Laisamis District of Northern Kenya

Ebelea Sahado, Faraya Amiou, and Gumatho Ilito carrying firewood in the Kaisut Desert

BOMA works in Northern Kenya, primarily in the Laisamis, Marsabit and Samburu districts — an area larger than the country of Ireland, and the traditional homeland of the pastoral nomads. It is an arid and semi-arid land (ASAL) that suffers from the highest poverty rates in the country. Infrastructure is minimal, with few paved roads and no formal banks or post offices; for many, the distance to the nearest health center is as much as 80 kilometers. There are no large employers, and residents lack the education and skills required to secure jobs in other parts of the country. For those who do find work, the average income is less than one dollar per day.

Although livestock remains the traditional source of food and income, it is increasingly unsustainable as the severity of droughts escalates due to climate change; during the extended drought of 2008-2009, for example, 90 percent of the region’s livestock died. In 2011, the worst drought in 60 years impacted 12.5 million people across the Horn of Africa and left an estimated 50,000 to 100,000 people dead. Armed violence is increasing across the district as ethnic tribes clash over limited natural resources.

 The lack of infrastructure and investments, and declining opportunities to earn an income, severely impact residents’ ability to provide food, education and healthcare for their families. Women and children are particularly vulnerable to this worsening cycle of drought and poverty. As the men range farther and longer in search of limited grazing terrain, or move to urban slums in search of unskilled labor, the women are left behind in the villages, often without food or income. During times of drought and hunger, they are forced to rely upon emergency food aid, which reinforces the cycle of dependency.