Ali Omar Malenya

Ali Omar Malenya was born in 1957 in Amalemba, Kakamega County. He was the ninth of eleven children in his large family.

Malenya attended Amalemba Township Primary School (Class 1-7) and completed his KCP at Muslim Primary. He went on to study up to Form Four in secondary school. However, his academic performance made finding stable employment a persistent challenge.
After school, he managed to secure temporary casual work at the Cereal Board in Kitale before getting married.

Malenya is married and a father to five children (three girls and two boys). Their life at home has been a constant struggle, relying heavily on unstable, odd jobs for survival. Their financial instability was compounded when their own house collapsed, forcing the family to relocate to his uncle's place in Bomani.

His two sons also work casually, but their intermittent wages are insufficient to support the large family. To help, his wife, a housewife, must seek demanding daily wages through physical labor like farming and washing clothes for others.

The central crisis facing the family is severe food insecurity. They frequently eat only once a day, in the evening, and often struggle to secure even that single meal. When casual labor is unavailable, they go hungry. The limited, unstable money they earn cannot cover the basic needs of his wife, children, and grandchildren.

A friend of his late mother introduced him to the Mama Ibado Charity (MIC), an organization assisting the elderly and senior-led households. After a home visit, he was registered for their program.

Malenya receives monthly provisions through the food program, including maize meal, rice, sugar, tea leaves, salt, porridge flour, and milk. This food is a vital source of sustenance for his family, alleviating their constant hunger.

Malenya is immensely thankful for the compassion and relief provided by Mama Ibado. 
Malenya appeals for further assistance because the fundamental challenge persists: the family relies entirely on unpredictable, low-paying casual work. Even with the food aid, the small income they generate is insufficient to secure stability, leaving them desperately in need of help to exit the cycle of hardship and hunger.