A new beginning

“MZUNGU!! HOW ARE YOU??”

While it is nice people are so friendly and welcoming in Kitui, it can be overwhelming being almost famous because your skin is white. Mzungu means white person. There is no hiding or blending in here, so I guess you can say I am well taken care of! But really, I do feel very safe and cared for.

I have been living with my new family and working for just over 2 weeks. Home is very nice. Mama Faith treats me like her 3^rd child making sure I am comfortable, fed and happy. She teaches me how to cook Kenyan food and helps me learn Swahili and Kamba. Her husband has passed and both her kids have moved away from home so it is just her and I with the 7-year-old neighbour boy visiting frequently.

< Mary (SASOL coworker), host mom, Joy (MCC staff), Faith (sister) and myself

Work has been lots of learning, and realization I have lots of learning to do. I try to spend as many days going to visit farmers and projects as I can since that is where the work is really happening. Different days I have joined different people on the work they are doing.

The first day out in the field we met with about 14 ladies who just joined the Conservation Agriculture (CA) program. We spent the day teaching them the reason, methodology and practical application of CA. CA is a 4 year project, now in the 2^nd year, SASOL is running with the Canadian Foodgrains Bank (CFGB) aiming to bring 4,500 farmers to practicing CA. CA has proven to increase crop production which is essential for the farmers in the Kitui county as lack of moisture and nutrients are 2 of the biggest hindrances. 

Day 2 and 3 myself and Janet (coworker) got on a matatu (local van/bus) for an hour then both got on a bodaboda (motorcycle taxi) together for another half hour until we found our first group of farmers waiting for us in the shade of a large mango tree. This group and the second group are part of the horticulture projects SASOL is doing. We discussed with them how the demonstration fields were going to prepared and used. Both fields were going to be irrigated and onions were to be planted. While this area is also under a drought, the water table is very high and if this coming rain brings sufficient rains they should be able to grow high quantities of high value crops.

A farmer proudly showing off his watermelon harvest >

< The onion demo field waiting to be prepped with irrigation 

Day 4 in the field was with Ben. Our first stop was at the Maito primary school. A group of 6 Dutch university students are coming for 3 months to build the 2^nd leg of the school. The building plans were confirmed, parents were informed and recruited for help and a place for the students to stay was found. They Dutch students arrive in a few days.

From there we met with the government highways department in KwaVonza town to discuss permission to plant trees along the highway. A project aiming towards water retention and erosion control in an area where there is lots of rain water drained away that could be captured providing some relief during the dry season.

< Grade 2 class in a temporary classroom

 < Maito school

< a large gully that could have been prevented. Filling it is one of SASOL's projects.

< Planting trees along this highway running from KwaVonza will help capture rain water as well as reduce erosion.

While I could go on about the good work SASOL is doing, it was encouraging meeting external people that are being creative, brave and aggressive in finding ways to better the land, the community and their life.