The poorest regions of Kenya are the arid northern regions (per the Daily Nation article I linked above). Admittedly, I want to take that article with a grain o

The poorest regions of Kenya are the arid northern regions (per the Daily Nation article I linked above). Admittedly, I want to take that article with a grain of salt, but it does make sense to me that the most difficult regions to farm would be the poorest. This region near Lake Victoria probably around the middle of the pack when it comes to ranking regions of Kenya from rich to poor. 2280 shillings is about 28-38% of the amount needed to get above the (absolute) poverty line, with the true number likely being closer to the middle or lower end of that range. It likely brings the people whom they chose out of poverty and around on-par with their just-above-poverty neighbours but not much more. I'm inclined to believe that they chose a region of Kenya where there was a good mix of people living just below the poverty line and people living just above the poverty line for exactly this reason. I'm not sure about the distinction between extreme poverty, regular poverty and a national standard poverty line (in Kenya). When so much of your population is in absolute poverty, I don't think that a national standard line makes much sense. It does, of course, make more sense in the developed world where shelter alone will cost more money than the median Kenyan spends in a year; the median Kenyan is not below the global poverty line. From the NYT article: Kogelo, where Obama’s father was born, is just 20 miles from the village, which lies close to the banks of Lake Victoria. (This is the first village mentioned) We took off at dawn from Kisumu, a bustling industrial city on the banks of Lake Victoria, and followed a two-lane highway to Bondo, a small trading city filled with cattle, bicycles and roadside food stands. From there, we turned inland from the lake and drove into a lush agricultural region. (This is the second village mentioned) All across the villages of western Kenya, it was clear to me just how much aid money was wasted on unnecessary stuff.