History

Mukuru Promotion Centre is a church based Voluntary Organization, which has been working since 1985 in the Mukuru Slums of Nairobi. I began as a collaborative effort between the Sisters of Mercy, and the Missionaries of Africa in Our lady Queen of Peace, Parish, Nairobi South B.

The local District Officer gave a small plot for a non formal school and requested that the fathers use the same plot for Sunday Mass. Due to the fact that the Catholic community assembled on Sundays and Tuesday evenings for Mass, the school was centred in the slum village and in the community in a way it would not have been if it were not for the collaboration among the Sisters and Fathers, the community and the school. Other neighbouring slum villagers, seeing the success of what was happening, also wanted to have a school and a church in their villages.

Five schools and churches grew up from that first Mukuru School and are still in operation today serving over 7,000 children and the community. The collaboration is now between many religious congregations, local people, local NGOS, volunteers and donors from abroad.¹

¹ http://www.sistersofmercy.ie/kenya/article_display.cfm?article_id=2160

Vision Statement

To empower Mukuru community to take its rightful place in the Kenyan society.

Mission Statement

We aspire, in conjunction with the Mukuru community, to establish and operate, a holistic and sustainable health, educational and social development program which will address the basic needs of the most vulnerable groups in the community.

Mukuru Today

The MPC headquarters is situated in the Industrial Area of the City. It has programmes operating in four areas of the Mukuru Slums. At present MPC runs four primary schools for over 4,200 children, a secondary school; a rehabilitation Centre for about fifty street boys; a medical clinic with a HIV/AIDS testing Centre attached, a community based health care program; a skills training Centre for over sixty students and a sponsorship programme to secondary schools for more than one hundred and thirty children.