Plight of women working in the matatu industry during Covid-19

 

10 per cent of the public transport sector in Kenya is comprised of women. 85 per cent of them work as matatu conductors in the Nairobi Metropolitan area. Most of these women work for more than 12 hours a day, taking home 1,000 to 1,200 shillings every day. Like in most economic sectors, the advent of Covid-19 has changed the reality for most of them.

A survey by Flone Initiative conducted in June 2020, dubbed: Implications of COVID-19 on Women Professionals in the Kenya Public Transport Sector, has revealed that 52 per cent of women in the matatu sector have lost their jobs as a result of matatu owners closing down their business due to restrictions imposed to contain Covid-19. These women now depend on the goodwill of their former colleagues for short-term jobs, such as helping other conductors to call out for passengers. This has resulted in an 83 per cent reduction in their daily income as they now take home between 100 and 200 shillings a day.