A MOLD mother of three returned from a trip to the slums of Nairobi ‘filled with hope’.

During her visit to two settlements in Kiambiu and Matopeni in the Kenyan capital to help raise awareness of Christian Aid’s fundraising activities, Rev Nan Wyn Powell-Davies, 37, saw first hand how people living without access to clean water or sanitation cope.

Rev Powell-Davies, of Ruthin Road, who works at Mold’s Bethesda Chapel and as a prison chaplain, was part of a six-person delegation sent by the charity to see how sanitation blocks and effective drainage systems can improve people’s lives.

She said: “Seeing Christian Aid’s work with my own eyes has most certainly changed me. I used to doubt whether poverty could be eradicated and felt that all we could do was alleviate its effects. But witnessing the transformation of the lives of villages and communities, and seeing people filled with hope, has changed my mind.”

This year Christian Aid Week, which runs from May 9 to 15, is highlighting the millions of people in developing countries who still do not have access to clean water or sanitation.

Half of the population of Nairobi live in informal settlements and the urban slums are home to two million people.

As the rains continue to fail and Kenya's rural population struggle to work the land and feed themselves, many people are being forced to abandon the countryside and head for the cities, hoping to find work.

But money raised by Christian Aid has allowed residents the chance to get safe drinking water, start a community clean-up scheme and build and maintain private blocks containing showers and toilets.

Rev Powell-Davies, whose husband Huw is also a minister, said: “I have supported Christian Aid since I was a child, and have been a Christian Aid collector in Mold for the past 10 years.

“One of the women I met in Kenya was Veronica who lives in Matopeni. She is a widow who lives in a small one-roomed house which measured about ten square feet. She lives with her mother, two daughters and her nephew.

“There is no clean water supply or sewage system there. There are no toilets either.

“This year I’m more determined than ever to raise awareness about Christian Aid.
Let’s do all we can to eradicate poverty.”

For information on the charity visit www.christianaid.org.uk