Investing aid: Poor families putting State stipend to good use

Cash Transfer beneficiary Christina Arron serve her customers, under the National Safety Net Programme in her Hotel Christine on Friday, April 25th, 2015. [PHOTO/ JONAH ONYANGO/STANDARD].

Akuwam Ideya, 49, emerges from her shop in Kataboi area in Turkana North, her hair covered with a grey head wrap. She tightens her kanga around her waist as she comes out of the shop beaming with a smile.

Her hands are rough and dry, an indication of her hardwork and determination to fend for her family. She ushers us inside the shop where foodstuffs and other items are arranged against the walls. In one corner of the shop is a transparent polythene paper with traditional tobacco in it. Akuwam explains that she started running the shop by selling traditional tobacco and maize flour. Her story is that of resilience.