Lying First Lady? Championing prayers as Kenya battles drought and floods

Rachel Ruto criticised for claiming Kenya has no drought, credits prayers for rainfall. [File Courtesy]

First Lady Rachel Ruto has described how Kenya is a prayerful and vibrant country prospering economically and spiritually, a situation she attributed to putting God at the centre of everything.

Rachel has revealed how they hold night vigils in the State House every Friday to pray for the country, leaders and the globe, adding that prayers are also held in government, private offices, in parks and several other places.

In an interview with White House Correspondent for CBN News, Rachel said that William Ruto became President in 2022 at a time when the country was experiencing a severe drought and nobody knew what to do.

“The church was praying, the government was giving out food and helping communities and our President called for a solemn assembly. We gathered in one of the biggest stadiums in Kenya on February 14, 2023. And, you know, the church came, the bishops, the fathers of the nation, the intercessors came, government officials came and the President was there leading the nation in a solemn assembly,” Rachel told CBN News.

Rachel continued: “So it is still raining, and now we are food secure. We usually have little spells here and there, but the government is doing everything to construct dams and such kind of things so that at least we can save the water when we get heavy rains. So that is Kenya for you, where the leadership loves God.”

Rachel was in the US where she joined her fellow First spouses at the Fostering the Future Together’ initiative that took place between March 24 and 25, 2026, which was convened at White House by the First Lady of the United States, Melania Trump.

The summit focused on the ways in which technology, particularly artificial intelligence, is reshaping education and the future of work, and on ensuring that every child has fair and safe access to opportunities.

Her remarks come against the backdrop of the country coming out of a dry season, with several counties placed on emergency alert over drought, which was then followed by loss of lives and property over floods that have hit several parts of the country.

Rachel also narrated how her Mama Doing Good initiative is empowering Kenyans and how it was started.

According to her, the story of the initiative dates back to 1997, when Ruto was vying to become a Member of Parliament for the first time and she came out to help him campaign.

On the campaign trail, she said that she met many young people and women, and was struck by one of the ladies who did not have shoes but was jovial.

It dawned on her that if the lady had come to a place like that without shoes, she wondered about the situation of her children and made a prayer that if Ruto was elected as an MP, she would go back to empower them economically, so that every woman can have shoes and take care of their children.

Once he was elected, she devised ways to work with the women and that is how the table banking concept was born.

Rachel told CBN News that she gathered about 60 women in the constituency and began the organisation, Joyful Women, and today, she is working with women and children, empowering them and bringing issues of protection, participation and provision for the children of Kenya.

And growing up in rural Kenya, Rachel said she never imagined that she would ever be First Lady, but stated that she was always a determined and resilient young girl.

Rachel, who is a trained teacher, said she always wanted to make a change, especially in her community, because, growing up, she saw how many families were poor.

“First of all, I knew that education is the great equaliser. I knew that if I was to do well in my academics and my education, going through high school, university or college, then I knew that I would have more opportunities,” Rachel told CBN News.

The First Lady also explained how the ‘Mama Cycling’ concept came about, saying it began during the COVID-19 season when everyone was at home.

She said they put communities together and started a cycling programme as part of taking care of the health of the women and the communities.

Again, the First Lady explained that in rural Kenya, a bicycle is a means of economic value because it is not just used for transportation but also to take wares from the farm to the market.

She said they have also partnered with corporations and companies, an initiative which has seen bicycles distributed to women and families, who also take children to school.

“Even when this bicycle is being used to take wares to the market for economic value, we have seen the bicycles also being a means of transport to take children to school because in rural Kenya, some schools are a little bit far,” she said.

“So these bicycles are used to take the children to school. They ride to school and thus their health continues to improve. You know, there’s something about cycling that, when you cycle, your adrenaline goes up. And your heart starts to move fast and that really gives you good health,” she explained.

Other than encouraging Kenyans to adapt cycling, she said they have also been urging the government to establish cycling lanes so that it is safe for the riders to be on the road.

“That is what counties have been doing, the government is doing that.”