1st month in Shianda: karibu!

My first month out of six in this tiny village in Western Kenya has gone. Time has been passing at very different paces each day, according to my mood of the day.

Looking for a way to make coffee

Certainly I had expectations and ideas about how my life could have been here, but you can never really know until you find yourself experiencing it. On one hand, I adapted easily to the Shianda’s way of life, despite many small and big things Europeans like me are not used to. For what concerns housing, I got used to cook on a gas cylinder in absence of a stove (this is twice more difficult when you are Italian and need to make coffee with your moka), taking showers without any shower cubicle in the bathroom, washing my clothes and linens by hand since washing machines are an unnecessary luxury when electricity and water are subject to interruptions. I believe these interruptions would make any Western person seriously aware of the lucky part of the world they come from: not having access to tap water for days can be a real challenge. This means you have to collect water from “emergency” tanks in your garden and use this to wash your dishes and brush your teeth. If these instances sound extreme to you, be aware that this is actually the most comfortable lifestyle you can dream of in Kenyan countryside villages like Shianda.

Basins for hand washing

While adapting to this all accommodation condition has been surprisingly fast, on the other hand I had a hard time giving up some of my deep-rooted habits. While during the day you can go for a run, some shopping, lunch out, or just a walk without worrying, but even enjoying the sun and some friendly chitchat with the locals, the same cannot be said for the evening. You have to worry for two major things when the sun goes down around 7 p.m.: mosquitos and your own safety when out. Night mosquitos may carry malaria, therefore you get ready in time by closing doors and windows, spraying mosquito repellant and pulling down a net over your bed. This if you are home, as you often happen to be since going around during nighttime is not the wisest idea. This situation was very hard for me to accept. I am used to live in European cities where it is common to go out for dinner or to a club during the night, but such kinds of entertainment do not even exist in these small villages, and even if they did, it would be dangerous. Eventually, you find other ways to spend your time within your safe four walls and go to sleep at 10 p.m.

My writing may sound very miserable, but I find it interesting to share this totally different way of living, with both its difficulties and positive aspects. Of course, in the end, these last exceed the early. Mondo and Wefoco’s (Mondo’s local partner) work here is of great importance to the people of Shianda. Feeling part of the community while contributing to Wefoco’s mission is something of great value. 

Visiting the community groups of women who live in the surroundings of Shianda made me aware of how much they rely on our help to face the many challenges that mark their lives. Many women in this area decide to join together as a group in order to share their finances, land and knowledge to achieve goals they could never reach by themselves. For example, during the last few years these groups have been joining Mondo and Wefoco’s poultry project: they were given an initial number of chickens with the purpose of generating income through the selling of eggs or chicks born from those laid eggs.

I have been visiting some groups to ask them how this and other activities are going and which are the main challenges to them nowadays. They told me they are still practicing chicken farming, selling eggs and/or chicks to pay for children’s stationary or putting this money in a common fund for any emergency a member could face in future. At the same time, they asked for some advice on how to improve their yields. They are increasingly worried about droughts, pests and fertilizers prices. For what concerns the latest issue, they are trying to rely on their manure compost only, but for the other two there is little they can do. Irrigation is possible only in few cases when there is a water source nearby, while finding an affordable and effective pesticide for insects damaging the crops is not always simple.

13th April: visiting Msalaba Women Group 

My aim is to help these women and their groups find a successful and sustainable way to generate income through farming despite all these current problems. Developing consciousness towards the market functioning, to be more competitive, choose the best crops and agricultural practices for specific kind of soil, location, and weather conditions, together with animal farming, can bring to secure revenues and an improvement in the lives of these people.

13th April: visiting Msalaba Women Group 

No matter how life is different here, how some days can be harder than others, what really matters to me is feeling like we can go further by cooperating together, and witness the results of this team work. 

Msalaba Women Group's irrigation system powered by photovoltaic energy 

14th April: Esukura Women Group's poultry cage for the night