reduced to just 30 percent of the Minimum Food Basket (MFB). This drastic cut falls critically below the level needed to meet basic nutritional requirements.