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Maasai in Crisis - Innovating Tradition

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Maasai in Crisis - plea for help – Please read, donate & share!

Many will remember nearly four decades ago when Bob Geldof’s, Do They Know it’s Christmas was released by Band Aid in 1984 and seeing the sickening and degrading images of malnourished and dying Africans broadcast into our living rooms on a daily basis. Forty years later and drought in Africa today is old news. It doesn’t make the front pages anymore because of the sheer volume of equally disturbing human suffering stories that compete for coverage.

Drought in Africa is more serious than ever and it continues to pose an existential threat to whole communities. And of one of those communities, one is very close to my heart indeed. Many of you may already know my personal links to the majestic people of the Maasai, well, just 5 days ago, I got in touch with an old friend ERICK Ole Kasana, (a tribal elder, advisor and community leader in IL-Digiri community in southern Kenya) and I learnt from him just how terrifyingly bad the drought of the past 5 years has been and how it is desiccated his community, and beginning to claim his people. Young warriors (herdsmen) have died. As a proud leader, Erick reluctantly shared the severity of their situation relaying that this drought is the worst they have ever encountered in living history. Their community is hanging on to life with a thread and so they need urgent help, and they need it now.



Erick supported his family and contributed to his community with a healthy herd of 400 goats, he now has just 4 left. All 6 of his cattle, for months, too weak to stand, slowly starved in the baking sun, have died in the recent weeks - leaving him with no herd, no milk and no meat to feed his family. He has nothing to sell at the market so he can’t buy desperately needed food for his extended family, including a 3-year old adopted daughter. Livestock are central to the traditional Maasai way of life, not only as the main source of food and income but also as a marker of social status. They are a big part of their cultural bedrock as they live alongside their cows inside circular ‘kraals’. Across the tribe the story is not so good, as most have lost their livestock altogether.

Losing livestock is not unusual for the Maasai, it’s become a way of life for these people who’ve learned to live in harmony with nature for hundred of years. They’ve had to adapt their ways to survive some of the worst drought in the last 40 years, with five consecutive rainy seasons failing to materialise, wiping out the last of their impoverished grazing land. But they are now losing people too. 7 people have now died as a direct result of the drought and if help is not immediate more will die as the worsening hunger crisis is starting to bite with devastating consequences.

The community (5000 people) has broken up, as families are being separated and people are forced to head to towns in search for work. Children are leaving the schools that their families can no longer afford for them to attend. Water holes have dried up and those that are able have to walk for up to 7km to find any scarce water at all. And there is no food. Erick’s children haven’t eaten a meal since last Saturday.

The rains finally came in, they just didn’t have any livestock alive to farm, seed to sow, and the people are weak and growing weaker and are naturally losing hope.

The Maasai are a proud people, normally self-sufficient, and exist as a tribe in support of each other and their relationship with the land but they are facing the worst existential threat of their community, as people are dying.

I am privileged to have spent time with the Maasai in September 2001, and to have learned so much from them, about trust and belonging, practical hierarchies, adaptation & humanity, and leading by example and so much more. Those who know me through Tribal Teams, will have heard my many stories about the wonderful, generous spirited, lively and deeply sincere people they are, and whom I care deeply for.

This is why I feel I MUST do what I can to help raise awareness of the plight of the Maasai and focus some attention on the horrors that are unfolding in southern Kenya. I desperately need your help to help them. As you prepare for Christmas, stocking up the fridge with the last few necessities for a Christmas meal with your family, or buying the last-minute gift for a loved one, please spare a moment’s thought for families like Erick’s, and others in his community, and do whatever you feel you can to help them, even if that is making sure they have at least something to eat this December.

We have personally donated already, directly to ERICK. Erick called a meeting with the Elders to work out how best to use the money and it was agreed the money sent will buy potatoes, cabbages, 4 goats, rice, and will provide one cooked meal for all the community to come together. They have chosen to cook the community meal on the 30th December. Now you don’t need to give that much if you can’t afford it, giving even as little as the price of cup of coffee or two will make a real, tangible difference. I fully appreciate there is no shortage of people and communities suffering from food poverty and water poverty across the world, but Erick and his community need help now. The money will go direct to Erick and the community, and we will be putting together a website over the coming few weeks where information will be updated and we will document where the funds are going and what they are being used for, making all spend transparent and accountable. This will be quicker if someone could step forward to help with a website.

o Step 1 – get funding for them to get food, nutrition & hope & start talking about co-creating a different future (water security, diversification, etc.)

o Step 2 – get families and communities back on their feet, working towards a more sustainable way. Wider research, funding, expertise etc. to explore these

o Step 2 – Execute Step 2 & link up with other Maasai communities to explore cooperatives, cross-learning, etc.


Please spread the word so that as many people as possible know about the existential threats facing the Maasai people and may feel able to help in any way. This is obviously just the start of much larger programme of support that will need to be worked out with the Erick and his tribal leaders in conjunction with other Masssai tribes to work out how they can best diversify their farming practices to better cope with drought and other threats, but for now if you can please donate and please share this story. THANK YOU SINCERELY FOR READING THIS AND FOR ANY SUPPORT YOU CAN GIVE.

‘Asante – Mumu akubariki’

Nigel
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Nigel Watson
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