The Project Management Institute (PMI) has lauded two Kenyan projects – ‘Food4Education’ and ‘Life-changing Cash transfers’ – as progressive milestones to achieving the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
- Food4Education is Africa’s largest kitchen founded in 2012, aiming to provide nutritious and affordable meals for school-going children.
- The project currently serves over 350,000 meals per day, filling the bellies of students from 1,000 schools across Kenya.
- Life-changing Cash transfers, fronted by GiveDirectly, allows vulnerable communities to meet essential needs by facilitating direct cash transfers.
“Through innovation, collaboration, and a shared commitment to sustainable development, we are seeing real progress in addressing some of Africa’s most pressing challenges. PMI is proud to recognize and celebrate these efforts, as they embody the spirit of what project management can achieve for a better future,” said PMI’s Managing Director for Sub-Saharan Africa, George Asamani.
The two projects were listed alongside ‘The Energy Subscription Program’ from Zambia, totalling to three African programs that made it to the list of twenty.
Another Kenyan project, ‘The Samburu Project’, which works to improve access to clean water in arid regions, also received an honourable mention. The PMI evaluated the impact of these projects based on both qualitative and quantitative data, which were judged by global experts.
Other projects that were listed as most influential in 2024 include the ‘1 Billion Tree Project’ from Mongolia, ‘3D Kidney Printing’ by Trestle Biotherapeutics, ‘The Pad Project Partnership Program’ and ‘Irrigation Monitoring Sensors, Virtual Irrigation Academy’.
PMI noted that only 17% of the SDGs were on track, with a half of them recording minimal progress since its declaration in 2015. By honoring projects at the forefront of achieving these goals, the institute hopes that other projects will put more effort in addressing challenges facing education, climate action, healthcare, technology, and food security.
