Once
in Maasailand, one cannot miss the sight of a woman either at work, tending
animals, carrying a baby while breast feeding, fetching fuel wood from the surrounding
thicket, carrying water containers, or building and repairing a manyatta (1).
In between her burdensome chores of the day the Maasai woman is also a beader
with such intangible high skills built into her cultural knowledge and
practices. Most of her struggles are shaped by circumstances and the challenges
of her time including deep seated patriarchal attitude. The woman is simply
faced by the “triple burden”: to reproduce, to produce and to bear all the
other Social Roles. This report is limited to and is the result of a
qualitative research carried out between 27th and 30th
Dec. 2010 in Ole Sokorte, Lodariek and
Ngon’g hills villages of the Maasai community in Kajiado North. Ole sokorte for instance is a very far
flanged semi arid region with acute water shortage. Lodariek and Ngong hill have similar challenges but of lesser
magnitude compared to Olesokorte.
The
oblong shaped in most cases grass thatched manyatta, is not only the dwelling
place for the Maasai but symbolically the warehouse of Maasai culture. Maasai
culture is a culture oiled by patriarchy in which men have the monopoly of all
decision making process. However, manyatta is very important and of symbolic
value to the woman. The woman is the one who builds the manyatta sometimes with
the help of her co-wives but in most cases they do it alone. The manyatta is
what expresses the woman’s moral standing in the Maasai society besides being
the socializing crucible.
A
close study of the manyatta reveals how important a woman is to the Maasai, a
status that is never recognized and in most cases unappreciated since it is
deemed natural and the way by which the society maintain its order. A standard
manyatta is partitioned in not less than six ‘rooms’. There is the centre room
which doubles as sitting room and a kitchen with two pillars in the middle (in
most cases with string(s) tied across them) meant to protect the children from
approaching the ever burning fire. On the right of the middle room is a
permanently fixed bed (larger than all the other beds) prepared for the man socially identified as the heads of the
household. The big bed is made for the men because it is within the
practice of men to entertain many other visiting or passing by men with whom
they do share beds. On the left of the sitting room cum kitchen is the woman’s
bed smaller compared to that of the man and is meant to serve her and the young
children. Then there is another room for initiated men and who are not yet
married together with a room for the calves and the kids (young goats). The
manyatta is considered complete with a store.
“A Maasai man is not supposed to walk swinging
his hands like a woman. He must always carry at least a stick, or a club and a
sword a symbol of him being in control of all human happenings”
(James from Ole
sokorte – Kajiado North District)
The
woman is not only the social engine but also the link between the man-father
and the children (both genders). The man cannot address the children directly
at the same time he is culturally socialized not to show affection to the
children because that would mean spoiling them. Once the boys are initiated
they will join the ranks of the warani the
volunteer warrior lot who are almost at the level of necrophilia and charged
with the mandate of defending the community and the culture of the Maasai. They
are rough, demanding, macho men composed of an age set that is often socialized
to express masculinity in all its strength. With graduation to adulthood
therefore the men can be addressed by their fathers and other male elders but
the girls will stay under the shadow of their mothers until they are married
(even after being circumcised)(2)
The
institution of marriage among the Maasai allocates more powers to men than
women. In that kind of power relation
the women are assigned the subordinate status in decision making processes,resource control (land and animals)
education and by implication employment opportunities. Women cannot own
land or animals even if they buy them by themselves while their husbands are
still alive. When the husband dies the custody of resources would be passed
over to the elder son who will assume the full authority of the father
including disciplining other siblings especially the female regardless of their
age. Those women without
a
girl child are the most disadvantaged because as they say ‘no one would take
care of them in their matrimonial land.’
Even
though they have no direct access to means of production (land and animals),
the Maasai women are strong, visionary and with good disposition to make
headways in economic development. They always struggle to make ends meet by
burning and selling charcoal and above all through the sale of their beaded
items. Beading besides being commercial activity is a cultural practice which
produces products that are ornamental and functional as well as regalia for
special ceremonies like marriage and initiation.
The
entrepreneurial spirit of the Maasai women is vivid and their zeal a force to
reckon with. This is the part that Ethical
Fashion Program has tapped into in order to assist the Maasai women in
their development endeavors. It is a spirit of development that is not given
but exists already in them provoked by their unbalanced culture. Through Social
office of the Ethical Fashion project within its focal coordinating company –
Ethical Fashion Africa Ltd, there have been efforts to help the Maasai women
identify their strength and achievements in order to come to the realization
and that emphatic assurance that YES
THEY CAN DO IT.
In the spirit of harambee, which is a pull together doctrine of the self – help
groups, the Maasi women have chosen consciously to alter the power relations
entrenched in their culture by economic means.
They are not preoccupied with toppling their men folk from their dominance but
empowering themselves in terms of economic power and education. They understand
very well what they stand to benefit with their economic empowerment which
includes bolstering their participation
effectively in decisions that affect their lives. For example Maasai women
from Namanga, from Ngo’ng hills, from Lodariek and ole sokorte - Kajiado North
are already educating both their children with emphasis on the girl child whom
the society seems not to care for adequately.
In
the Ethical Fashion Africa Social Impact Assessment (see the report here),
there are measurable indicators which show that instead of overpowering the men, through their earning Maasai women
gained a qualitative positional capacity to affirm and claim their rights, and
to argue against the unbalanced order of their society. For example when
they restocked the animals after the drought, their men counterparts began to
respect them more and more. Much of that was achieved through their
participation in the giant Coop (the Africa Community Totes) which came at the
climax of the drought and famine(3).
In the same token their men have come to acknowledge their contribution,
especially towards household needs and the education of children.
“We Maasai women do not save in the
mainstream banking systems. Our banks are in our animals. We may not have the
ultimate authority over them once in the kraal but the fact remains that our
future is secure thanks to heavens favor. You cannot withdraw easily from the
animals because our markets are also quite far. Jackline Nareyu – Enduata Women group Ngon’g hills
The Maasai
are agricultural pastoralist whose attachment to animals is a symbiotic
phenomenon. Their animals are everything. Some of them do joke that a Maasai
can forgo ten million shillings for ten herds of cattle. They are so connected
to animals, which also provide for about 80% of their meals(4).
This is why they don’t take pride in saving in the banks but in animals. They
may use the banking systems - especially mobile banking - just for simple
transactions from their customers or relatives living elsewhere.
The
low use of the banking systems is a result of ledger fees, deductions and the
fact that above all, there are no banks operating in this part of the
territory, but only a few mobile banking systems to deposit or withdraw money. Furthermore,
Maasai women have no access or control on land and their access to loans using
title deeds are impossible without the help of their husbands or sons, another
a rare combination of solace.
This report in relation to
work of EFAL
In
light of the research findings and in-depth knowledge of the Maasai women,
Ethical Fashion Africa has embarked on the following consideration;
-
Planning and implementing a literacy program
which has arisen from their need to better manage their business
-
Supply the women with orders within their skill
base and capacity whenever available
-
Sensitize them on environmental issues; why
cutting down of trees to burn charcoal is counterproductive to their economic
well being and in effect an interference with the ecosystem thus adversely
affecting their lives as pastoralists.
-
Empower the women to affirm their being, build
their capacity in new designs and creative techniques, as well as getting
exposed to modern business practices.
-
A
Manyatta is a Maasai dwelling place oblong in shape; built with sticks, a
mixture of cow dung and ash and is grass roofed. It is just about 4 -5 fit
raised from the ground.
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The Maasai do circumcise women. This was not expressly revealed to me but the
topic kept creping spontaneously in my talks with them. This maybe because the
practice is legislated against in Kenya thus has gone underground.
-
The
year 2009 sow Kenya experience the worst drought that wiped out almost all the
animals. The Maasai community as their other pastoralist communities were the
worst hit by that wrath of Mother Nature thus plunged in the most awkward
situation of food insecurity.
-
They
have been forced by circumstances to adjust their menu and learn to eat other
kind of food.