Kenyans Team Up to Fend Off Drought

By Debbie DeVoe

Things don't look good in Mutha, Kenya. The sun is so bright that the light is no longer yellow but white. The barren ground is hard, covered in a fine salmon-colored dust that coats everyone's feet and shoes. Only a few thorn trees, baobabs and the occasional scrub brush push their way above the surface.

Residents of this water-starved area haven't reaped a harvest since 2002. For seven years they have scraped by. Every few days, they've been earning a few dollars cutting down trees to burn to make charcoal to sell. And with every tree that disappears, the risk of continued drought increases.

"The situation is not good. There is no water, so there is no food," says Kanini Mwalimu, a farmer who with her husband cares for their five children and her father-in-law.

Recently the situation has become even worse. Kenyans are allowed to cut trees on their own property, but as rains fail to come, the search for wood to make charcoal has led more and more people to trespass onto protected reserves. To save Kenya's fragile environment from further damage, the government is now enforcing a ban on charcoal, leaving families with few options for earning money to buy food.

Thankful for Food and Conservation Work

For the next few weeks, Mutha residents and thousands of additional Kenyans being helped by Catholic Relief Services and other aid agencies have gained a small buffer. Across drought-affected areas, farmers are being organized into groups to build embankment terraces on each other's farms in exchange for food supplies or food vouchers.

Partnering with the Diocese of Kitui, Catholic Relief Services is providing 1,300 farming households with $40 worth of food vouchers in exchange for 20 days of conservation work. The Diocese of Garissa, further to the east, is coordinating this drought response project for another 1,000 households.

While $40 might not seem a significant amount, the food vouchers will keep families fed for three to four weeks—until the next rains are expected to fall. The project also helps local vendors who agree to accept the vouchers for food supplies, later receiving cash reimbursement at diocesan offices.

"It's good, because now I have food and before I didn't," says farmer Mwende Kioko, who with her husband supports five children and five adults. "Working in a group is also good, because we are able to build more terraces in a short time. It's good to get this food for the work. The terraces will help conserve moisture on my farm so my crops will grow well."

Building embankment terraces is difficult work, but the promise of food makes the task more attractive. This conservation work is so valued, some families with disabled or sick members—who would not have had to work to receive the vouchers—found other relatives to participate in the work so embankments would also be built on their farms.

Future Still Looks Bleak

Kenyans are facing other hardships from the lack of water.

"I'm now having to travel 15 kilometers [about 9 miles] by bicycle to fill two 40-liter [10-gallon] jerry cans, which takes me around 12 hours," Kanini explains. "But trying to fill up at the local water kiosk can take up to three days of queuing." Kanini's family uses the water for drinking, cooking and washing utensils. Baths and clothes washing are done in shifts every few days as their water supply allows.

Now the most serious question is what will happen next when the food accessed through the vouchers runs out now that families can't earn extra money making charcoal.

"I have five goats. If it rains, they can find enough grass and water to produce milk for us," Kanini says. "I will sell one if things get really bad."

Most Kenyans remain hopeful even in the face of calamity. They know that if rains finally come, the predicted El Niño season could compound their problems with flooding. But for now, they are looking to God to come to their aid and are thankful for the assistance of CRS and our Church partners.

Debbie DeVoe is CRS' regional information officer for eastern and southern Africa based in Nairobi. She recently attended a voucher distribution in Mutha, Kenya.