In 2024, PATH Kenya/USAID funded Keeping Alive Societies’ Hope (KASH) in a project that ensured that critical HIV prevention and care work in Kisumu County would continue to expand. The project titled, “Scaling up Demand and Access to HIV Prevention and Care and Treatment Services for Female Sex Workers, MSM, and Transgender Persons in Kisumu County,” was part of USAID’s Nuru Ya Mtoto program.
Working across Kisumu East, Kisumu Central, Kisumu West, Seme, Nyando, and Muhoroni, KASH built safe spaces and strengthened trust within communities. At the heart of this effort was the Kondele Drop-In Center (DICE), a place where key populations—sex workers, transgender persons, and men who have sex with men—could access HIV testing, treatment for HIV and TB, STI screening, and most importantly, a sense of dignity and belonging.
The approach was deliberately people-led. Peer Educators and Peer Navigators, many of them community members themselves, reached out to their peers with information, testing kits, and encouragement. They walked with individuals who were fearful of stigma, guided them to services, and helped them stay connected to care. Outreach was not just about numbers; it was about restoring confidence and giving people hope that they could live healthy, fulfilling lives. KASH reached over 4,499 members of key populations with prevention services. This project expand innovations such as HIV self-testing and pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), ensuring that more people had discreet and effective options for prevention.