Kenya's leading media houses on Tuesday, February 18 were among organizations and well-wishers who donated millions to First Lady Margaret Kenyatta's upcoming Beyond Zero half-marathon.
The media houses reiterated their commitment to supporting the event with top executives handing over dummy cheques.
Nation Media Group (NMG) donated Ksh10 million towards the project launched in 2013 by the First Lady.
State broadcaster Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC) gave a donation of Ksh 14.7 million towards the initiative meant to improve maternal and child health care in the country.
Mediamax Limited, which includes brands such as K24 TV, Kameme TV and Milele FM, handed over their donation of Ksh11.5 million.
Standard Group Plc, which owns KTN and The Standard, donated Ksh7 million towards the project.
Royal Media Services (RMS), which owns several radio and TV stations including Citizen TV, Inooro TV and Mulembe FM, was also announced as the marathon's official media partner.
A representative of the firm observed that the several stations under RMS which broadcast in vernacular languages as well as English and Kiswahili put them in a good position to provide wide national coverage of the marathon.
The event will be divided into four categories including the main half-marathon and a ten kilometre run open to individual and corporate participants.
There will also be a five-kilometre family run and a special category for expectant women.
Participants were urged to select a theme they want to support from a list of nine areas identified by the marathon's organizers.
The areas include access to quality maternal and neonatal healthcare, repair and reintegration of women suffering from obstetric fistula and promotion of good nutrition for children.
The Beyond Zero initiative has seen the First Lady scoop various international awards since its inception.
In 2014, she was named the United Nations (UN) Kenya Person of The Year in recognition of her efforts to eliminate preventable maternal and newborn deaths in the country.
Watch a video of First lady Margaret Kenyatta accepting the donations below:
