the boma project by david duchemine

As recurring drought devastates their livestock, the pastoral nomads of northern Kenya are learning new ways to make a living.

Photographs by David duChemin

Photography © The BOMA Project / David duChemin. All rights reserved. | bomaproject.org

the boma project

Working Solutions to Climate Change

Malawan Lejalle and her daughter in the nomadic village of Ndikir,

near the family hut and chicken coop.

As prolonged drought destroys the grazing terrain, warriors take the

herds on long trips in search of forage. The women and children are left

behind without cattle, their traditional source of food and income. “My

husband does not know if he will find us alive when he comes home,”

says Malawan Lejalle (photo at left), who leads a three-woman business

group that sells food staples—such as beans, tea and sugar—to residents

in Ndikir. “But the last time he returned, he found his eight children

doing well.” In addition to generating income for food, her business is

using its savings to send 17 local children to secondary school. Above:

Malawan (in green) counts profits with partner Algoya Basele.Photography © The BOMA Project / David duChemin. All rights reserved. | bomaproject.org

Northern Kenya is a remote and neglected region that suffers

from extreme poverty and hunger. Severe droughts now threaten

the main source of food and income—livestock herding—that

has sustained the pastoral nomads here for centuries. Since

January 2009, The BOMA Project has been helping residents to

start small businesses and earn a sustainable income through

the Rural Entrepreneur Access Project (REAP), which offers a seed

capital grant, training in business skills and savings, and two

years of mentoring to groups of three women.


Above: A woman in a traditional cloth, called a kanga, walks through the wind-

swept nomadic village of Ong’eli in the Kaisut Desert.

Warriors like Brilee Rimoti (left) now range farther and farther in

search of forage for their herds. The situation is volatile, as armed

bandits roam the region to steal livestock, and ethnic tribes clash

in violent skirmishes over dwindling natural resources, such as

grazing lands and water.


Drought has made life harder in many ways. Children

walk long distances to collect kindling for the family cooking

fires (above), while many livestock—the nomad’s source of

sustenance for centuries—have died during the driest condi-

tions in decades. Hunger and malnutrition are at critical

levels across the region.

Left: Warrior Long’erua Letorre brings his cattle home to Ndera village.

The traditional nomadic diet relied on cattle milk and blood as

the main source of nutrition. As the warriors travel in search of

grazing terrain, the women are left to themselves, with no money

and no food. Maize flour and cooking oil, often delivered as

famine relief by aid organizations, have become the new staples,

and sweetened tea is considered a meal.

Above: Nayong Lomurut and Ntojoni Ngosoni serve their children sweet tea

for breakfast in front of a family hut.


School was not a priority in traditional nomadic culture, but more

families are now enrolling their children: Primary school is free,

and each child receives a mid-day meal. Students walk as far as 20

kilometers to attend.

Because many schools do not have

a building, teachers often gather

under the shade of trees and use

a single blackboard. In this photo:

Classes at St. Dominique Savior

School in Manyatta Lengina village.


The REAP program targets women. Studies

indicate that economically empowering

women—the “poorest of the poor”—is an

effective way to fight poverty in the develop-

ing world.

Above: Arbe Wario sells traditional water gourds

to visitors and aid workers who frequently travel

through her village of Loiyangalani.

Right: Halhalo Barmin lives in Goob Barmin,

where she and her business partners run a small

food kiosk. Savings from the business allowed her

to loan her brother money, which provided life-

saving medical care for one of his children.


Halima Arbele (above) is a BOMA Village Mentor. Mentors are

respected local residents who have professional experience;

Halima attended secondary school and runs her own small

shop. Mentors work closely with each business to ensure

success. In this photo, Halima meets with a REAP group for

a progress report; she walked 15 kilometers from her home

to the nomadic village of Obregebo, where the women have

opened a kiosk.

Left: BOMA entrepreneurs sell potatoes at the market in Loglogo, one of

the few areas in the semi-arid Laisamis District where it’s possible to raise

crops. The women bring their produce to market every day of the week,

except Sundays.

photography © The BOMA Project / David duChemin. All rights reserved. | bomaproject.org

BOMA mentor John Lesas reviews a record book with a business

group in the village of Ngurunit. John is a highly regarded primary

school teacher and community leader in the village.


Beading is a traditional nomadic

skill; the women in this Laisamis

village business group sell their

products to travelers who pass

through northern Kenya on the

Pan-African Highway. Laisamis

District—an area larger than the

country of Rwanda—has only

two medical clinics and no paved

roads, post offices or banks.


Three BOMA entrepreneurs—Gumato Lomurut,

Ntelengon Lamut and Kehsimo Eisemkelle—

cross the Kaisut Desert on the way from their

nomadic settlement, Nemerai, to the settled

village of Korr. They buy food and supplies

from a wholesaler in Korr, and then sell the

goods in their village kiosk. They used to haul

the supplies home on their backs; now they

can afford to hire mules. Sometimes they also

hire a warrior to protect them from bandits and

wild animals.


110 of BOMA’s 720

micro-enterprises

operate near the village

of Loiyangalani on Lake

Turkana, the world’s

largest desert lake and a

UNESCO World Heritage

site. Many of the busi-

ness groups buy fish

along the shoreline

and resell it—dried or

fresh—for retail prices

at market.

Right: Etelej Erumu and

Nakorodio Esimit stack dried

fish for resale.



The BOMA micro-savings program teaches participants the importance of savings,

helps REAP groups to establish mentored savings and loans associations, and

facilitates access to secure savings instruments, such as lockboxes, mobile-phone

banking, and formal banking (where available). Above: A REAP group in Kamboe

that sells inexpensive mobile phones.

Raphaela Mpiraon Neepe is the only educated woman in

the village of Kamboe; she attended secondary school and

has worked for several NGOs. As a BOMA Village Mentor,

she meets with REAP participants to discuss their

business and review record books and savings.

“BOMA is helping women,” she says.

“The participants are benefiting

through their businesses.”

Each business supports three women

and an average of fifteen children; an

impact survey showed that REAP parti-

cipants use the income to pay for food,

medical care and school supplies for

their families.

Above: Adowto Isandab used income from

her business to buy school supplies for her

son, Schola.

Right: Sabthio Wambile feeds a child by

lantern light.


The BOMA Project works to improve

the lives of the marginalized residents

of northern Kenya through economic

empowerment, education, advocacy

and the training of a new generation

of ethical, entrepreneurial leaders.


802.231.2542

www.bomaproject.org

[email protected]

Nayong Lomurut with her daughter, Ntimiran.

the boma project by david duchemine

Documents

boma project david duchemin

david duchemin photography

traditional source of

main source of food

food staplessuch

children sweet tea

local children

rights reser