Partner Profile: Kiwimbi Kenya

Partner Profile

Kiwimbi International is a nonprofit organization with headquarters in Amagoro, Kenya. Kiwimbi believes in opportunity through education and is focused on partnering with underserved communities in Kenya. Since first partnering in 2024, we’ve distributed 1,900 pairs of The Shoe That Grows together.

About Kiwimbi

Focus on Busia County

Busia County is primarily rural and the majority of the population is underserved. Kiwimbi works with over 90 schools within the county, each with an average attendance size of 600 kids.

Promoting literacy and education

Kiwimbi has a library in Amagoro that is their center of operations. From there they promote literacy and a culture of reading through local outreach and before and after school programs and tutoring.

Empowering communities

Kiwimbi believes that a good education for every child is the backbone of every community’s success. They're committed to removing barriers to and furthering education.

Why shoes?

Protecting health.

In Busia, we live among livestock and poultry, which expose us to the danger of jiggers and hookworms’ infection. Most homes do not have access to flushable toilets and instead have pit latrines which increases the danger of infection with bare feet. All children walk long distances to and from school—chances of injury are high.

Catherine Malalah

General Manager, Kiwimbi Kenya

Increasing hygiene.

I grew up in the village myself without shoes and what used to happen to us still happens to these kids 40 years later. If you don’t have shoes, you can’t use the latrine because there is waste from other people on the floor and you don’t want to step on it. So you end up going to the bush instead, which is unhygienic. These shoes play a critical role in hygiene.

Professor Olubayi Olubayi

CEO, Kiwimbi Kenya

Our work together

PAIRS DISTRIBUTED

1,949

SCHOOLS IMPACTED

3

PARTNERING SINCE

2024

Learn more or partner with us

Making a difference in Busia County

On a recent visit, a teacher shared “Most of [the kids] didn't have shoes. But right now, all of them come in shoes to school and they don't have jiggers.”