MAF in Kenya

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Few people are aware that Kenya is home to an estimated 238,000 refugees and 360,000 internally displaced people mainly from Sudan and Somalia.

Many are escaping tribal conflict, lawlessness,  government collapse,  religious and ethnic persecution along with extreme poverty and drought.

Three years of drought greatly affected nearly 80 percent of Kenya, leading to a declaration of national disaster in July 2004 and a deepening humanitarian crisis in 2006. Kenya was also affected by heavy rains in October 2006 with flooding in November in the northeast and coastal areas of the country.

Kenya’s border has been officially closed since the latest round of Somalia’s conflict began in early 2007. According to aid agencies, this has not slowed the pace of new arrivals, but it has meant that new refugees are not registered properly, and do not receive medical screenings.

An estimated 700,000 people are badly affected, 100,000 of whom are Somali refugees. 

Today there are two main refugee camps that have become home to these people- Kakuma in north-western Kenya and Dadaab in the east.

 Kakuma Refugee Camp is located in Turkana District of the northwestern region of Kenya, 120 kilometers from Lodwar District Headquarters and 95 kilometers from the Lokichoggio Kenya-Sudan border. Kakuma Refugee Camp serves refugees who have been forcibly displaced from their home countries due to war or persecution. It was established in 1992 to serve Sudanese refugees, and has since expanded to serve refugees from Somalia, Ethiopia, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Uganda, and Rwanda. In 2007, Kakuma Refugee Camp hosted 21% of the total refugee population in Kenya (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Fact Sheet, September 2008).

Dadaab is the world’s largest refugee camp also located in Kenya. Situated on the border with Somalia, the camp is actually a complex of three camps that were originally designed and built to house  90,000 refugees but now almost 300,000 people are living there. As many as 10,000 people arrive every month.

Kenya also hosts refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Uganda. The high refugee numbers are putting a strain on the Dadaab and Kakuma refugee camps’ infrastructure, necessitating expansion, according to UNHCR.

Recent floods in the northeastern region of Kenya have also destroyed refugee shelters, latrines and infrastructure.

The acute malnutrition rate among refugees in Dadaab is 26.3 percent and 19.6 in Kakuma. Anaemia prevalence among children younger than five is high at 83 percent.

JAMES 1:27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look  after the fatherless and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world

How can you help?  

Ordinary people doing extraordinary things!  

       Together we can make the difference….

Please consider partnering with Michael and Judith through their work with MAF in Kenya to enable the Kenya operations of the many agencies listed at end of page below:

 

WORLD REFUGEE SURVEY 2008

  • Kenya has hosted nearly 319,400 refugees and asylum seekers. About 196,200 were Somalis who began fleeing the civil war and state failure that followed the fall of the Siad Barre regime in 1991. Another upsurge followed Ethiopia’s overthrow of the Islamic Courts Union in December 2006. Even after Kenya’s closure of the border in January, some 2,000 managed to enter clandestinely. There were more than 25,600 Somali applicants out of the total of nearly 34,200 new applications for asylum, which also included 5,400 Ethiopians and 2,200  Sudanese.
  • Kenya also hosted about 100,000 stateless Nubians, descendants of Sudanese whom the British conscripted in the early 1900s, and a number of stateless children of mixed Eritrean-Ethiopian marriages
  • MAF In Kenya   

Kenya operation is unique as it has a regional function, serving the neighbouring countries of Sudan, Somalia and the DRC as well as flying within country.

Since 1980, our aircraft in Kenya have served the surrounding countries as permissions have allowed. Much of the flying has been directly affected by the collapse of infrastructure within the country and by political events in neighbouring countries.

Types of flying done by MAF in Kenya:  

Medical emergency flying                                                                                  Relief  Work/Community Development                                                                                          MissionChurches/Bible translations/Envangelism                                                                                        Medical/eye team Clinics

MAF Kenya Operations

The Kenyan operation also includes the area of Aviation Services for MAF and a large Information Services department, serving MAF and many other missions.

Our offices and hangar are based at Wilson airport, Nairobi with a team also based in the Kenyan border town of Lokichoggio, for flights into southern Sudan. There are 41 international staff and 53 national staff.

There are 7 aircraft in the fleet including:  4 Cessna Grand Caravans, Cessna 206, Cessna 210, Pilatus PC12

International flying makes up over 75% of Kenya’s flying, via Lokichoggio, much of this  is into southern Sudan.

(The Kenya program also flies into Sudan, Rwanda and Somalia) 

History of  MAF in Kenya

MAF began flying in Kenya in 1959, initially supporting the work of Africa Inland Mission (AIM). Aircraft were flown across Kenya, Tanmap of Kenya with Provinceszania and Uganda without the need for border permissions. The East African Community collapse in the mid-1970’s resulted in border controls being established.

In the 1970’s, AIM Air was established as a separate flying organisation. Soon there was duplication of flying services from Nairobi. Following an extensive survey of MAF’s work in East Africa, the Kenya operation was closed in 1977 and operations were transferred to Tanzania. The church had requested a permanent base in Dodoma and it was felt that AIM Air could adequately service the needs in Kenya.

With growing MAF operations in Zaire (now Democratic Republic of Congo), Sudan and Tanzania, there was an increasing need for logistical support and flights between bases and the Kenya operation re-opened. Larger aircraft were brought in to support the flying from this base.

Ordinary people doing extraordinary things!

How can you help? Consider partnering with us through our work with MAF in Kenya enabling the Kenya operations of these agencies listed below:

 Organizations Served by MAF in Kenya


17 thoughts on “MAF in Kenya”

    • THANKS TO MAF FOR ENSURING THAT GOD’S CREATION IS WELL TAKEN CARE OF MAY THE GOOD LORD GRANT YOU WITH ALL YOU NEED IN YOUR TASK MAY HE KEEP THE STAFF HEALTHY AND FREE FROM ANY OBSTACLES BROUGHT BY THE DEVIL.HOW MOTIVATED IAM TO JOIN MAF AND LEND AN HAND IN WORKING WITH THEM GOD BLESS YOU AND GRANT YOU HIS EVERLASTING PEACE AMEN.

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  2. Greetings!

    Please be assured that we are thinking about you na d we are lifting you up in prayer today. Keeep up the Good work!! Your home assembly is remembering you daily in thoughts and prayers!

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  6. Hi,
    I have been looking for forward to getting a job in this organization for a long time because I am so impressed with the services you offer. I have applied for the HR OFFICER POSITION in Nairobi, as advertised in your website I have requested for application form but no reply at all, now I am ready to come and deliver my documents in your head office in Nairobi, because I see this is a golden opportunity for me before deadline 30/4/2015 expires. Please help. WHERE IS THE OFFICE LOCATED IN NAIROBI?
    Thank you and God bless.
    faithchelangat@gmail.com

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  7. Hi my name is kevin and i just finished my certificate program in Aeronautical engineering and am looking for attachment do you guy’s offer..?

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  8. praise the Lord. am Benson from Kenya currently pursuing mechanical engineering in machakos university . i have always wished to become a missionary pilot. how can i join you. i feel the calling

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  10. Thank MAF for the great work you’ve done in Africa

    My Name is Richard a flight operations and dispatch student looking for an internship in Kenya. I am a born again Christian with desire to take my career in serving the lord.

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  11. I love this organization for indeed this is the worship and service that please God…I love what you are dng n looking forward to be part of this good work

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