Another great Maasai example of SDG leadership

Purity is married to Francis, a strong Maasai man loving and supporting his wife very much and playing an important role in raising the five children they have together. 

Purity, with a bachelor degree in education, is teacher of a primary school in the region. She has a more than full time job in educating the children of the pastoralist families in this very remote part of Kajiado. Climate change and long droughts are some of the main concerns of the Maasai, a nomadic tribe of about 1 million people living in Kenya and Tanzania.

The severe drought in the early twenties of this century made Purity realise that new initiatives were strongly necessary to become self sufficient in food in the long run. Cattle, the main source of food and income of the Maasai, was dying in big numbers, and climate change would continue to cause more and longer droughts in the future. 

So Purity decided to start with kitchen gardens and a community garden as well, inspired by other people who knew more about vegetable production than she and her community who were not familiar with this type of agriculture at that time. Friends of the Maasai was more than glad to support her with funding and knowledge.

That was in 2022. It is three years later now. Not only the gardens have been introduced. Fences were introduced as well to protect the borehole and the community garden, the community started with better irrigation to water the plants, people were teached in beekeeping and to harvest honey from the beehives that were introduced recently and a plan is on its way to improve access to clean water for both people and livestock in Orpirikata. Mentoring and supporting the youth, and especially the less educated among them, to develop leadership about their own future is another important program which was started.

Driving force behind all this is Purity. She founded a CBO (community based organisation) and invited community members to participate in all kind of new activities to make the community more self sufficient in the long run. 

A lot has been achieved in only a few years and more is on the agenda for the coming years. 

Rewarding Purity for her inspiring and brave role Friends of the Maasai chairman Willem Lageweg pinned the SDG pin on her dress during our field trip earlier this month. SDG stands for the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations. These goals belong to a worldwide program to make the world a better place in 2030. No poverty and hunger, good health and education, equality, clean water and combatting climate change are some of the 17 global goals.

Purity is an inspiring and powerful example of leadership to make these goals come true. Friends of the Maasai is proud to remain her partner in the years to come.