Change of climate conditions in Kajiado County in Kenya’s Rift Valley Province, local community at Isinya Location has been forced to abandon the usual Maasai pastoralist lifestyle of keeping herds of cattle and goats in search for alternative adaptable livelihoods.

The County’s vast fields earlier used for grazing have since been converted into human settlements and flower farm plantations.

The much-tauted Konza Techno City that partly sits on Kajiado land, the evolution of Kitengela Township in the County, and shrinking land for settlement in Nairobi which say “Kajiado is the bedroom of Nairobi” has attracted investors who are all eyeing Kajiado’s traditional grazing land for development. This has had a direct impact on residents whose lifelines are based on livestock keeping.

With the changing climatic conditions that in many cases are characterized by prolonged droughts, the residents have no choice but to seek for alternative lifestyles.

The Maasai farmers of Isinya Location have decided to reduce their cattle and diversify into organic crop farming with the help of Dr. Anita, “Chakula kwa Sisi – food for us” Project. 

“I vividly remember the year 2005 when many farmers lost a herd of 1,000 cattle and 3,000 goats to drought, followed by another greater drought of the year 2000 to 2023 which also killed almost everything, both livestock and vegetation,” says Rev. Joshua Kikayaya, a local pastor to the community and Coordinator of the Project. 

That is one of the major reasons Isinya Maasai farmers had to reduce their animal stocks from thousands to slightly above 10. They have had to diversify to crop farming which had never been part of livestock farming in the Maasai community.

“Today, the Maasai man eats vegetables, maize, beans, and all kinds of fruits. It was not part of our culture to till the land as a source of food stuff, sell it for money to earn a living, and also pay school fees for our children.”

Climate is changing very fast and as a result, life is changing too. The only way to survive is by changing our lifestyles, our diets, and the way we look at things. That is exactly what the Maasai at Isinya are doing to adapt to climate change by applying Agricultural Techniques by Dr. Anita Handa.

Despite the baking heat from the sun in Kajiado, the Maasai of Isinya farmers plant different types of trees that are important for repairing the damage caused by climate, e.g. Moringa trees, Avocado trees, Orange trees, Banana trees, Guava trees, and other indigenous trees. This is a lesson learnt from climate expert Dr. Anita Handa. According to experts, trees can sequester Carbon Dioxide. 

Thirty (30) pastoralists who have been converted into conventional farmers say they have learned many lessons from Dr. Anita Handa. Agricultural extension, e.g. practicing irrigated horticulture, composting, soil covering, mixed cropping, and planting of fruit trees in between crops, and above all, water harvesting. 

30 Farmers have turned quarter, half or other one acres of land into an income generating piece where he/she grows onions, kales, spinach, cabbages among other vegetables using drip irrigation and organic techniques with the tough climatic conditions and the shrinking grazing land, we are deemed to suffer if we cannot diversify, a practice that has never been a part of the traditional Maasai community.

“Chakula kwa Sisi – Food for us” Project directed by Dr. Anita Handa was meant to build the capacity of smallholder farmers and enable them to climate change and food security in the community.

Here below is the list of 30 pastoralist farmers beneficiaries of Dr. Anita Handa’s project. (Irrigated Area). 

During the normal season, the above-named farmers grow beans, green grams, cowpeas, maize, fruits (pawpaw, mangoes, oranges) and other nonfruit trees such as Moringa, on one to three acres of land. Most of the farmers are expecting a good harvest by the end of February 2024. 

Water harvesting techniques, soil moisture conservation, keeping of small animals that consume less and drinking less water, planting crops that mature fast enough to escape the drought period, and practicing organic farming are all lessons we have learnt from Dr. Anita Handa.

May the Lord bless you, long life (Chakula kwa Sisi)!