Protect Our Trees.. Painting a Way to Conservation

Nkiloriti Primary Class One got their work off to a great start for the September art exhibition  ‘What Conservation Means to Me’ at Nanyuki's  Lily Pond Arts Centre.

 

After two initial lessons on ‘Conservation’ and some drawing work they chose to work on Trees  . The reasons given for the importance of trees in their initial drawings ranged from ‘We need trees to live’....'guests come to see trees and animals not cars’ to 'the wild animals need trees’.

So on ‘Painting and Creating’ Day it should not have been surprising, but was nevertheless inspiring, to have the 6-9 year olds rattling off their 8 most important reasons for protecting trees with no input from the teacher:

• Trees protect our grassland
• Trees bring rain
• Trees give shelter
• Trees give firewood
• Trees give fruit for us to eat
• Trees give us herbal remedies
• Trees give leaves and fruit for our animals
• Trees help us with fencing and house-building

Much hand-painting resulted in trees taking root  around the classroom and much cutting, sticking and drawing resulted in a great montage for the art exhibition: the first finished product...(Well, almost...)

Each of the Kenyan schools will choose a different focus and a variety of media for the exhibition: conservation of elephants being an important theme for some with Africa’s huge rise in poaching . Conservation of water, grassland, wild animals, rivers, and  Maasai and Samburu culture being other areas.

Our friends in Ireland and England are also preparing to join us in this display see  Becomeafriend.net  and we aim to create an exciting juxtaposition of European and African ideas of conservation. Watch this space as we paint/make/create  our conservation ideas...

Batting AIDs out of Kenya with Cricket Without Boundaries....

Huge thanks  to "Cricket Without Boundaries” .. what a great job they are doing with their cricket coaching in Kenya.  In two days with us they will have taught cricket to over 500 kids in four schools.. in addition to training up a batch of over 20 very keen Maasai men and women. 

The energy and enthusiasm and great organisational skills  of their team has meant that the riotous fun of Pancake Day that started the week at Kimanjo Primary has just  continued to the week -end.

In addition to learning  a new sport the schools have been expertly, and highly imaginatively , taught about HIV/AIDS infection... the first time any educators have come with boxers and knickers for all teachers and older students  (boys and girls) .. boldly entitled  ‘Spread the Word Not the Infection.....‘   The girls were so amused there were tears of laughter. The ABC message was very clearly and creatively made. So how on earth does ‘C  is for Condom’ transfer to a cricket game? Ooh yes ... Condom = Protection =  protect your wicket- Inspired teaching!

Kids here are so quick to learn any new sport being fit, well coordinated and highly enthusiastic that it wouldn’t take long to get them playing a match. Cricket also allows the girls much more equality over the ubiquitous football that tends to dominate the school ‘field’ every break time. The trainee  coaches have enjoyed their sessions so much and the coaching has been so good that I am sure we will be able to get  some cricket clubs into operation this year.

                Both students and teachers are being motivated by the wonderful success of the local Maasai Cricket Warriors at Il Polei- due in no small part to Aliya Bauer their dedicated South African coach and coordinator. These ‘Warriors’ are currently having fun in Mombasa on cricket tour, as a prelude to  a tour to S Africa for The Last Man Stands  tournament. The Maasai Cricket Warriors’ also promote health messages against FGM and HIV and act as role models for their community: their own AIDS Awareness slogan is  "A BALL is my SPEAR and a BAT is my SHIELD in the FIGHT against A I D S"

                Sport is such a wonderful way to break down cultural divides and to act as a learning tool for other messages, and there are many great sporting initiatives throughout Africa. But without doubt Cricket Without Boundaries deserves to have all the recognition it can get, not just from dedicated cricketers, for the work they are doing in East and Southern Africa in schools and orphanages opening up a new sport, giving bat-loads of fun,  and an excellent  AIDS awareness message. Another  “Good news Africa” story then? We seem to have many of those this year.  After all- it is the energy and enthusiasm in the face of extreme adversity,  and the sense of community-that is the main reason for us choosing to be mzungus in Kenya ... and good sportsmen everywhere know a good deal about these qualities. 

                On tour with Cricket Without Boundaries is plenty of hard work in some fairly basic conditions... but this team  are at least able to enjoy a little bit of luxury and a chance to recharge their batteries at The Sanctuary at Ol lentille for a couple of nights.  Richly deserved!

And Public Private Partnerships in Water Development - (Swimming Pools and Power Showers??)

We have now sunk and capped the new community bore hole in Kimanjo.  Finding water was a great day. Still waiting for the hydrology report which will tell us the recharge rate along with the water quality. 

Despite the usual Kenyan hiccups in the process: transport dilemmas and break downs for the drilling rig as the November rains had washed out  roads; a broken rod down the borehole which meant many days of arduous work for the guys operating the machine etc. etc ;  this has been a project  enormously assisted at every stage by the District Water Officer who has unfailingly given practical assistance to mitigate hold ups and given sound professional advice throughout. His ability to overcome obstacles in the cause of getting water to a remote area shows how successful  the much vilified government agencies (how often are those two terms African government agency  and corruption used synonymously?)  can be when they have committed, honest, active  and knowledgeable personnel on the ground.  A good news story from an African government agency? Without doubt.

In the next phase of development we very much look forward to continuing this partnership with the  District Water Office to equip the bore hole with a solar pump, put in two pipe lines-  to the Primary and new secondary school, and a second to the upcoming Health Centre with  a new holding tank at the top of the village. In addition the extreme cooperation and assistance of the Kimanjo Water Users Association, and their highly active Chairman, have meant that achieving the necessary licenses and permits and the cooperation of the community has been made easy. Whilst in future wars will undoubtedly  be fought over water (and the lack of it)  in Africa, it must also be remembered that water is capable of uniting communities for the common good.Two good news Africa stories here then. On all those occasions when we are feeling cynical in the field of African development how important it is to remember the good days and so, so many  good people .

Does this mean everyone in Kimanjo will now be able to use water ad lib? Far from it. Even should the recharge rate be better than anticipated , families are unlikely to be collecting much more than 20- 40  litres of water a day. That is whole families.  Compare this to the US average  of 700 litres per day per person.... with 153 litres  per person merely for washing and drinking. The rural African average water consumption is around 30-40 litres a day, but far less in these semi arid and arid lands. One eight litre flush of the toilet in Europe will use more water than adults here would use in a day... with considerably less used during drought periods.

So.... no swimming pools or power showers just yet.... but, if our partnership with the Water Office continues as successfully as it has been for the past few months it should not be too long before life is a good deal easier for many women and children.. with the added advantage that our Health Centre build can now ramp up momentum.  And this will be down to a great Community effort.

Public -Private Partnerships – a way forward for Kenyan healthcare?

In 2012 Kenya has one doctor to 7,142 people  -  since only 2,300 doctors work in the public sector,  those unable to afford private care have to make do  with one doctor to   17,390 patients. Compare this to the USA  and UK where there is approximately one doctor to 450 people- whilst  lucky old San Marino has  a somewhat unrealistic  one doctor for every 21 people. Kenya’s ratio now falls behind both Afghanistan and Yemen.

Consequently the maternal mortality rate in Kenya stands at a shocking  530 per 100,000 live births significantly worse than in the 1980s; compared to the USA which has  17 per 100,000. To reach one doctor per 1000 patients, another 40,000 doctors are needed. Insufficient numbers of doctors are trained and each year doctors depart for better pay and conditions to America, Europe and Asia.

The irony of the situation was heavy in the November 2011 doctor strike when the dispute took longer than necessary  to reach arbitration because BOTH Health Ministers were abroad.......... seeking medical treatment.

The government spend on health as a percentage of the total budget is 5.4 %, lower than in the 1990s, compared to 15% in the UK. This transfers to an annual per capita spend on health of $23 whilst the UK spend is  $2,843 and a massive $7,420 in the US. Even with an agreement to raise the healthcare budget significantly major change in the doctor patient ratio is a long way off.

So what are the short and medium term solutions to improved health care, particularly in the much neglected arid and semi arid rural areas?

The GOK plan to build new health centres is a welcome start, and it is good to see some of these going up. Equipping of these health centres and staffing with clinical officers and nursing staff is the next step. NGOs are increasingly active in training of Community Health Workers, but in most instances these CHWs are expected to work in a voluntary capacity, meaning  little activity can be expected of them,  moreover these schemes need a good deal of clinical support and organisation that is frequently lacking. Likewise NGOs are enormously active in many other  areas  of health care, yet a lack of coordination mean that often efforts are duplicated whilst some populations are missed out.

The recent rollout to target 10 of the 17 Neglected Tropical Diseases through Bill Gates’ encouragement to create   an unlikely spirit of cooperation  with the world’s 13 biggest drug companies,  is an example of Public Private Partnership that  will undoubtedly have a major affect on these diseases. As Bill gates states, soon they will just be ‘Tropical diseases’, no longer deserving of  yet another  Three Letter Acronym  -  NTDs.

 The Health Ministries in Kenya appear very positive to embrace Public Private Partnerships in many areas and  perhaps this should be seen as a major bright light  for future health care development here.

The Amazing Maasai Ultra, Kenya and 42km Marathon Sponsorships

Enormous Congratulations to Race Director Solomon, and the whole Amazing Maasai Girls Project, who have just chosen the 20 girls to be sponsored this year.. with a four year secondary sponsorship. These girls, who all performed very well in their Primary examinations, underwent a rigorous interview process. Ten girls will take up places at St. Francis School and five each will go to Il Polei and Kimanjo Secondary. Congratulations to them all and we wish them every success.

Pictured here are the winning candidates from Kimanjo, Ngabolo and Naiperere Primary schools, with the selection panel- Head teacher Daniel Monto and Madam Agnes Santa, with Solomon and Francis Merinyi. 

Solomon’s next task will be to start preparing local students for the 2012 Amazing Maasai Ultra - to be held on 21^st July 2012  see amazing maasai ultra they can be sure of plenty more community support for this fantastic initiative...many staff at The sanctuary at Ol Lentille, as well as teachers, are promising to support with their running shoes on.  So please all of you out there, you have plenty of time to start organising your running schedules and calendars to prepare for this incredibly worthwhile and very exciting race.

Another day on the road.. all in pursuit of girl's education....

Elephant Poaching- Stop the Ivory Market!!

It was a very sad day last week when a lone young male elephant was killed by poachers nearby.

The market price of ivory is at an all time high of over $700 per pound in China and Vietnam, the demand being fueled by the newly rich middle classes desiring ivory carvings. Kenya’s elephant population is estimated at between 32,000 and 35,000, but estimates for Africa remain vague  - between 400,000- 650,000. The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) considers that as many as 100 elephants a day are being slaughtered across Africa - even if this number is exaggerated the problem is still massive.

Kenya banned hunting in 1977 and banned the selling of ivory, symbolically burning all its old ivory stock in 1989 and again last year, but the problem of poaching in neighbouring Tanzania where ‘controlled’ hunting is still legal is far greater, and it is from Tanzania and Zambia that most of the illegal ivory is shipped.

Until all ivory trading, legal and illegal, is stopped, there will continue to be an incentive for the poorest Africans to risk their lives shooting elephants to fuel  demand.  Priority now is to convince the older Chinese that they no longer want to buy ivory. Engaging constructively with Chinese people, who currently number over a million resident in Africa, with numbers fast rising, is clearly key.

Back to the dead elephant. The tracker dogs (bloodhounds) did a first class job of tracking the Samburu poachers to a distant village, but from here they are able to melt away. Even when this investigation is concluded and if they are apprehended, so long as there is a market and an order, there will be other poverty stricken Maasai and Samburu warriors ready to take their chances for the few dollars they can receive for two tusks. This time our Rangers were able to drive off the poachers and recover the tusks. These were passed to the Kenya Wildlife Service with a good deal of formal paper-work. They are then indelibly tattooed - taking them forever out of the market place.

So the radio network gets busy as security is increased across the whole area and the location of all herds and lone individual elephants is monitored ever more closely.

Meanwhile we treated this as a learning opportunity for all the local schools: environmental clubs and teachers from Ngabolo and Kimanjo Primary plus all the Kimanjo secondary students came to look at the now putrid carcass.  Vultures, tawny eagles, martial eagles and ravens are fast assisting the hyenas and jackals to dismember the carcass carcass. These Maasai kids have all been brought up to live alongside elephants. Despite their daily life being made hazardous by elephants they all value them as part of their landscape and heritage and they know that shooting elephants is not only illegal and dangerous but morally very out of kilter with their culture. They are taken back to school to consider how they can help to ensure the survival of elephants for their own children. 

Secondary Students on Safari

Only by stopping the market will these tusks be totally saved