Formed in 1991, Single Mothers Association of Kenya (SMAK) is a community based organization that integrates disadvantaged youth – and particularly female youth – into society through education courses and life training with the goal of empowering them with the skills they need to be self-reliant.

Located in the Ziwani Estate, which was the first East African housing project, SMAK also works to preserve this important site and disseminate its history through advocacy, site tours, and events. The housing project was founded by the colonial British Government in their quest to offer a “decent” living quarters to the “natives.” This estate is comprised of various building and sites, including a cemetery and sanatorium. Today many of these places are being torn down and turned into slums – a trend that SMAK is working hard to stop.