Reject Online Issue 32

By FRED OKOTH

Recently five gold diggers died while prospecting for Gold in the Macalder mines of Migori County. Even with their deaths, it remains business as usual. How-ever, there is also a second breed of gold prospectors who are risking their lives every day all in the search for the elusive mineral.

They might be living in what could be the rich-est gold mine in the country but to the women living around Masara mines in Migori District, in Western Kenya have been living a life that can simply be de-scribed as scavenging on what men have left behind.

Every morning, a large group of women leave their homes and head straight to the mines to join their men. They stay there until late in the evening when, together with the men, eventually make their way back home.

InequalitiesAt first, there is nothing out of the ordinary about

this. Men and women walking to the mines and stay-ing there until late in the evening. But that is as good as it gets. A closer look into what happens in the mines exposes serious inequalities and how deeply disadvan-taged the women are.

While the men go straight inside the mines and start the chore of getting the ores from the mines and crushing them, things are completely different for the women.

Here, they have to wait for the men to finish before they can venture into the mines to see how much of the precious mineral they can get.

A walk through the area and one will encounter small groups of women waiting for the men to crush the ore, take away the gold deposits, then throw away the useless sand.

ScavengersHowever, it is at this point that the women get into

action. Like scavengers, the women quickly move into the ‘useless sand’ and, armed with mercury, run it all over again to see if there is something left by the men.

“We have to accept that unlike men, we cannot go inside the caves to look for ores” says Milka Awiti, a mother of seven. They have always had to wait until the men threw away the sand to try their luck.

“Our work is simple. We take the sand thrown away, run it over water mixed with mercury and see if there is any trace of gold left behind by the men,” explains Awiti.

As she talks, a group of women are busy carrying away the sand to a nearby wood structure where it is repeatedly run over water and all this time, their eyes are firmly fixed on the wood to see if there is any chance that they will get something.

The entire load of sand is eventually washed out with no trace of gold remaining on the small mercury they had put. There is an obvious sigh of frustration on their faces but just for a moment.

A bimonthly on-line newspaper by the Media Diversity Centre, a project of African Woman and Child Feature Service

January 16-31, 2011

ISSUE 032

Continued on page 2

Read more Reject stories online at www.mediadiversityafrica.org

Scavengers of the gold mines

Women looking for gold from sand thrown away by the men who are the main diggers. These women risk their lives while rushing to collect the dust from which gold has been mined in their attempt to find any left over ore.

Pictures: Fred Okoth

2 U n f i l t e r e d , u n i n h i b i t e d … j u s t t h e g r u e s o m e t r u t h ISSUE 032, January 16-31, 2011

Continued from page 1Soon, they again collect sand from another

dumping site and filling the wooden trough and repeating the process all over again.

And after about three hours work, there is some small trace of gold stuck on the mercury. This is worth about KSh400 shillings, not much given that it will have to be divided among the 11 women who took part in the process.

One woman squeezes the mercury out using a piece of cloth despite the enormous dangers of using bare hands to touch it, puts it inside a hand bag. The women then move to the next site.

“This is the life we have always known,” Awiti explains. However, what is clear to the women is making sure that they will survive with the little they can get.

Water supplyA few meters away, a group of seven women

are passing by each carrying a bucket of water on their head. Their journey ends at a nearby mining site where they deposit the water in a large tank and make their way down the stream again.

These women have organised themelves into a group and their work is to supply water to the men throughout the expansive mines.

They report to work from 5.00 am and con-tinuously supply water to different mines the whole day. At the end of the day each will have earned KSh100.

“It is a difficult job since we have to walk a long distance in very steep terrain,” says Monica Awuor, leader of the group. She adds: “There are times when we hardly have time to even sit down and have lunch.

The women’s problems do not end here. “There are worse problems after the gold has been sold and money earned,” says Akumu. “Most of the husbands will disappear to major

towns like Migori and Homa Bay once they get the money and only coming back when the cash is over.”

And this is partly to blame for the rising cases of deaths of parents and guardians in Nyatike caused by HIV/Aids. There are about 4,000 or-phans who have dropped out of school and are now engaged into child labour.

Then there is the issue of miners handling chemicals used in the mines such as mercury without safety gear. Experts have continuously warned that this is highly dangerous but no one pays heed.

However, not all women are scavengers. There are those who have made a decent living out of the mines and are quite comfortable.

Mary Akinyi is a gold dealer. Every morning, the miners flock by her home where she buys their gold in small quantity and eventually sell-ing them to the licensed dealers in Migori and Nairobi. She lives in a beautiful permanent house in the centre of Masara unlike most of the miners and the locals living in grass thatched houses.

“We pay the miners on the spot, collect the gold and go to dealers in Migori and Nairobi,” explains Akinyi.

Akinyi, however, defends herself and other dealers from allegations that they are the ones who make profit at the expense of the miners.

“We pay a fair price all the time,” she says.However, she declines to say how much she

pays but reiterates that it is a good price and that is why the miners come to her.

“There are a number of dealers but one must go where they are given a good offer,” explains Akinyi.

During high seasons when gold is plenty es-pecially just after the long rains, miners throng her home with gold so there is no need of walk-ing around. She is, however, forced to walk, especially during the rains to be able to stay in

business.And it is during this high season when prosti-

tution takes centre stage in the area with the min-ers disappearing as soon as they get paid only to come back after one week with nothing.

“It is part of life here,” says Akinyi. “The belief that they will always go back to the mines and get more cash drives them to spend everything they have without caring.”

Not far off, a group of six youths, barely in their teens and covered completely in ashes are busy grinding huge rocks into ashes, a few me-ters from a deep cave where another group of young men are digging the rock.

Most of them are teenagers whose parents cannot afford to pay for their school fees soon after finishing their primary education forcing them to come to the mines and try their luck.

And unlike in the mines in places like South Africa for instance where there are methods of detecting where gold ores might be lying, in Ma-sara, it is simply speculation and guess work.

Again, whenever there are rains, the entire mining process comes to a halt until the rains stop. This renders the women jobless. This is be-cause there are no generators to drain the water which normally fills the mines.

There are also several women who have been widowed due to the mine walls collapsing on their husbands. Records by the Lakeside Mining Co-operative Society (LMCS), which is manag-ing the site shows that about 30 people have died after the tunnels caved in on them.

According to the society’s program director, Mr Odhiambo Opiyo, they have tried to educate the locals including the women who deal in gold on the dangers of going into the mines during the rainy seasons.

“When a life is lost, everybody suffers” He ex-plains adding that they try to let everybody stay at home until it dries up.

Once the rocks have been dug from the mines, they are taken to the shade where youth, about sixteen years of age grind them to ashes.

The fine powder is eventually taken to ‘Odao’ the place where the gold is separated from it us-ing mercury. Here, a young man is also busy at work using his bare hands with no protective gear.

The gold is then taken by the women to the middlemen who operate in the area who buys them before selling them to licensed gold buyers in Migori, Eldoret and Nairobi since the women themselves cannot travel to Nairobi.

IncomeAccording to the miners, it is these middle-

men who make most of the cash, exploiting the miners by paying them peanuts while making a fortune.

And it is this that has lead to high HIV and AIDS prevalence in the mines, a trend Mary says is worrying as most of the affected people are the youths who are the most useful at the mines.

According to the records at the Mines office in Migori, the small scale miners at the mine make about 100 million per year, that’s before the actual mining begins underlining the poten-tial that the industry could give billion every year with the right machineries and methods.

The fact that the miners use mercury also means that they can only extract up to 40% of the gold from the ore.

The best chemical to use, which is sodium cyanide which has the ability to extract over 90% of the mineral is too poisonous and cannot be sold over the counter.

In essence few benefit from the mines and thus the poverty circle repeats itself.

Child loses uterus through repeated sexual assaultBy VALERIE ASETO

Grace Wanjiku (not her real name) is only one year old. But her harrowing experience is clouded with a tinge of infinity. She has been robbed off her future by a ghastly act of defile-ment which left her with a ruptured uterus.

Doctors who treated her had to remove the uterus to save her life. Although the perpetrator is behind bars, Wanjiku will never cuddle her own bundle of joy unless she goes to a surrogate mother or adopts.

Her presence at the launch Gender Based Violence Recovery Centre at Mbagathi District Hospital towards the end of last year could not go unnoticed.

She strongly clutches on her grandmother oblivious of the harrowing ordeal that is about to be narrated to curious onlookers attending the function.

For a second, the grandmother remains si-lent staring blankly at the crowd with tears roll-ing down her cheeks. Everyone can tell she is going through a traumatic moment.

Baby Wanjiku’s face on the other hand blos-soms with joy of being surrounded by strangers as her grandmother cuddles her closely to stop her from slipping away.

The crowd is shocked and numbed speech-less as the baby’s grandmother recounts how the baby was repeatedly defiled by her mother’s boyfriend.

The baby was born after her mother dropped out of school while in Form Two. She is the last born in the family that was staying together in a one roomed house in a slum in Nairobi’s South C known as Mutumba village.

The unity was broken when the young girl decided to go and stay alone with her baby in a nearby estate not too far. Once in a while the old woman would visit to check on the baby. But one chilly morning she says she went there without informing her daughter in advance.

“What I found was unbelievable. My daugh-

ter was lying on the floor very drunk while my granddaughter was lying just next to her. I was surprised since I was not aware that my daugh-ter had turned to drinking and probably that’s why she left to stay alone,” she says.

She then took baby with her and on reach-ing home she decided to bath the baby but the little angel cried painfully when she was put in-side a pool of water in basin.

The grandmother could not tell what the matter was immediately since that water was warm and the weather was not cold. She sus-pected the baby had a cut somewhere in her body.

“I began checking all over the body but I could not see any cut. I then checked her pri-vate parts. What I saw made me numb as there was wound that was still fresh,” she says with tears rolling down her cheeks.

She then knew that her grandchild had been sexually assaulted and without wasting time, rushed baby Wanjiku to Kenyatta National Hos-pital Gender Based Violence Recovery Centre. The doctor who examined the child said she had been defiled repeatedly.

According to the doctor, the baby was in a bad condition that needed serious attention that was done at the hospital immediately.

“Baby Wanjiku responded well to the treat-ment and the bad news was that her uterus was damaged and the doctor had to remove it,” ex-plains the grandmother.

The Coalition on Violence Against Women (COVAW) took up the case and after follow up, the perpetrator was arrested and later arraigned in court. He was found guilty of defiling a mi-nor and was sent to jail.

The baby and her grandmother stayed at the hospital for almost one month before they were released to go home. Though Wanjiku looks well and healthy now, the grandmother’s biggest dilemma is how she will in the future explain to her the reason as to why she cannot give birth.

“My biggest worry is how I will explain to baby Wanjiku what happened to her and also why she would not have a baby of her own,” la-ments the old woman.

However, she commends COVAW for the initiative they took to arrest the offender and more so putting up rescue centres to help victims of gender violence. The initiative has helped particularly those from less fortunate families get access to the required medication.

According to Mbagathi District Hospital Medical superintendant, Dr Andrew Sule most cases of gender based violence go unresolved as victims hardly report them and hence fail to give evidence to help in the investigations.

He says affected people should stand out and beware of their rights so that such cases can be solved amicably.

“Comprehensive medical care helps victims overcome further infections whereas counsel-

ling help victims overcome trauma,” explains Sule.

He urged the government to put up more re-covery centres so that every victim gets quality medical attention in case of such unfortunate occurrences.

COVAW representative Ms Carole Osero urged Kenyans to take up the responsibility of exposing and condemning ills in the society.

“If my husband or any other relative is de-filing our child then I need to think of what I can do to help and not cover up to please the society,” explained Osero.

Of late there have been several cases of fa-thers defiling their own daughters and the peo-ple around them keeping quiet because they do not want to embarrass the family.

“This should not be the case since majority now are aware of their rights,” says Osero.

In her innocence, baby Grace Wanjiku plays in the grass at Kenyatta Hospital oblivious to the damages done to her by her mother’s friend who defiled her.

Picture: Valerie Aseto

Scratching through gold dust to earn a living

3U n f i l t e r e d , u n i n h i b i t e d … j u s t t h e g r u e s o m e t r u t hISSUE 032, January 16-31, 2011

By RAcHEL MuTHOnI

Despite being at an Internally Displaced People’s Camp at Kikopey along Nakuru-Nairobi high-way, Monica Waithera was optimistic that her pregnancy challenges would not hinder her from safely delivering a healthy baby, hopefully a boy.

She started experiencing labour pains on August 26, but did not go to the nearby Gilgil District Hospital until the pains had intensi-fied.

“I wanted to avoid paying any admission fee at the hospital. I just wanted to get there, de-liver and go home, this way I would only pay KSh1500,” says Waithera.

When the labour pains intensified, her hus-band with the help of neighbours rushed her to Gilgil Hospital. However, after being examined, the doctors did not have good news for her. They said her baby was already tired in the womb due to prolonged labour. Waithera, a mother of one was referred to the more advanced Naivasha District Hospital where doctors recommended an urgent Caesarean Section.

GriefLuckily, she delivered as staff members at

the hospital were preparing to take her to the theatre.

“But my baby was born dead, I feel so much pain,” says Waithera. Had she not walked for an approximated two kilometres to get to the main road where she would take a matatu to hospi-tal, Waithera believes the infant would not have tired.

Had there also been professional health ex-perts at the IDP camp, she would have been at-tended to in time and would be cuddling her baby rather than mourning her loss.

At a tent near Waithera’s in the same camp, Milka Waceke receives counselling from an of-

ficer who works with the Ministry of Special Projects. Waceke vividly remembers the night of March 13, 2010, when at 10pm her labour became intense. She had the pains for the better part of the day but could not access transport to hospital and waited for her husband to return from where he was working as a casual mason.

“He was not lucky to be paid on that day and we had nothing,” says Waceke, 23. Though she had been advised to be seeing the doctor after every two weeks at Gilgil Hospital, Waceke could not afford the KSh40 she needed to com-mute to the hospital every fortnight.

TragedyFor her to use a taxi, Waceke would need

KSh600 for trip, an amount that was too high for her pocket. “When using a matatu, I would have to walk for two kilometres to the main road yet the doctor had recommended a total bed rest for me,” said Waceke.

When she went into labour, Waceke in the company of other IDPs braved a walk in the dark towards the main road. However, her condition did not allow her to walk that far. She sought to deliver at a neighbour’s tent, despite the poor lighting and lack of professional health care.

“Immediately after delivering I went uncon-scious. When I woke up, I was on a hospital bed, weak but eager to know if I had finally mothered a baby girl,” said Waceke, a mother of two boys. Though she had delivered a live baby, Waceke said the placenta was still stuck within and she had to be rushed to hospital by her neighbours. She was to later be informed that her baby died almost immediately after birth.

“What pains me most is that I never even saw my daughter’s body. I yearned to have a baby girl,” says Waceke as tears flowed from her eyes.

Though she believes that getting another baby girl would wipe her tears, Waceke swears

that she would not consider having one while still in the camp.

“There are enough problems here already, food is scarce and housing is poor, there is no medical expert here. I can only get another baby if the Government fulfils its promise to resettle us,” says Waceke.

Inaccessibility to health care is one of the many problems internally displaced women in camps are experiencing. This even after the promulgation of the new Constitution in which the Bill of Rights states that everyone is entitled to professional health care among other basic needs. Article 43 which speaks of economic and social rights says in clause 1 (a) says: Every person has the right to the highest attainable standard of health, which includes the right to health care services including reproductive health care.”

The women have been living in the camp since the post election violence of 2007. Despite promises by the Government that they will be

settled on alternative land, three years down the line nothing has been forthcoming.

Lack of medical facilities makes it difficult especially for maternal health care. Unlike in other camps where women depend on Tradi-tional Birth Attendants, those at Gilgil camp do not have a single doctor to attend to them and this has led to many of them losing their chil-dren during birth.

“We plead to the Government and well wish-ers to assist in having a medical expert based here. I also got a baby in the camp but was lucky we both survived,” says Ms Esther Ngunjiri, the camp chairlady. She says some women were too traumatized and prefer to put on hold bearing children than risk giving birth in the camp.

Isiolo residents seek peace and security

NEMA to prosecute over poor effluent discharge

By ERIc MuTAI

The National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) has begun inspecting water service provid-ers, agro-based factories and hospitals in Eastern Province which lack proper waste disposal services with an intention of taking them to court.

Flower farms, hotels and institutions of higher learning are also being targeted as they have not ap-plied for licenses to discharge their wastes which find their way into the natural water bodies.

The Eastern Provincial NEMA director, Mr Stephen Njoka told the Reject that most of these enterprises are causing environmental degradation and are also a risk to human beings and livestock.

“Most of these companies have not applied for the effluent discharge and waste management licenses with us and they are discharging the waste which has not been properly treated into natural water bodies and it has become a health risk,” said Njoka.

NEMA ensures that waste is treated before being discharged into rivers. Most facilities in the province have not been licensed and are illegally releasing the waste into small outlets that eventually drain into riv-ers.

The problem has been compounded by the dry spell and that with the onset of the rains, the problem would become worse as the lands will be washed and all the waste will find its way into the rivers.

Only the Meru Water and Sewerage Company has

been licensed as other water service providers have not sought the permit.

NEMA officials found that the Embu Water and Sewerage Company not using the appropriate meas-ures.

In Shauri Moyo Estate the officials found sewage waste from the municipal market draining into the estate.

“The water service provider is supposed to ensure that the water they provide is treated before it is re-leased but the service provider has not come to us and we are going to take measures to curb this problem,” said Njoka.

He said water providers should know how their cli-ent will use the water and how it is discharged after use.

At the Nkubu market in Imenti South district Meru County, the water used by the residents has been draining into rivers. Most hospitals do not have incin-erators to burn their waste completely and the half burnt hospital waste is also finding its way into rivers.

“Incinerators burn at 1,200 degrees centigrade but what most hospitals have do not go above 300 degrees and this means that their wastes are not completely burnt,” Njoka said. He added: “The ashes are washed into the rivers causing an environmental disaster.”

Effluent discharge licenses cost KSh100,000 and are renewed yearly with the waste management li-censes costing KSh40,000.

Fear stalks IDP camps as mothers

lose babies

By HuSSEIn DIDO

Communities residing along Isiolo-Garba-Tulla highway have resolved to help the Government stem banditry and rustling in the area.

Political, religious, business commu-nity, elders as well as women and youth leaders held a lengthy meeting with the provincial administration that included the district security and intelligence committee led by area District Commis-sioner, Mr James Mwaura.

The community spelt out areas in which they were discriminated against and the wrong accusations of taking part in banditry and rustling activities which had seen loss of innocent life especially along the Isiolo-Garbatulla highway.

However, they lauded the Govern-ment for being neutral in carrying out security role in the area despite the blame games shrouding the cosmo-politan town.

The community resolved that they would help security agents by exposing those suspected of possessing illegal firearms among them and criminals

who pretend to members of the com-munity.

Mwaura said that all communities in the district should be responsible for en-suring all the residents were peaceful by being merciless with their kinsmen who were criminals.

He assured area residents of govern-ment security as they go about their busi-nesses but warned rumour mongers who incited people to violence.

“When hunting down criminals the Government does not pursue their tribal tag but goes after individuals,” Mwaura said.

He promised to explore the possibil-ity of collaborating with the Igembe DC to set up a police post at Shab, which is a banditry prone spot.

“We will also use sniffer dogs to trace bandits after an attack has oc-curred,” explained Mwaura.

He added: “I plead with this com-munity to cooperate with the adminis-tration by using dialogue as a way of set-tling disputes and give intelligence tips on insecurity.”

Milka Waceke (right), receives counselling from Elizabeth Mwarangu of Ministry of Special Projects.

Waceke lost her child while giving birth because she could not access professional health care

immediately. Inset: Monica Waithera, also an IDP in Gilgil stands outside her tent. She also lost her

child due to lack of immediate skilled health care; Pictures: Rachel Muthoni


By BEnDARO TSuMA

Kaya Fungo, the biggest kaya (sacred home) of the Mijikenda community of Coast Province has taken bold steps towards fostering unity not only among its members but across Kenyan commu-nities.

Kaya Fungo situated some 15km to the South of Kaloleni town houses the Giriama community, the biggest of the nine Mijikenda tribes. It draws elders from the three key corners of the commu-nity — Weruni, Galana and Godoma — and is arguably the most prominent and most vibrant of all the kayas.

Other kayas among the nine tribes with a common ancestor, culture and traditions, lan-guages, food and lifestyles are found within the other tribes.

Kaya Mtswakara, Kaya Bombo, Kaya Kauma, Kaya Jibana, Kaya Duruma - are the other kayas found among the other eight tribes that include the Duruma and Digo found in the South, Kau-ma, Kambe, Rabai, Chonyi, Ribe and Jibana.

Kaya is a Mijikenda word meaning home. Ka-yas are secured homes formed around the 14th Century when the nine Mijikenda tribes reached their present sites in a major immigration from the North at a place called Shungwaya.

They were driven southwards by hostile Cus-hitic and militant tribes of the Somali decency from their Shungwaya common home.

As they scattered according to tribes to set-tle at their present places, they built these homes (Kayas) which were normally within thick forests for protection from enemies and intruders.

Inside the homes (Kayas also called Midzi) were internal governments that kept law and order for each of the Chenda (meaning nine) tribes.

The managers of these homes were elders with

vast experience, social standing, integrity and who commanded high respect. They were divided into two groups.

There were the Vaya who were basically the rulers or adminis-trators of the community in the Kaya and the Gohu who were spiritual leaders. Members of the two groups formed the Kambi (or council of elders).

This council was so powerful, their word was a commandment, like the Ten Commandments giv-en to Moses by God on Mt Sinai.

“The community could not do a thing not approved by the coun-cil, such as cutting down a big tree in one’s own shamba,” says one resident.

Council’s work The council gave direction to

the community for everything, prayed for rain, war, or predicted catastrophes, protected the envi-ronment and gave advice. They in-tervened in all major disputes and partook in all spheres of life of the community.

Even today among the politi-cal leadership in the country the opinion of the kayas has been a key determinant of what direction the Coastal people will take.

The kaya position is revered. For one to qualify as a Gohu (high priests and spiritual leaders), one had to undergo a series of rituals performed and supervised by the most senior elder, everything conforming to the community’s practices.

The Gohu are particularly feared as they

wielded a lot of power. They presided over com-munity spiritual rites and prayers. They com-missioned trees after which spirits entered those special trees which were later curved as Vigango to represent departed senior or prominent com-munity members.

One clan of the Mijikenda community who mostly formed the Gohu (Amwangowa) wielded much power. They set a special small bush within

the Kayas which was out of bounce for non-clan members. Not even an animal or bird could ven-ture there. Doing so resulted in instant death. This particular bush is called Furudai. A Furudai still exists in Kaya Fungo.

The Gohu could bar a family from farming in a particular shamba by erecting a “Kaha” (a kind of throne or turbine made of grass, like the thorn one Jesus was dressed with round his head) at the

entrance of the shamba.Gohu members could not commit adultery

as doing so resulted in death. If a community member committed adultery or beat his wife, they had powers to withdraw the woman until the husband paid a fine and assured community he would never repeat the beating (unless the woman was obviously on the wrong). They could banish a member from a clan or the community.

They monitored the weather and had to give spe-cial permission before a man could fell a big tree in his shamba.

All the Mijikenda tribes had similar practices with only slight differences from one group to another.

Women also played a major role and had their own hierarchies and positions which governed women issues. But traditionally, like in all Afri-

can communities, women took the backseat in major community decisions. They were not given any place in the Council of Elders. Wom-en were also seen as “outsiders” since they were considered to have been married or come from other communities.

Today the kaya play a big role in fostering peace among communities. They are offering advice to elders from various other communi-ties that approach them. The Secretary, Ma-lindi District Cultural Association (Madica) Mr Joseph Karisa Mwarandu who has been at the forefront promoting culture for peace, says where politics has failed, culture can bring strong unity among Kenya’s tribes.

Madica has been existence for several years mainly promoting the works of the Giriama heroine Mekatilili wa Menza who fought the British colonizers and cementing her recogni-tion among Kenya’s freedom fighters.

“We believe that through cultural integra-tion, we can bring greater and real cohesion among Kenyans. We can for ever avoid ugly scenes like those witnessed in the 2007-2008 political violence,” he says.

Mwarandu who has been at the centre of annual celebrations of Mekatilili wa Menza says consultations are on-going among all the nine Mijikenda tribes.

Unity“We are talking with kaya elders from the

other Mijikenda tribes. Our aim is to foster a strong unity. After that, we shall go out to other Kenyan tribes. We have already started this,” he explains.

Already, elders from the Taita, Kamba, Kikuyu, Meru, Maasai and several other Kenyan tribes have come to Malindi to take part in the Mekatilili wa Menza annual cultural festivals.

“The renewed zeal about the kaya activities, apart from being a vehicle for unity, is to empow-er the members economically,” says Mwarandu.

Through their efforts, Kaya Fungo and others have been gazetted as World Heritage sites by the United Nations thus qualifying them for global funding.

“We want to promote culture for economics so that local people can be empowered. When researchers, tourists or other interest groups visit all the proceeds should benefit the local person,” reiterates Mwarandu. There are also efforts to enhance environmental conservation. Before the kaya activities became strong a few years ago, they were threatened by illegal logging, charcoal burning and general de-forestation for farming and settlement.

Curbing destruction“Through legislation, we have managed to curb

part of the destruction. The elders and local com-munity now take care of the holy forests. But they must benefit by doing so,” says Mwarandu.

The National Museums of Kenya recognises the efforts and has offered to look for donors to assist in the Kaya conservation efforts.

Speaking during a recent Mekatilili wa Menza celebration at Bungale, Sites and Monuments Of-ficer Mr Jimbi Katana says: “We want to partner with the local community where we can bring do-nors around while they do the conservation.”

As of now, it is obvious that efforts to revive the Kaya activities and their objectives are bear-ing fruit.

The Kaya have also gone into other activities that are changing their image and these include engaging in income generating activities. These they are doing for sustainability and to make them self reliant financially.

Bringing peace and unity through sacred homes

By BERnADO TSuMA

A great woman who made history and re-mains an icon in her community, Mekatilili wa Menza is remembered for being the only Giriama to have led her community against the British colonials.

Her story, as given by the Malindi Dis-trict Cultural Association (Madica) Sec-retary, Mr Joseph Karisa Mwarandu as well as history books and materials show that Mekatilili single handedly fought the mighty British. Through this she gained prominence as the mother of independence struggle in Kenya.

Mekatilili wa Menza was the only girl in a family of four boys. She was born around 1840 — exact date is not known — at Mtsara wa Tsatsu Village, Godoma Location, Ganze Division, Kilifi County.

As a young girl, she and her brother Kithi wa Menza one day visited Mtsanganyiko, a slave trade centre along the Indian Ocean in Matsangoni.

Mwarandu says: “There an unusual thing happened. Her brother was suddenly cap-tured by the Arab slave masters and he dis-appeared never to be seen again.”

That was the turning point in Mekatilili’s life. She developed a passionate hatred for all white-skinned people and would never for-

give them, Mwarandu narrated at Kayafun-go last week.

Mekatilili wa Menza later got married in Bungale area in the current Magarini Dis-trict to Mzee Mlewa Dyeka. She bore chil-dren and lived like any other rural Giriama woman, but her burning desire for major-ity self rule did not subside. Which is why when the British came in 1900, Mekatilili wa Menza rose up and fought them, almost single-handedly.

LandThe British had reason to be hated by

even other local people. They came and chose the most fertile land where the Giria-ma community lived along River Sabaki and took it for themselves.

“They forced the Giriamas further in-land to the drier areas as they grabbed fer-tile land. They also imposed laws banning them from tapping of palm wine (mnazi). Further, they begun to recruit the young stronger Giriama youth to fight their war with the Germans during the World War I,” explains Mwarandu.

The British also introduced cotton, rub-ber and sisal farming along the river and captured the local youth to work as labour-ers in the plantations, further heightening

the hatred by local people. Mekatilili could not stand this. She or-

ganised several men and challenged the British authority to the amazement of the foreign governors. They had not antici-pated opposition coming from a woman.

One day in 1913 at Chakama village in Malindi, the British governor (District Officer) at the time Mr Arthur Champion held a big rally to warn the community of dire consequences should anyone go against orders of Her Majesty the Queen of England. He also said they were going to recruit more Giriama men to fight the British war.

Mekatilili was present. She had car-ried to the meeting a hen with its brood of chicks. As Champion kicked off the recruitment exercise, she came forward, determined and fearless bringing the en-tire meeting to a standstill.

“I want you to catch one of these chicks,” she told the governor. And when he did, the mother hen jumped onto his face and attacked him.

“As you have witnessed the mother hen attacking you because you touched one of her chicks, so will we do the same if you dare touch one of these young men,” she told the governor.

Chaos and pandemonium broke out

immediately. Champion shot dead the mother hen as his askaris shot severally in the air to disperse the crowd.

Everybody fled, Mekatilili and one Mr Mwadori wa Kola, were the only two left facing the governor. They were instantly arrested and whisked away before being taken to a detention camp in Kisii.

However, they were not to stay in jail for long. The two, in mysterious way that has never been explained, escaped from jail and walked back to the Coast to con-tinue the struggle.

They were soon re-arrested and taken back to Kisii but escaped a second time and walked back to their people.

Mekatilili was re-arrested and jailed in Kiunga area, North Coast. However, when the World War fizzled out in 1914 and with her advancing age, she was set free.

She died in Bungale area around 1920 having accomplished a worthy struggle at the age of about 80 years, marking Kenya’s first ever freedom struggle long before the Mau Mau uprising in about 1940.

The great Mekatilili wa MenzaHeroine of the liberation struggle

From left: Kaya spiritual leader Katana Kalulu (centre) sits with other elders.Picture: Kigondu Ndavano


By BEnDARO TSuMA

Kaya Fungo, the biggest kaya (sacred home) of the Mijikenda community of Coast Province has taken bold steps towards fostering unity not only among its members but across Kenyan commu-nities.

Kaya Fungo situated some 15km to the South of Kaloleni town houses the Giriama community, the biggest of the nine Mijikenda tribes. It draws elders from the three key corners of the commu-nity — Weruni, Galana and Godoma — and is arguably the most prominent and most vibrant of all the kayas.

Other kayas among the nine tribes with a common ancestor, culture and traditions, lan-guages, food and lifestyles are found within the other tribes.

Kaya Mtswakara, Kaya Bombo, Kaya Kauma, Kaya Jibana, Kaya Duruma - are the other kayas found among the other eight tribes that include the Duruma and Digo found in the South, Kau-ma, Kambe, Rabai, Chonyi, Ribe and Jibana.

Kaya is a Mijikenda word meaning home. Ka-yas are secured homes formed around the 14th Century when the nine Mijikenda tribes reached their present sites in a major immigration from the North at a place called Shungwaya.

They were driven southwards by hostile Cus-hitic and militant tribes of the Somali decency from their Shungwaya common home.

As they scattered according to tribes to set-tle at their present places, they built these homes (Kayas) which were normally within thick forests for protection from enemies and intruders.

Inside the homes (Kayas also called Midzi) were internal governments that kept law and order for each of the Chenda (meaning nine) tribes.

The managers of these homes were elders with

vast experience, social standing, integrity and who commanded high respect. They were divided into two groups.

There were the Vaya who were basically the rulers or adminis-trators of the community in the Kaya and the Gohu who were spiritual leaders. Members of the two groups formed the Kambi (or council of elders).

This council was so powerful, their word was a commandment, like the Ten Commandments giv-en to Moses by God on Mt Sinai.

“The community could not do a thing not approved by the coun-cil, such as cutting down a big tree in one’s own shamba,” says one resident.

Council’s work The council gave direction to

the community for everything, prayed for rain, war, or predicted catastrophes, protected the envi-ronment and gave advice. They in-tervened in all major disputes and partook in all spheres of life of the community.

Even today among the politi-cal leadership in the country the opinion of the kayas has been a key determinant of what direction the Coastal people will take.

The kaya position is revered. For one to qualify as a Gohu (high priests and spiritual leaders), one had to undergo a series of rituals performed and supervised by the most senior elder, everything conforming to the community’s practices.

The Gohu are particularly feared as they

wielded a lot of power. They presided over com-munity spiritual rites and prayers. They com-missioned trees after which spirits entered those special trees which were later curved as Vigango to represent departed senior or prominent com-munity members.

One clan of the Mijikenda community who mostly formed the Gohu (Amwangowa) wielded much power. They set a special small bush within

the Kayas which was out of bounce for non-clan members. Not even an animal or bird could ven-ture there. Doing so resulted in instant death. This particular bush is called Furudai. A Furudai still exists in Kaya Fungo.

The Gohu could bar a family from farming in a particular shamba by erecting a “Kaha” (a kind of throne or turbine made of grass, like the thorn one Jesus was dressed with round his head) at the

entrance of the shamba.Gohu members could not commit adultery

as doing so resulted in death. If a community member committed adultery or beat his wife, they had powers to withdraw the woman until the husband paid a fine and assured community he would never repeat the beating (unless the woman was obviously on the wrong). They could banish a member from a clan or the community.

They monitored the weather and had to give spe-cial permission before a man could fell a big tree in his shamba.

All the Mijikenda tribes had similar practices with only slight differences from one group to another.

Women also played a major role and had their own hierarchies and positions which governed women issues. But traditionally, like in all Afri-

can communities, women took the backseat in major community decisions. They were not given any place in the Council of Elders. Wom-en were also seen as “outsiders” since they were considered to have been married or come from other communities.

Today the kaya play a big role in fostering peace among communities. They are offering advice to elders from various other communi-ties that approach them. The Secretary, Ma-lindi District Cultural Association (Madica) Mr Joseph Karisa Mwarandu who has been at the forefront promoting culture for peace, says where politics has failed, culture can bring strong unity among Kenya’s tribes.

Madica has been existence for several years mainly promoting the works of the Giriama heroine Mekatilili wa Menza who fought the British colonizers and cementing her recogni-tion among Kenya’s freedom fighters.

“We believe that through cultural integra-tion, we can bring greater and real cohesion among Kenyans. We can for ever avoid ugly scenes like those witnessed in the 2007-2008 political violence,” he says.

Mwarandu who has been at the centre of annual celebrations of Mekatilili wa Menza says consultations are on-going among all the nine Mijikenda tribes.

Unity“We are talking with kaya elders from the

other Mijikenda tribes. Our aim is to foster a strong unity. After that, we shall go out to other Kenyan tribes. We have already started this,” he explains.

Already, elders from the Taita, Kamba, Kikuyu, Meru, Maasai and several other Kenyan tribes have come to Malindi to take part in the Mekatilili wa Menza annual cultural festivals.

“The renewed zeal about the kaya activities, apart from being a vehicle for unity, is to empow-er the members economically,” says Mwarandu.

Through their efforts, Kaya Fungo and others have been gazetted as World Heritage sites by the United Nations thus qualifying them for global funding.

“We want to promote culture for economics so that local people can be empowered. When researchers, tourists or other interest groups visit all the proceeds should benefit the local person,” reiterates Mwarandu. There are also efforts to enhance environmental conservation. Before the kaya activities became strong a few years ago, they were threatened by illegal logging, charcoal burning and general de-forestation for farming and settlement.

Curbing destruction“Through legislation, we have managed to curb

part of the destruction. The elders and local com-munity now take care of the holy forests. But they must benefit by doing so,” says Mwarandu.

The National Museums of Kenya recognises the efforts and has offered to look for donors to assist in the Kaya conservation efforts.

Speaking during a recent Mekatilili wa Menza celebration at Bungale, Sites and Monuments Of-ficer Mr Jimbi Katana says: “We want to partner with the local community where we can bring do-nors around while they do the conservation.”

As of now, it is obvious that efforts to revive the Kaya activities and their objectives are bear-ing fruit.

The Kaya have also gone into other activities that are changing their image and these include engaging in income generating activities. These they are doing for sustainability and to make them self reliant financially.

Bringing peace and unity through sacred homes

Remembering Mekatilili

By BERnADO TSuMA

A great woman who made history and re-mains an icon in her community, Mekatilili wa Menza is remembered for being the only Giriama to have led her community against the British colonials.

Her story, as given by the Malindi Dis-trict Cultural Association (Madica) Sec-retary, Mr Joseph Karisa Mwarandu as well as history books and materials show that Mekatilili single handedly fought the mighty British. Through this she gained prominence as the mother of independence struggle in Kenya.

Mekatilili wa Menza was the only girl in a family of four boys. She was born around 1840 — exact date is not known — at Mtsara wa Tsatsu Village, Godoma Location, Ganze Division, Kilifi County.

As a young girl, she and her brother Kithi wa Menza one day visited Mtsanganyiko, a slave trade centre along the Indian Ocean in Matsangoni.

Mwarandu says: “There an unusual thing happened. Her brother was suddenly cap-tured by the Arab slave masters and he dis-appeared never to be seen again.”

That was the turning point in Mekatilili’s life. She developed a passionate hatred for all white-skinned people and would never for-

give them, Mwarandu narrated at Kayafun-go last week.

Mekatilili wa Menza later got married in Bungale area in the current Magarini Dis-trict to Mzee Mlewa Dyeka. She bore chil-dren and lived like any other rural Giriama woman, but her burning desire for major-ity self rule did not subside. Which is why when the British came in 1900, Mekatilili wa Menza rose up and fought them, almost single-handedly.

LandThe British had reason to be hated by

even other local people. They came and chose the most fertile land where the Giria-ma community lived along River Sabaki and took it for themselves.

“They forced the Giriamas further in-land to the drier areas as they grabbed fer-tile land. They also imposed laws banning them from tapping of palm wine (mnazi). Further, they begun to recruit the young stronger Giriama youth to fight their war with the Germans during the World War I,” explains Mwarandu.

The British also introduced cotton, rub-ber and sisal farming along the river and captured the local youth to work as labour-ers in the plantations, further heightening

the hatred by local people. Mekatilili could not stand this. She or-

ganised several men and challenged the British authority to the amazement of the foreign governors. They had not antici-pated opposition coming from a woman.

One day in 1913 at Chakama village in Malindi, the British governor (District Officer) at the time Mr Arthur Champion held a big rally to warn the community of dire consequences should anyone go against orders of Her Majesty the Queen of England. He also said they were going to recruit more Giriama men to fight the British war.

Mekatilili was present. She had car-ried to the meeting a hen with its brood of chicks. As Champion kicked off the recruitment exercise, she came forward, determined and fearless bringing the en-tire meeting to a standstill.

“I want you to catch one of these chicks,” she told the governor. And when he did, the mother hen jumped onto his face and attacked him.

“As you have witnessed the mother hen attacking you because you touched one of her chicks, so will we do the same if you dare touch one of these young men,” she told the governor.

Chaos and pandemonium broke out

immediately. Champion shot dead the mother hen as his askaris shot severally in the air to disperse the crowd.

Everybody fled, Mekatilili and one Mr Mwadori wa Kola, were the only two left facing the governor. They were instantly arrested and whisked away before being taken to a detention camp in Kisii.

However, they were not to stay in jail for long. The two, in mysterious way that has never been explained, escaped from jail and walked back to the Coast to con-tinue the struggle.

They were soon re-arrested and taken back to Kisii but escaped a second time and walked back to their people.

Mekatilili was re-arrested and jailed in Kiunga area, North Coast. However, when the World War fizzled out in 1914 and with her advancing age, she was set free.

She died in Bungale area around 1920 having accomplished a worthy struggle at the age of about 80 years, marking Kenya’s first ever freedom struggle long before the Mau Mau uprising in about 1940.

By KIGOnDu nDAVAnO

There was dance, song, colour and pomp along the streets of the Malindi tourist resort during the unveiling of the a statue of the Mekatilili wa Menza, first freedom fighter heroine at the former Ma-lindi Uhuru Gardens now named Mekatilili Garden.

Kaya elders and members of the public took to the streets bringing business to a standstill after the statue was unveiled. This was the highlight of the yearly event when the Giriama commu-nity, led by the great Kaya elders come together in honour of Me-katilili.

The ceremony was presided over the Kaya spiritual leader Katana Kalulu and chairman of the Malindi District Cultural Asso-ciation chairman Mr Joseph Karisa Mwarandu. Ms Ruth Njoroge was also crowned as a Giriama elder in a colourful ceremony.

The dark part of the ceremony, however, was the fact that Mekatilili, the first Kenyan woman to have led the Giriama in a rebellion against the British is missing from the list of mashujaa (heroes) that was recently released by the government recently. The move to exclude Mekatilili was heavily criticised by the community.

The Giriama are a sub-group of nine groups who inhabit the Ken-yan coast. They have sacred dwelling

places known as the Kayas, located in forested areas. One of kayas, the Kaya Fungo was destroyed by the British in 1914 and today it stands in ruins. Mekatilili died in 1914 and was bur-ied in Bungale, Magarini District. Her grave has been earmarked for gazetting as a protected area. Several ceremonies in her memory are held by the graveside. The main prayers at the site are normally led by one of the most respected Kaya spiritual leaders Katana Kalulu.

During this year’s ceremony, Hawe Risa (pictured), a leading Giri-ama language poet recited a poem in praise of Mekatilili. His poem was well received at the Malindi Munici-pal Stadium.

Kaya elders emerge from performing a ritual inside Kaya Fungo. Pictures: Kigondu Ndavano

From left:Women pounding grains to

prepare a meal to mark the remembrance of

freedom hero Mekatilili wa Menza. Kaya elders take a look at a statue

of Mekatilili that was unveiled in Malindi town

last month. Pictures: Kigondu Ndavano


By MERcy MuMO

The idea to provide high level talent develop-ment in different areas of interest to the youth was started in August 2009. That same year, Jabari-Kenya, a non-profit organization was launched in December at the Sawa Sawa Res-taurant. It deals with talent development, youth empowerment and helping innovative young minds in the arts get noticed.

It engages in activities such as dance, sports, camping, community service, a book club, dra-ma, music, arts and crafts. In light of its mission of providing excellent talent development tools in a fun atmosphere while ensuring members receive excellent service in a playful, educa-tional, and safe environment, Jabari-Kenya has come a long way in its inception.

LeadershipThe organisation is headed by the Director

Ms Clara Barasa, 23, a law graduate from Cath-olic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA) who says the organisation is open to anyone inter-ested in developing their talent from as young as 12 years.

“We help young people acquire life skills by providing them with practical skills, mentorship and life coaching as well as providing a platform for their talent to be noticed,” explains the Direc-tor.

The idea of starting Jabari-Kenya came to Barasa during her attachment at the Kiambu Law Courts. This was from April to July 2009.

“I had the urge to learn how to dance, play the guitar and even yoga all at once. The prob-lem with this was that I could not get all these activities in one location and had to move about to access them,” says Barasa.

The costs were not so friendly either limiting her to only one activity. As such, she thought of having activities that are of interest to the youth in one location and having them at affordable rates. This resulted in the formation of Jabari-Kenya. At first, members would meet at a hall in the Pangani area for the sessions. Jabari-Kenya had to pay for the space per hour, pay the in-structors and also buy the necessary equipment for the activities.

She felt the need to have a permanent place where they could meet for activities without having to pay so much. After a long search, she finally settled on 110 Hardy Manor in Karen. People were always at her house for one activ-ity or another. It was then that Barasa decided to open the doors of her house for Jabari-Kenya ac-tivities. “The environment here is quiet, secluded and serene for our activities,” she says.

The idea behind Jabari-Kenya is that it en-courages the use of free time for positive ac-tivities for one’s development especially when schools are closed in April, August and Decem-ber. The stipulated working days are Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

The team meets weekly to map out the tasks for each week. Most activities are conducted during weekends due to availability and flex-ibility of the trainers. It is now run by a five member committee.

Jabari-Kenya provides training for up-com-ing dancers. In order to bring about the best of dance in the members, the programme is divided into three sessions that include aero-bics, yoga and dance. Lessons are conducted by trained instructors.

The yoga instructor who is an acrobat con-ducts a yoga session in one and a half hours at KSh200 per person. Aerobics and dance ses-sions go for KSh100 per person. Each session lasts one hour. For the three activities, a stand-ard fee of KSh400 is charged. Most of those who attend the sessions are high school and univer-sity students.

“In August 2010, Jabari-Kenya worked with Movers Foundation in a dance competition

dubbed ‘Rep the Floor.’ The win-ner walked away with KSh80,000 of which 30 percent went to Bishop Opera Luigi Locati Children’s Home in Zimmerman,” explains Barasa.

The group also runs a rotational book club where members donate novels and magazines. Jabari-Kenya keeps possession of the books while members retain ownership. One of their members is a published writer and plans are underway of reading and discussing her book in the club. “In the mean time, we are receiv-ing books. We have 65 novels and FIDA-Kenya recently donated 150 books as resource material in support of the book club,” says Barasa.

Currently the group has 38 registered mem-bers, 20 of these members are active and com-mitted. In February last year, Jabari Kenya was engaged in clean up activities. It also visited children homes such as Good Samaritan in Kay-ole where they spent a day and Mama Tunza in Ngong where, for a week they helped in cooking, cleaning and taking care of the children.

“A residential approach is more practical for us because we found it more appealing to spend time with the children rather than bring-ing good tidings for a day then forgetting about them,” explains Barasa.

There are two mentors for each programme, one older and another younger. The older ones bring in their wealth of experience and the younger one bridges the gap between the older ones and provides insight on current require-ments in campus. Training for Jabari-Kenya mentors is provided by Ande Kenya. “It’s quite a challenge working with the older mentors be-cause we have to work around their tight sched-ules,” says Barasa.

An annual registration fee of KSh1,000 is paid by members. Since the members are most-ly students, they are allowed to pay the fee in instalments. “We hope to get funding from the Ministry of Youth and Sports Affairs to run our various programmes,” she explains.

The group is also involved in promoting young entrepreneurs in the production of art-work and jewellery. Howard Okiror started sell-ing baskets with a kikoi cover. His artwork was displayed on the Jabari-Kenya website for mar-keting. He has now expanded his business and owns a stall in the central business district.

Stephen Mutua, 22, a computer science graduate also from CUEA is a Jabari-Kenya member and a member of the committee. He is also responsible for maintenance and updat-ing and the Jabari-Kenya website. Information

and Technology is a strong marketing tool that Jabari-Kenya makes good use of.

“We have a Facebook group and fan page, a Twitter and You Tube account where we adver-tise the organisation, market our services and our entrepreneurs’ products,” explains Mutua.

He adds: “We also rely on our website, www.jabari-kenya.org, which is rated at 55 percent according to www.websitegrader.com . We are working on getting it to a 100 percent.”

Like any other organisation, Jabari-Kenya has certain challenges. Rent is covered using pocket money which they save up. Running costs such as electricity and water are also in-curred. Commitment and participation from the members especially those in the Diaspora is also a challenge.

“Our website receives traffic from all over the world. We have a radio presenter in Uganda and a social worker in Nigeria who have ex-pressed interest to actively participate in this initiative but geography does not permit them,” says Barasa.

Funding is also a challenge in terms of get-ting support to run activities such as camps, community service and even the arts. They try to engage companies and other organisations in their activities but bureaucracy is a major hin-drance.

“People always respond positively to the idea, however we get some criticism consider-ing most of the members are my college mates. The initiative is considered a bourgeoisie kind of thing, it being a private university. ” says Barasa.

She admits it is a Catholic University initia-tive as it was borne during her time there and most of the founding members came from there. “We would not mind being hosted and allowed to carry out our activities at the institu-tion,” she says.

She encourages young people to engage in positive activities that build them morally, physically and intellectually.

Nurturing talent takes centre stage at Jabari

From left:Members Sheba Awuor and Judith Kivuti assist young ones with their reading at Mama

Tunza children’s home in ngong. Howard Okiror displays bags for sale at his shop in town. Members

during a clean up exercise at Pangani last year. Pictures: courtesy Jabari

“People always respond positively to the idea, however we get some

criticism considering most of the members are my

college mates. The initiative is considered a bourgeoisie

kind of thing, it being a private university. ”

— Clara Barasa.


By nZInGA MuASyA

Disabled persons are likely to be found hud-dled at a strategic position in the streets, bowls in their hands with gloomy faces soliciting for alms. Some frown at them while a few sympa-thetic passersby drop a few coins and saunter off, content that in their little way they have helped.

However, a group of disabled people in Ki-tui have formed a self help group to help man-age their livelihood, effectively shaking off the myth that disabled people are serial beggars.

Started in early 2009, Kyeni Self Help Group brings together people of both gender with various disabilities as well as their guard-ians. The group which is based at Isovya Vil-lage, Tungutu Location is baking scones, bread and cakes which they sell in the local markets to generate income.

Improvised ovensThe group bakes about five trays of scones

and 40 loaves of bread every day using tradi-tional ovens made of clay and covered with iron sheets to contain the heat. Pieces of wood are arranged inside the oven where the prod-ucts are placed.

It takes between 20-30 minutes for the products to bake until they are deliciously brown, depending on the heat in the oven. When ready, they are removed and packed in clean polythene papers ready for sale.

This group does not have the conventional modern day oven that would be found in a bakery. Their improvised oven has a capacity to produce five trays of scones and 10 loaves of bread in 30 minutes. One tray produces 35 pieces of scones. Currently the group is nego-tiating with several local schools as a strategy to expand market for their products.

“People have known our business and we get customers every morning. The surplus is sold in the nearby shopping centres including Kitui town,” says Mrs Mary Mbula, chairper-son of the group.

MembershipThough not disabled herself, Mbula is the

mother of a 27 year old girl who is physically challenged after suffering a stroke.

So far the group has been able to sustain itself due to the steady flow of customers. Its members are as young as two years old and in-clude the youth as well as older men and wom-en who are in their 60s. They all suffer various forms of disabilities ranging from physical, hearing, sight, epilepsy and mental illnesses. There are also guardians whose suffer cerebral palsy and autism.

“As long as somebody is disabled, they are eligible to join us. Although there is a mem-bership fee to be paid, it is not a hindrance because the idea is to have the disabled in the group,” explains Mbula. She adds: “We want to empower as many disabled people as possible so that they can be independent.”

Challenges The vice chairperson of the group, Mrs

Elizabeth Ngesu, who has an autistic child re-members the many challenges the group faced in its initial stages as people made all manner of negative comments. However, their resil-ience made them persist and today they can count their blessings.

“We started with about seven people, those with disabilities and guardians of disabled people. People thought we were doomed and would not go far. They laughed at us saying we were trying to attract the sympathy of various organisations,” says Ngesu.

Not everybody with a challenged child was willing to join the group as some guardians refused to enlist their disabled relatives prefer-ring to instead hide them from the public.

“Some wanted to hide their disabled rela-tives, others said they were able to take care

of them and did not want them to be bandied around as beggars. There were all sorts of mis-conceptions,” explains Ngesu.

However, as time went by people started seeing the results of the group and even those who were initially sceptical started to join. So far the group has 32 disabled members and 32 guardians of disabled per-sons. Members are drawn from three neighbouring locations of Kyangithya West, Mulango and Tungutu who benefit from the proceeds of the project.

The group has a manual with baking in-structions which they got from the National Council for Persons With Disabilities (NCP-WD). The manual details how the ingredients are mixed until the final product is reached. Members meet every Wednesday and hold two classes divided into theory and practical component.

SkillsThey are trained by Mr Francis Muthui,

a physically-disabled outreach person with NCPWD who takes them through the proc-esses until every detail is grasped. Those who cannot attend the lessons because of the extent of their disabilities are represented by rela-tives.

Muthui learnt baking skills at a workshop organised by NCPWD from where he was awarded a certificate as a trainer.

Muthui who holds a degree in civil engi-neering from Canada had earlier worked with several motor companies in Nairobi until he felt he needed to work with fellow disabled people to uplift their standards of living.

He quit his job and joined an association of disabled persons in Kitui where he became their spokesman. Through the organisation Muthui has enjoyed the training workshops organized by NCPWD where he has learnt various skills, among them baking.

He once worked with Elliots Bakeries and Trufoods both of which are located in Nairobi. He uses the experience from the two compa-nies to train the group.

“With the right facilities and support from well wishers, this group can employ about 12,000 disabled people thus reducing depend-ency in the society,” says Muthui.

He has injected energy in the group and has trained them on a cottage industry that has led to establishment of the village bakery. They are now looking for financial support to

get a central place and expand their business. This will create more jobs for the disabled.

“We want to move from the village to a centre like Kitui town. With modern facilities our business will grow and give us a steady income. Even though we may be disabled, we have capabilities and do not want to depend on others for small mercies,” asserts Muthui.

With his manuals, Muthui is also training the group on how to make shoe polish using re-cycled materials from dry battery cells, cooking fat, avocados, candle wax and colouring.

This product, however, is in its initial stages and it is only a matter of time before they go full blast into selling locally made and afford-able shoe polish.

Muthui also uses the meetings to sensitise the members on the provisions of the Disabili-ties Act (2003)

The success in baking has seen their fame spread attracting the attention of the area DC, Mr Joshua Chepchieng’ who visited them to witness first hand their enterprise.

The DC who even had a taste of their prod-ucts commented the group for their work say-ing it was something to be emulated by other disabled people in the country.

Vision 2030“Clearly you are working towards achieve-

ment of Vision 2030 that has the goal to expand middle industries in this country. You should not feel inferior because though disabled you have the ability,” reiterated Chepchieng’.

He promised to support to the group in ex-panding their business so that many people can benefit from it. The self help group is registered with the registrar of societies and has a bank ac-count where they accumulate their savings. The proceeds are ploughed back into the group’s business and for the upkeep of the members.

“We don’t want to be a burden to other people by depending on handouts and their sympathy. With our skills we can improve our economic wellbeing,” says Ms Katuma Mutio, who is disabled.

Disabled find their feet through bakery

“With the right facilities and support from well wishers,

this group can employ about 12,000 disabled people thus reducing dependency in the

society.” — Mr Francis Muthui.

Members of the Kyeni Self Help Group baking scones which they sell. The group is made of disabled persons and guardians to those who are physically challenged. The bakery is one project that is helping

them towards financial independence. Pictures: Nzinga Muasya


Kenyans feeding on germsSchools and places of work have the highest disease causing micro-organisms

By HEnRy OWInO

Next time you want to grab a bite while seated at your office desk think of the various species of bacteria lurking around. You could pick over 200 species of bacteria lurking on your key-board and mouse including some faecal related bacteria.

Think of roadside foods eaten as take away such as roast maize and chips as well as roast potatoes among other foods. These are kept under high temperatures not to mention the customer’s unwashed hands and those of the seller who also doubles as the cashier.

This is because different species of bacte-ria can be found on a keyboard compared to the toilet. A mouse can contain around 1,676 counts, while the same area on the keyboard will host around 3,300 counts. Think about the doors handles, padlocks, keys, switches, sock-ets, photocopiers . . . the list is endless.

SurveyAs Kenyans go back to school and work

after the festive season, the research suggests that they may have to change their eating hab-its.

These came out of a pilot survey which revealed that schools and places of work are among the environments that have the highest disease-causing micro-organisms.

The survey was carried out on 119 peo-ple in various settings, including schools and restaurants involving kindergarten children, primary schools pupils, restaurants, garden-ers, laboratory staff and food handlers in both low-cost and high-cost hotels.

The research showed that office and school settings have the highest levels of microbial exposure on different surfaces with the hands of children and workers showing various lev-els of contamination.

The survey was carried out by Prof Mo-hammed Karama of Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) for Lifebuoy.

Karama said: “Among the primary children surveyed, 60 percent were found to have high colonies of bacteria before washing hands. Af-ter washing hands with soap, the bacteria re-duced to negligible levels in 80 percent of the pupils. He added: “Children in kindergarten were worse off, with all of them having high bacteria counts indicating the lower the age the higher the likelihood for hand contamina-tion.”

Karama reiterated that gardeners and clean-ers did not fare much better, with 80 percent of those surveyed showing high bacteria counts before washing hands with soap. Four out of five were able to clear the bacteria load to a negligible number after washing with soap.

He said poor hand washing technique was observed among some in the groups.

“The worrying finding was that 100 percent of workers in the low-cost restaurants surveyed had high colony counts before hand washing, with 80 percent retaining high counts even af-ter washing with soap,” explained Karama.

“One likely explanation is that the restau-rant had no piped water and the water sourced from vendors was itself highly contaminated.

In addition, the workers were not trained on proper hand washing techniques,’’ said Karama who is the principal investigator at KEMRI.

“School and workplace are among the en-vironments that can covertly transmit disease –causing micro-organisms but the tendency to clean off only dirt that is visible prevents most people from observing proper hygiene practices,” explained Karama.

Bacterial countsIn an office setting, the bacterial count at

different areas would indicate that computer keyboard have 1,500 bacterial counts, pho-tocopier 1000, door knobs 1,000, computer mouse 1,000 while a well cleaned toilet seat would register 500 amongst other facilities.

The study indicates that germs that trans-mit viral illness, such as flu, can survive on various surfaces in the office for an unlimited period. At the same time, dirty cups and food crumbs left on the table present an excellent environment for the bacteria to grow and re-produce.

This is why simple measures such as hand washing will reduce ones encounter with the

germs. People need to ensure they have washed their hands using proper techniques before they eat even at their office desks, or restaurants.

“Most adults assume that their hands are clean but this is not true as they shake hands, handle dif-ferent equipment and facilities, they are much more exposed to germs,” explained Karama. Re-searchers found that hand hygiene was minimal among office work-ers and food handlers. Hands were the dirtiest among school children (44 percent) indicating that the lower the age, the higher the chances for hand contamination. Office workers were the second with 34 percent while the cleanest were food handlers 13 percent and gardeners 10 percent.

Past research showed that soap is almost universally present in households but its ac-tual use for hand-washing is considerably low-er. The problem is that soap is rarely used for

hand-washing as people rush to eat or assume their hands are clean hence they contaminate themselves.

‘’School children are more exposed to risk of hand contamination and must be taught the proper hand-washing techniques to enable them attend all their schools days. 272 million school days are lost each year worldwide due to diarrhoea and related diseases,’’ reiterated Karama.

Global hand washing day is marked every October 15 to raise awareness on hand wash-ing and cleanliness.

Executive Director: Rosemary Okello-Orlale Programme Coordinator: Wilson ugangu Editor: Jane Godia Sub-Editors: Florence Sipalla and Mercy Mumo Designer: noel Lumbama Contributors: Fred Okoth, Valerie Aseto, Rachel Muthoni, Eric Mutai, Hussein Dido,

Bendaro Tsuma, Kigondu ndavano, nzinga Muasya, Henry Owino.

Write to:

[email protected]

The paper is produced with funds from

www.mediadiversityafrica.org

A man cleans his hands under running water. Proper hand washing technique is required before contact with food.

Pictures: AWC and Henry Owino


By KIPROTIcH EDWIn

When Zaitun Hassan was confined to the Inten-sive Care Unit of Mbagathi District Hospital in early 2005, only the strongest of hearts hoped that she would come out alive. All her colleagues who had tested HIV positive had passed on and naturally many thought it was her turn.

Thanks to the stigma that was the daily life of Aids sufferers and lack of Anti Retroviral drugs, her immune system had continually deteriorat-ed. Her condition deteriorated to a point where she could not walk and had to use a wheel chair to move around. Though she had lived with the condition for close to ten years, that year her death bells seemed to be ringing.

“My hope in life was dwindling and even those close to me given up that I would survive,’’ she says. But God gave her a new lease for life and she is still alive today. She decided to use herself as an example to give hope to those living with the scourge.

Looking backAs one of the founders and directors of

Faasik, a local NGO that addresses the concerns of people living with HIV in Kenya, Zaitun says the brief brush with death was a turning point in her life because it made her listen to the inner voices of those infected.

Things took a different turn for the mother of five when her husband who was a police officer died of Aids related complications. That was in 1996. Then the stigma against the pandemic was rife, especially among the Muslim faithful.

While in Islam polygamy is accepted, Zaitun knew that her husband’s death meant she and her co-wife, who would later died in 2002 were infected.

Aids was then perceived to be a disease of people with loose moral character. The sufferers had to contend with stigmatization and rejec-tion. Even in the Nairobi City Council, where she works as a nurse, when the word reached there that she was HIV positive, things changed.

Colleagues whom she had worked with for several years discriminated against her, some-

times she was obliged to carry along her own utensils since no one wanted to ‘risk’ using a plate or spoon used by one infected with HIV.

Life was a daily trauma and many Aids survi-vors died as a result of stress related sicknesses. Even hospitals were not kind to Aids patients who were just dumped in the sick bay however serious their condition.

“Life was unbearable and I almost resigned from my job,’’ she says. It was against this back-drop that she and other like-minded colleagues founded Faasik in 2005, an NGO that aims at restoring dignity and giving value to the lives of people living with HIV/Aids.

“The organisation participates in various com-munity activities including providing relief food to the infected and those affected by the scourge in slum areas,” explains Zaitun. She adds: “We also carry out Aids awareness campaigns among communities, encourage testing and educating those infected on best nutrition practices.”

They also participate in various community activities like visiting the sick and environmen-tal cleanliness. To strengthen the spirit of com-radeship among the people it serves, the organi-sation has established peer groups where they have merry go-rounds to empower one another economically.

Operating from a small office in Eastleigh

estate in Nairobi, Zaitun has seen the organiza-tion grow and today it has support groups in Nairobi, Kisumu, Mombasa, Isiolo, Malindi and Emuhaya.

It is a life of selflessness and Zaitun has to balance time between her job, the organization and family.

“This is not an easy task especially since the organisation cannot sustain itself financially and so it seeks funding and donation from well-wish-ers and humanitarian organizations,” explains Zaitun. She adds: “It also has a tight programme of activities that require time and dedication.”

As I intercepted her for an interview, Zaitun was headed to the Saudi Arabian Embassy to seek for food donation ahead of the Ramadhan week.

In the early hours of the morning, she ensured that the counselling session had proceeded well and during the night she served her shift as a nurse at Eastleigh District Hospital’s maternity section.

TestingShe says her efforts are paying off. Already

many families especially from the Muslim com-munity have come out to be tested and have ac-cepted their condition. The organization assisted many to be put on ARVs while other cases have been advised on behavioural change.

With cooperation with other groups and or-ganisations, they have been able to create aware-ness on HIV/Aids and reduce stigmatization against people living with HIV/AIDS.

“I am proud that today those of us living with HIV can stand up and be counted just like any other person,’’ she says.

But it has not been smooth all the way, when they began the organization in 2005, convincing people to come out and get tested was not an easy task. They had to use themselves as role models, people who had lived with the virus for long and were still moving on with their lives.

Zaitun makes the best out of a positive situation

Disabled persons want more recognition

By BOnIFAcE MuLu

The Government can only serve the disabled effectively if it creates an inde-pendent ministry for the them instead of having them placed under the Special Pro-grammes Ministry.

According to the disabled people’s spokesperson things will only work well if the Government set aside funds for the disabled.

“We were in the past under the Social Services Ministry and now we fall under the Special Programmes Ministry. We need our own ministry. That deserting life within the ministries is confusing us for we do not know where we are,” said Mr Francis Muthui, who is the chairman Kitui District Disabled Persons Associa-tion.

He thanked the Government for allo-cating the disabled in the country KSh100 million in 2010.

“Many of disabled persons have been filling forms to get funding from the Government and not all of them get the funds,” said Muthui. He pleaded for offic-es to be set up in each of the 47 counties in specifically for disabled persons.

There are more than 3.1 million disa-bled persons in Kenya. The August 2009 national census 3.1 figure for the disabled in the country is not the real number.

Zaituni Hassan who is living with Aids for 15 years has come out openly about her status. Today with other colleagues they run a support group as well as a non-

government organizations that offers services to those living with Aids. Picture: Kiprotich Edwin

Aids was then perceived to be a disease of people with loose moral character. The

sufferers had to contend with stigmatization and

rejection.

School boards set to increase fees

By GILBERT OcHIEnG

Parents and Teachers Associations [PTAs] and the Board of Governors [BoGs] of various secondary schools in the Busia County have forwarded this year’s fee in-crement proposals to respective District Education Boards for approval.

A spot check carried out by Reject at various secondary schools in the Busia County recently has established that the respective school management commit-tees have been operating on a strict budg-et due to lack of adequate funds.

The secondary school principals who talked on condition of anonymity said that failure on the part of the ministry to disburse the subsidised free secondary education fund in good time has put them in an awkward situation as they are unable to meet the daily financial requirements in terms of food and other essentials. This has compelled them to depend wholly on the PTA fund which is always inadequate.

Most of the proposals that had been forwarded to the District Education Boards for approval suggested that parents should pay KSh3, 000 per student up from the current KSh2, 000. They argue that the cost of food has gone up tremendously and schools cannot operate effectively without enough funds taking into consideration the fact that the Ministry of Education has always failed to release the free secondary education funds in good time.

The Busia County Education Officer, Mr John Owino said that the District Ed-ucation Board would sit to consider the proposals and advise accordingly.

“In order to bail the secondary schools in the Busia County out of the acute bottlenecks they have been en-countering due to lack adequate funds, it is high time the ministry moved with speed to disburse the funds for the sub-sidised secondary education within good time,” said Owino.


By KIGOnDu nDAVAnO

Jane Mwikali is slightly blinded by the strong rays of the sun as she cleans a section of the beach of dry leaves and sea weeds covering what was recently a clean white sandy beach.

With pieces of timber, wood and sisal ropes she builds a small one square metre wide and two metres’ high stand with a table like section capable of holding several light items.

She is just settling down into a small makeshift stand, her daily work station at the Watamu Beach, confident that the stand is strong enough to hold her merchandise.

Mwikali first systematically opens up her large bag full of vari-ous items and starts to slowly blow off the dust from them ready for display.

As she arranges small pieces of wooden curios and ties hanging colourful kangas and kikoys on the weak wooden pillars of her stand, the sun is surely becoming hot and the beach is slowly becoming ac-tive.

From the tourist hotels’ beach outlets, groups of tourists who include women dressed in colourful swim suits and men only in shorts emerge to bask in the sand and sun.

Some are in a hurry to deep their bodies into the warm waters of the Indian Ocean per-haps for the first time in their lives. Others are attracted by the colour of the various items on display on Mwikali’s makeshift stand now already sandwiched by several other similar work stations.

Booming businessMany items are on sale to tourists and like

hundreds of people, mainly women in Ma-lindi, Watamu and Mambrui, Mwikali is ready to start her business of selling curios and arte-facts to tourists at the beach.

In the immediate neighbourhood, other beach operators in the area are busy arranging their items as the first day of this year’s high tourist season kicks off.

The beach operators have high expectations that the high tourist season will be good. Nor-mally the beach operators abandon the shore-line when tourist hotels close for the low tourist season which starts in March and ends in July each year.

“We are happy tourists have returned into the hotels and this means we can revive our small scale businesses which had collapsed when the hotels were empty,” says Mwikali.

“Economic activities have returned to vi-brancy in the various tourist zones of Malindi including Watamu, Mambrui and Mayungu with hotels recording attractive bed occupan-cies,” says Mr Isaac Rodrot, Temple Point Vil-lage Director.

Economic boostWith tourism being the pillar of the Malindi

economy, the high season means that nearly all the major business activities which had grounded to a halt resume generally “waking up the town”.

A restaurant operator, Mr Godfrey Karume indicates that within weeks since the high tourist season started, the number of revellers and diners in local drinking places and restau-rants has increased by up to 60 per cent and returns from sales have been good.

The beaches are perhaps the most vibrant

areas of business in Malindi as indicated by the activities taking place each day at the Silver-sands and Casuarina where safari sellers (trips to local tourist spots), freelance tour guides and curio traders are making good money.

“I have to admit that things are good be-cause tourists from hotels such as Tropical and Coconut villages have been pouring into the temporary curio bandas along the beach access roads to purchase many items,” notes Consolata Agutu, a stall owner near Tropical village.

Curios She notes that there is a changing trend

among Italian tourists in the choice of items they purchase with many now targeting small items such as necklaces and key holders among other artefacts.

“They seem to have a preference for items that are light in weight and easy to carry back to their countries,” explains Agutu.

“We no longer stock the once popular heavy and sometimes large wooden curio carvings. With the cost of baggage in interna-tional flights having risen and the limit on lug-gage one can carry, most tourists today go for small items,” explains Agutu.

The beach traders meanwhile arrange a consignment of about half a kilogramme of key holders, necklaces made of different col-ours of beads and other small artefacts already ordered by an Italian tourist expected to de-part in a few hours time.

Safari and tour travel firms whose vans and four wheel drive vehicles have had to remain in the parking bay for months have brought back the machines on the roads. Yasin Rudainy of the Tausi Tours and Safaris firm with offices next to Uhuru Gardens in Malindi admits that

groups of tourists booking for safaris to the Tsavo East, Tsavo West and Amboseli from his office have been overwhelming in the last month.

“Sometimes we get several groups of tour-ists booking for safaris to the parks and vari-ous lodges, but over bookings in vehicles and various lodges and camps has on some occa-sions forced us to reject bookings or postpone them until vans to ferry tourists to the park area are available,” explains Rudainy.

There has also been a boom at the Malindi Marine Park with boat owners reporting at-tractive business. Chairman of the Malindi Boat Owners Association, Mr Twalib Abed says bookings have been good despite the heavy competition the boat owners face from vessels owned by hotels and some foreigners.

TransportAcross the Malindi food and fruit markets,

fish outlets and around town, transport indus-try dominated by the now popular but deafen-ingly Tuk Tuks business has increased.

“Groups of tourists have been booking for transport around town with Tuk Tuks and we have been making a killing.” said Mohammed Awadh, owner of three tuk tuk taxis.

A fish dealer at the Shella area, Mr Fuad Mohammed notes that orders for fresh fish from tourist hotels, restaurants and villas have increased surprisingly at a time when the sea is not yielding very good catches. “Due to high demand for fish and scarcity of the popular food among tourists, the price of a kilogramme of fish has risen from KSh250 a few weeks ago to KSh350,” says Mohammed.

Tour guides say they are earning good money by taking visitors to various sites in Malindi. Chairman of the tour guides asso-ciation Mr Akhim Aidarus says the number of unlicensed freelance tour guides has grown and some are known to harass tourists while seeking to be hired to take them around.

At the Uhuru Gardens scenes of illegal tour guides and children who pour out near the popular boutiques to beg from tourists play what could be described as hide and seek with tourist police unit officers who patrol the area.

As the town’s restaurants overflow with Es-presso Coffee drinking Italians, street money changers offer local currency from some hid-den corners. Parking bays which were empty for months are today full.

Small businesses pick up with the high tourist season

Conservancy gives hope

to deformed animalsBy GEORGE OMOnSO

While human beings born with deformities have always faced stigmatization, animals born with physical challenges have faced worse con-sequences. Many believe that animals and hu-mans born with deformities stoke fire of a pre-vious curse or gods gone mad again. They are a sight that many do not want to behold and the first temptation to get rid of them fast.

All reasoning is put forward for the disabil-ities and the need to discard the reminder of ill tempting fortunes with the swelling crowd of advisers. But one person has come to reverse this weird thinking.

Kitale Nature Conservancy is sanctuary to unique animals and plants species that has put into sharp focus the proprietor Boniface Ndura other than the animals he rears.

Maintaining the animals which are born with all sorts of deformities ranging from sexual organs to head complexities is very expensive although the immediate gains are difficult to see in the immediate future for a casual observer. But Ndura who has his eyes set on posterity and the future differs.

The Kitale Nature Conservancy is a unique one as it is home to the deformed, endangered and vulnerable animal and plants species that have been ignored by the contemporary con-servationist and government arms concerned.

Weak animalsRejected even as they appear to be, the

deformed animals Ndura is now so much de-termined to rear, are obtained at a price, ex-pensive to maintain and as delicate as a glass of wine.

“They bear weaker genetic traits and are prone to diseases and less resistant to environ-mental hazards. We have to keep a residential veterinary officer to keep minute watch as any small lapse could mark their exit,” he said in an interview with the Reject.

“According to statistics, Kenya is feared to be losing about five plant species every year and it is on the verge of losing many more. Animals like the De Brazza Monkeys and the Statunga antelope are also fast disappearing,” explains Ndura.

“Our mission as a conservancy is, there-fore, to contribute in a small way towards the conservation of our environmental and the country’s biodiversity by targeting the youth and the nature lovers,” he reiterates. Ndura adds: “Our botanical garden and models of houses with eco roofs place us in a class of our own in conservation while our genetically dis-advantaged animals make our park a special place on this planet.”

But is it worth the effort for a simple Ken-yan who wants to make a difference in a coun-try where the priorities are skewed and mis-placed?

Ndura started by conserving the fast fading rare species of monkeys called the De Braza that put him on a collision course with the Kenya Wildlife Services. However, they were later to approve of his intentions and recom-mend him as a peer partner in game conser-vation.

What is more, we were shocked to find out that deformed animals are even more expen-sive than the grade cows that are bought at the Agriculture Development Corporation farms.

“These days people have realised that the deformed animals have a ready market at Ki-tale Nature Conservancy and although they may have very little to do with the animals they view them as a bad omen. But when we come in, they want to sell them for a fortune,”

William nyabwari Kenyatta, a trader who makes and sells curios attending to a tourist in his stall along the beaches of Malindi. Inset: consolata Agutu arranges her wares at a stall along

the tourist road. Pictures: Kigondu Ndavano

There is a changing trend among Italian tourists in the choice of items they

purchase with many now targeting small items such

as necklaces and key holders among other artefacts.


Girl rescued

from marriage

By Muasya charles

A standard six girl who aban-doned school for early mar-riage under influence by an elderly woman has now been rescued and taken back to school.

The orphaned girl who was a pupil at Itoleka Pri-mary School in Kitui County was taken from her ‘would be husband’ in Mombasa following intervention by Tei wa Wo (True Mercy), a Community Based Organi-sation which strives to pro-vide quality education to orphaned girls where the girl was a beneficiary.

Transfer Tei wa Wo Coordinator,

Ms Jeniffer Nyumu said the man who cohabited with the girl under the guise of mar-riage was also made to record a statement at Itoleka Police station where the woman who lured the girl into the marriage was being held.

Nyumu, a teacher at Itole-ka Primary School said the girl will be taken to another school to avoid stigmatiza-tion.

However, she said a preg-nancy test will be carried out. “The girl will also be tested for infectious diseases and taken for vigorous coun-selling,” Nyumu explained.

Watchdog groupShe advised parents to

shun traditional practices which impede the growth of the girl child, and particu-larly orphans from accessing quality education.

Tei wa Wo has also formed a women’s watchdog group to help provincial ad-ministration officials curb illicit brew locally known as ‘kaluvu’ which is being blamed for high levels of poverty in homesteads.

The leader of the watch-dog group, Ms Rachael Musyoka said they poured over 200 litres of the brew last month with the help of chiefs and assistant chiefs.

“We have been reaching out to the women involved in the business and encourag-ing them to start alternative businesses,” explained Musy-oka.

Former teacher reaps benefits from the farm Risk to quit teaching career pays off

By WAIKWA MAInA

Eighteen years ago armed with a resig-nation letter, he walked into Teachers Service Commission offices to termi-nate his 15 year old teaching career.

The former secondary school teach-er dumped chalk and duster for his then small farm in the semi-arid Mara-gua, in Murang’a County.

He was tired of swallowing chalk dust, waking up in the wee hours to walk to class, spending tiresome late hours marking books and preparing lesson plans. He also felt that he was not giving enough to his students as his loyalty was divided between teaching and the farm.

“I loved my students and it was a hard decision to make,” says Mr Koim-bia Muritu, who started his teaching job at Bura Girls’ High School in Coast Province and terminated it at Murang’a Boys’ High School in 1977 and 1992 respectively.

RiskDespite all the odds and challenges

of having no reliable income, today Muritu literally controls a significant percentage of the economy in Murang’a and the neighbouring counties.

Not a single day passes without any of the locals buying one of his farm products, either as raw material or value added directly or indirectly. Products from his farm include per-ishables such as pure milk and its by-products like yoghurt as well as tea, pork, beef, eggs and fruits among oth-ers. To many, he is an asset in terms of the quality farm products, almost dictating supply and demand.

Due to his comparative low prices, Muritu is constantly at loggerheads with major manufacturers and suppli-ers who exploit customers.

Despite his achievement in busi-ness and agribusiness empires, Muritu, popularly known as Mwalimu says his greatest achievement in the business is interacting with people and reality. “Dealing with people and reality are my motivation. Farming is real, you watch as the crops germinate up to harvesting time, drying of the plants which we then use to make silage,” Muritu explains.

He adds: “It is mesmerising to watch animals develop from birth to maturity. It is so real since dealing with living things has always been my dream.”

Although today he can celebrate his success, it has not been without chal-lenges. Unfortunately, the same source of joy is also his source frustrations.

“My most frustrating moments are when employees defy instructions and when they cannot work with minimal supervision. Other moments of disap-pointment and anguish are when an animal gets sick. I hate it when animals writhe in pain and are unable to eat or consequently die,” reiterates the farmer. He adds: “The same case applies with crops when they wither in drought or are attacked by diseases and pests.”

Trade secretHis biggest secret in the multimil-

lion empire is first trading with him-self and only selling surplus to his cus-tomers. This has helped control and minimise capital flight.

For example, livestock and poultry,

fruits and vegetables from his farm are sold to his chain of hotels that include Famous and Murmur within Murang’a town. With reduced and reliable sup-ply from his farm, he is able to prepare the best and enticing meals in town. He also runs occasional promotions in the hotels.

“The surplus is sold to the pub-lic, manufacturers and distributors of farm products at fair retail prices,” says Muritu.

The situation is the same in his farm where each animal and crop sup-plement each other thus reducing the cost of production.

“For example, steers from poultry are used to feed and fatten bulls which are later slaughtered and sold as meat. The bulls and other animals produce manure used in the farm and plants from the farm are later used to feed the animals,” explains the farmer.

Amazingly, the entire business empire now worth more than KSh10 million, is managed from a portion of land that is less than three acres where

the animals are grazed. The other por-tion is occupied with coffee, bananas and other horticultural crops.

Currently he has about 6,000 lay-ers producing an average of 5,400 eggs every day, 200 dairy cows, enough bulls to be slaughtered round the year, more than 2,000 pigs, all managed by 40 per-manent and 150 casual employees.

After they are exhausted, the layers are also sold to the hotel chain. He al-ways has enough stock to last the ho-tels all year round. This whole empire was developed from a KSh60,000 loan from the Agricultural Finance Corpo-ration (AFC).

“I harboured a dream of becoming a successful farmer but capital was a major challenge. The situation was worse after I resigned from my job and most people believed I would not sur-vive,” explains the former teacher.

In 1996, he got the loan from AFC and bought some calves at KSh3,000 each and started breeding. AFC Murang’a Branch manager, Mr John Njoka says Muritu still takes loans to develop his business.

“He is among the best AFC cus-tomers in repaying the soft loans,” ex-plains Njoka.

Muritu goes for the soft loans to boost his capital when he wants to in-vest in new urgent business ventures.

“Farming has no shortcuts. A farmer must be patient, have the will and be honest to himself and his God. He must also be dedicated just as a

loving mother would take care of her child,” advises Muritu.

Maragua being a dry area, the cost of pumping irrigation water from Ma-ragua River has also been a major set-back for him.

He also blames the Government for assisting and promoting farming as a business. “The Government should regulate cost of farm inputs. Unlike in other countries where sick animals are culled by the Government and farm-ers compensated in case of outbreak of diseases like foot and mouth, Ken-yan farmers are left to carry their own cross,” laments Muritu.

MarketingHe reiterates: “The Government

has not been aggressive in securing markets for local farmers and that is why imported farm products have flooded the market at the expense of local farmers.”

Njoka says Muritu’s achievement in agri-business is a success story that should be emulated by other small and large scale farmers.

AFC has diversified its products to meet diverse needs. The whole farm-ing business chain has been catered for by introduction of special packages such as marketing loan, value addition and production loans.

“I urge farmers and interested inves-tors willing to invest in farm produce business to take advantage of the loan facilities,” says Njoka.

Farmer Koimbia Muritu at his silage plant. Inset: with one of

his dairy cows. He left a teaching career to be a full time farmer.

Pictures: Waikwa Maina

“I harboured a dream of becoming a successful farmer

but capital was a major challenge. The situation was worse after I resigned from

my job and most people believed I

would not survive.”— Koimbia Muritu


Executive Director: Rosemary Okello-Orlale Programme Coordinator: Wilson ugangu Editor: Jane Godia Sub-Editors: Florence Sipalla and Mercy Mumo Designer: noel Lumbama Contributors: Fred Okoth, Valerie Aseto, Rachel Muthoni, Eric mutai, Hussein Dido,

Bendaro Tsuma, Kigondu ndavano, nzinga Muasya, Henry Owino, Boniface Mulu, Kiprotich Edwin, Gilbert Ochieng, Waikwa Maina, Muasya charles, Omondi Gwengi.

Write to:

[email protected]

The paper is produced with funds from

www.mediadiversityafrica.org

Healer with a touch for

broken heartsBy OMOnDI GWEnGI

She may not be familiar to many, but mention the word Nyaruoth to the locals of Usenge sub-location in Bondo and you will surely ignite some interest from those who have received the help of this traditional healer.

In her late 80s, the story of Mama Peninah Amara dates back to the 1970s when she was married to the late Mzee ........ (First name or other name?????) Amara of Nyangera Village, West Yimbo location. By then, she was a virgin in the field of herbal medicine.

Herbal medicine“I left my paternal home in Alego

Karuoth in Siaya without any knowledge of herbal medicine. However, when I got into this home I was introduced to the trade by my late mother-in-law who was a traditional healer before she passed on,” Penina recalls. She adds: “My mother-in-law showed me the plants that she used for treating different diseases.”

Just like any other field of trade, it was not an easy walk to attain the level of expertise she has reached today. However, there are still those who see her not as a healer but as witch-doctor.

“I was first rejected by the community when I started because they thought I was a witch, but unlike the witchdoctors who even perform some rituals for their clients, I use pure herbs,” explains Penina. She adds: “I am a devoted Christian and I cannot add anything to my medicine.”

AcceptanceThe locals started to slowly accept her

when she was seen to be healing people with heart problems, ear defects, eye infections and broken limbs.

“I have healed many people. Most of the people that I treat are school-going children who break their legs or arms when playing in school,” she says.

Mama Penina recalls the case of a boy who fell down when playing in school and broke his arm. The boy was taken to the hospital but his parents could not afford the treatment.

“The boy’s arm was badly broken and I even feared handling this. But I did my best by massaging him using traditional medicine,” explains Penina.

Money is not always a factor for she some-times offers treatment treat at no cost for those who do not have money. This has made many people run to her for help.

“You cannot be treated in the hospital if you don’t have money but I treat people with-

out money sometimes,” she says.There are some cases such as heart prob-

lems which she refers to hospitals. She says that most people who develop heart problems realise when it is too late.

While she is able to treat cases that require scanning, Penina has no x-ray equipment. However, she uses her eyes to locate the po-sition of the heart to determine if one has a heart problem.

She then takes some peas which she places on a cooking stick that is placed just below the position of the heart. She then pushes the cooking stick as if lifting the heart back to its position.

The peasThe peas are then planted in the soil where

they are covered with a pot for three-four days. “After three days, you should come to check if the peas have germinated,” she says.

If the peas germinate within that time, you should take the peas and eat. This becomes a treatment regime for the disorder.

“If the pea seeds do not germinate, then we try again. If it fails for the second time, I then refer the patient to the hospital for further treatment,” she explains.

Penina has referred a few cases to the hos-pital. “I am happy that most of the people that I healed have been faring well without compli-cations,” she says.

Today, Mama Penina is too old to perform some of her treatments. She has passed on the skills to her daughter-in-law, Ms Jane Maganda who now performs some simple treatments.

“I am getting old and tired. I instruct Jane to do simple treatments like massaging those with fractures as well as treating those with eye and ear problems,” she says.

Age also hinders her ability to walk far and she no longer walks into the bushes to gather the medicinal plants.

Jane who is from the Bukusu community says she comes from a family where there was no herbal medicine. “At home we would go to the hospital whenever we fell sick. I am just trying to adapt to the system here,” she says.

However, Jane says that her daughter is a fast learner. “My daughter is very quick at learning things and she is the one who goes to gather some of the herbal plants which we later prepare for treatment,” says Jane.

Apprenticeship Mama Penina is an independent woman

who does her trade with the assistance of fam-ily members. “Even if I die today, my daugh-ter-in-law and my grandchildren shall have known how the trade is done,” she says.

A devoted Christian, Penina defied the cul-ture of wife inheritance which is largely prac-tised among the Luo community.

“Since my husband died, no man has ever slept in my house in the name of a wife inheri-tor,” boasts Peninah.

However, just like in the conventional medical field, Penina has faced challenges in treating HIV/Aids. She says that it is hard to treat and that she can only treat some STIs.

However, the traditional healer blames modern foods for the daily health problems we are facing today.

“We used to eat traditional foods, but today, people no longer eat them. They have instead resorted to foods that have a lot of chemicals which are not good for health,” she explains.

“I was first rejected by the community when I started because they thought I was

a witch, but unlike the witch doctors who even perform

some rituals for their clients, I use pure herbs. I am a devoted Christian and I

cannot add anything to my medicine.”

— Penina Amara.

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