A big number of women in pastoralist counties have embraced beadwork as a way to make ends meet.
Some of them are reformed cutters, who had subjected thousands of girls, who were then married off, to female genital mutilation (FGM). They ventured into this trade after ceasing the harmful practice.
One such woman is Reina Lelesit,57, from Nguroto village, about 15 kilometres from Maralal town in Samburu County. She is among hundreds of women who have taken up beadwork as an income-generating activity.
When we visit her home on this sunny afternoon, she is making a traditional necklace, which she hopes to sell for Sh1,000 in Maralal town.
Dimmed capacity
The mother of eight has been taking two days to make one necklace, doing the beadwork during the day when she is not busy at her shop and in the evening before dusk.
At night, she could not continue the work as the cost of paraffin was so high and she could not afford it. Most households in the county are not connected to power.
Reina Lelesiit weaves shanga for sale at her home in Maralal, Samburu County, on October 25, 2022, with the help of solar lanterns donated to her by global electronics company Panasonic Holdings Corporation in partnership with United Nations Population Fund( UNFPA).
“In the evening, I usually have a lot of free time that I can use to make more necklaces and other products. However, I end up going to bed early as I cannot buy paraffin in large quantities because of its high price. The price of firewood has also gone up beyond my reach,” she says.
The story is no different for Monica Lowuapere, who reveals that as a result of the high cost of paraffin, she and other women have had to scale down the hours spent on jewellery production.
“Things have been very difficult of late. Four months ago, a litre of paraffin was retailing at Sh120, but now the price has gone up to nearly Sh150. Many homes opt to turn off the lamps early in the evening, which means many women cannot continue with their beadwork,” says Ms Lowuapere.
She adds that the rising fuel prices and an ongoing drought in the county have had a devastating impact their businesses. “We used to sell a lot of jewellery to the Samburu Morans, but now all the young men have moved with the cattle in search of water and pasture.”
Worrying statistics
According to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), only six per cent of residents of Samburu County use electricity as their main source of lighting, 11 per cent use lanterns, 19 per cent use tin lamps and 61 per cent use fuel wood.
Electricity use is mostly common in male-headed households at eight per cent against four per cent in female-headed households.
Samburu West Constituency has the highest level of electricity use at 14 per cent. This is 14 percentage points above Samburu North, which has the lowest, and eight per cent above the county’s average.
Maralal ward has the highest level of electricity use at 27 per cent. This is 27 percent above Ndoto, Wamba West, and Wamba North that have no electricity use, and 21 percent above the county average.
Also read: Samburu beads of bondage
However, the plight of the women could soon be a thing of the past if a solar project goes according to plan. The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) has partnered with Japanese company Panasonic Corporation to distribute more than 2,000 solar lanterns to women to support their economic empowerment.
The lanterns have also been distributed to adolescent schoolchildren to support their learning in the evenings while sensitising them to their role in the elimination of FGM and child marriage.
Naoyuki Tada from Panasonic Corporation and UNFPA Deputy Representative Abiodun Chirs Oyeyipo show pupils at Ngari Primary School in Samburu County how a solar lantern works on October 25, 2022.
With the new project, Reina says she will now do one Samburu necklace per day, thus increasing her productivity.
Reduced expenses
During the handing over of the lanterns to women’s groups, Panasonic Corporation CSR and Citizenship representative Naoyuki Tada noted the solar-powered lanterns will eliminate lighting expenses so that work and study can continue at night. He added that the project, dubbed Light up the Future, will help the women to increase their income.
“Panasonic is committed to driving positive social change through initiatives that serve to eradicate poverty and promote education, especially in underserved communities. By improving education and livelihood outcomes for women and girls, we are able to support them in building a brighter future,” said Mr Tada.
He noted the women can now continue with their beadwork late into the night, thus allowing them to make more products and more money.
Anti-FGM Board CEO Bernadette Loloju lauded Panasonic and UNFPA for the initiative, saying it will go a long way in empowering women in beadwork economically. She added that the project will also boost education in the community.
“Education is key to building an empowered generation that can end FGM and child marriage in our communities. When we support girls and boys to stay in school, we are reducing their vulnerability to these harmful practices,” said Ms Loloju.
UNFPA Country Deputy Director Abiodun Oyeyipo said the project is extremely instrumental in fighting harmful practices. “With the solar lanterns, the women will now be able to work for longer hours and be able to earn more and therefore shun FGM as their economic activities,” said Dr Oyeyipo.
He said his organization, in conjunction with other partners, will also link the women in beadwork to the market.
Cooperatives
UNFPA in 2019 supported Ushanga Kenya to implement an initiative dubbed the Johari End FGM Beads Initiative, which aimed to support the production and marketing of jewellery produced by women’s cooperatives in FGM hotspot counties.
The cooperatives have been trained and provided with raw materials to support the commercialisation of their beadwork business and improve members’ earnings.
UNFPA is also working with partners, including the Anti-FGM Board, World Vision, Ushanga Kenya and the Kenya Red Cross to implement programmes that accelerate the abandonment of FGM in 22 hotspot counties.
Pastoralist communities in Samburu have traditionally relied on income from cattle and goats, but with animals dying as a result of the ongoing drought, income generated from beadwork is helping families counter the economic devastation caused by such losses. BY DAILY NATION