Everyday about 800 women die due to complications of pregnancy and birth. Most of these deaths are preventable and occur in places with poor resources. Almost 95% of maternal deaths occurred in low- and medium-income countries where in poor countries, 20 in 1,000 (or 1 in 49) women will die from a maternal cause. Care by skilled health professionals before, during, and after childbirth can save lives of women and newborns.

UPENDO aims to establish Divine Mercy Hospital at Ndalani, Kenya. In Ndalani poverty rates are high with majority of the people in the region classified as poor or hard-core poor and live on less than a dollar a day. Majority of the inhabitants, which was a settlement scheme, practice subsistence farming with extremely limited off-farm employment.

Ndalani, Kenya has one of the highest numbers of undernourished, stunting, wasting and child mortality rates in Kenya. Pregnant mothers must walk long distances in the heat through rough and inaccessible roads, and sometimes deliver their children by the roadside. Many women are not able to attend the antenatal clinics and some deliver children at home due to lack of reliable means of transportation. This lack of accessible hospital or clinic in the area increases the rate of maternal deaths during delivery and child mortality rate. While the hospital will be of immense benefit to women and children, it will also serve the entire population of Ndalani and the larger Yatta region.