Data gaps: Economists warn development policies may be pegged on raw statistics

“I do not remember the last time my family ate breakfast, lunch and supper in a day. I do not know if my family will ever have the luxury of having three meals a day as life is getting tougher each day,” says Patrick Maina, a father of five who has lived in Nairobi’s Mukuru kwa Njenga slum for 21 years.

Mr Maina, a cobbler in the slum, says he cannot even afford to take his children to school; not because of school fees, but because he cannot afford to buy them uniform.