HUMAN ACTIVITIES ENDANGER NATURAL WATER SOURCES

It’s the dream for every human being to own a good living house and every person would make all efforts to source for the best building materials available to come up with the best structure possible.

Sand and stones are common in every construction site but what people don’t realize easily is that quarry activities can be quite harmful and they affect the everyday lives of thousands of people.

Mazeras area in Kilifi County is among the places where the best sand is sourced at the Kenyan Coast.

Many trucks make their way to this part of the country to source for sand, construction stones and ballast.

However, despite these mining activities in this area, there lies in the quarry a natural source of clean, fresh water.

According to the residents, the water sourced from here, commonly known as “Mwakatama”, has played a pivotal role particularly during the dry season.

They say initially, green vegetation, big natural trees and heavy rocks symbolized the area before the coming up of the mining activities over the past two decades ago.

“At one time a there was a conflict between the residents and pastoralist communities who wanted to have their cattle to feed on the dense vegetation and drink the water from Mwakatama.

By that time, every person was watchman over the forest and the water was clean,” revealed Mzee Juma Kalume, a 72-year-old man who now spends most of his time at the quarry harvesting sand to earn a living.

This sign post is an indication how important the water point plays to the community

He said that in the old days there was a procedure that would be followed to maintain the water led by Kaya elders who were responsible for cleaning the environment surrounding the water.

Mzee Kalume says that one day an old man went missing with his sheep in the forest for what the local said was failing to comply with the customs associated with the place which was considered to be sacred.

Kilifi County is largely occupied by the Mijikenda community and such areas where natural water source were found were treated with the high dignity.

A girl fetching water at Mwakatama

In such water sources there were special containers made of either coconut shells or baobab husk known as “kaha”. No plastics were used, instead, locals made use of items moulded out of clay to ferry the water to any home.

However, such believes have been gradually finding their way to the grave as now plastic containers are mostly used for fetching and ferrying water, save for a few old men and women who still have the kahas in their homes. These vessels, however, are hardly used by their children and grandchildren.

Among the areas where such water sources are gradually becoming history is Forodoyo at Kasemeni location in Kwale County.

According to the residents, the people were not supposed to construct any structure in the area including residential houses.

“ we are made to understand that people were not supposed to build houses in this area, but the increase in population and demand for land made many to do away with the believe. After the coming of piped water people invaded the area and constructed houses; though am not sure if that was the real reason for the drying of the water.” Said Esther Mbua, a Kasemeni resident.

A similar story is shared in a place Located at a place where Christianity and modern learning is believed to have started over 150 years ago, a few meters from the famous St Paul ACK Church in RabaiKilifi County.

The place earned the name “Migombani”. It was initially characterised by the green vegetation, plenty of banana trees and people with water storage containers due to the famous springs.

However, the area now lies down innocently and deserted, with no activity seemingly going on except for children who now use the constructed pump as their playing ground. Some even answer their call of nature at the then only source of water for Rabai residents.

According to the community and the locals whom we spoke to, the improvising of the spring by constructing a bore hole at Migombani was itself a curse to the place, and that’s why it stopped producing water.

But, according to one Mzee Peter Masha, the problem started after residents were asked to pay a fee to access the water for maintainace of the pump.

“Community negligence and lack of willingness for the community to co-operate in maintaining the borehole well is the genesis of it drying up. It pains to see a borehole which we expected will serve the people of Rabai ward which carries approximately 43,000 people is now drying up. It is worse now with the people of this area facing a lot of water shortage,” he says.

Such superstitions have accompanied such scenes in among the Mijikenda communities and area where natural water sources were found and treated with a lot of respect. Many of these places are dying up with this phenomenon being attributed to the failure of the communities to comply with the traditions they are associated with.

However despite impact of climate change experienced globally Kaya elders in Rabai warn of the loss of the heritage the Mijikenda community as locals have turn against the forest destroying the environment.

 According to Mzee Daniel Mwawara, from Kaya Rabai, locals have turned to destruction of the sacred environment by cutting down the indigenous trees in the forest.

He said the mining of building stones along Kombeni River and Mwakatama is negatively affecting the forest and called on the need for measures to be taken to curb such activities.

Being among the little natural water source remaining, Mwakatama may dry up if human activities are not controlled by the required authorities both from the central and county government.

Scientists, however, have dismissed believes among African communities that are seen as cause of drying of natural ware sources saying there are not proven scientifically adding that there are number of reasons that may lead to drying of springs.

Ibrahim Wangila, an environmental scientist with Eco-Ethics, a nongovernmental organization dealing with environmental issues, said the construction of the infrastructure may be a cause if there’s no expertise involved in the installation process.

“In a spring the flow of water is natural and if construction of pumps is not done correctly, the pipes may be inserted wrongly, thus sealing off the outlet,” says Wangila, adding, “throwing of unwanted materials in the water way can also badly affects the water flow. If the problem is not infrastructural the water would still come out.”

Wangila adds that change in weather pattern has also affected the amount of surface and storm water reducing water infiltration. He says that lack of rainfall has resulted to drying of aquifers leading to lack of enough water for human consumption.

Dilapidated Migombani pump at Rabai

According to him, the drying of springs and other natural water sources will continue to affect human beinghuman activities endanger natural water sourcesHuman activities endanger natural water sources as climate change is real and much is needed to reduce its impact.

“Water consumption is growing every day, leading to the reduction of water reservoirs; and climate change has affected the water cycle in that the increased heat in the atmosphere has amplified evaporation rate hence reducing the surface water,” asserts Wangila.

 He explains that fresh water for consumption from lakes, springs and rivers are drying while ocean water is increasing in volume due to melting of ice.

The environmental scientist called on the need to have the State come up with methods to purify salt water for human consumption.

Wangila also stressed on the need for public private partnership for desalination technology to have more bottled water for consumption as well as increasing employment opportunities to Kenyan youth.

He urged the Kenyan population to protect the wet lands as their destruction has led to infiltration of salt water into fresh water systems.

“Climate change means increase in salt water and reduction of clean water for drinking. It is almost impossible to have a fresh water bore hole in Mombasa as all the reservoirs are destroyed, which means we need to narrow our use of fresh water to human consumption and use salty water for other domestic duties,” concludes Wangila.

KCA CALLS INFORMATION FLOW AT COUNTY LEVELS

The Kenya correspondent association has called on county government to come up with structures to enable free flow of information to enable the public understand what is happening in the devolved systems.

The chairman of the association, William Oloo Janak, noted that there has been difficult in the public through the media in getting the right information from the key players of the devolved system at county levels.

Speaking at Mombasa hotel he admitted that county government was new to Kenyans and there was need for free flow of information to have it work.

“The media plays a critical role in conveying the massage to the public and is in this regard that the governors should come out with clear mechanism and have communication structures and give the exact information to the media.” Said Janak.

KCA chairperson addressing press at a msa hotel

According to him, the governors should feel free to give the real picture of what is happening at county government rather that PR information to build them while nothing might be happening on the ground.

However he noted that every stakeholder is learning about devolution and there is need for commitment for the process of devolution as it’s a system that guarantees participation to the people and service delivery.

Janak challenged the transitional authority to do their best to have the county system picks up among them addressing the issues raised by governors including budgetary allocation.

Speaking during a stakeholders’ forum organized by KCA, the tourism stakeholders called on the need to engage all the players in the sector to increase employment opportunities.

According to Edward Wangechi, program manager,Mombasa and Coast tourist Association, the idea by some county government to do away with beach operators may lead to loss of over 6500 jobs across the coast line.

“The county governments need to engage these people and probably regulate them rather that doing away with them at the name of harassing tourists. What they should do is do away with beach boys who are not registered and leave the genuine operators to earn a living.” He added.

Wangechi noted that the move might have been propagated by key beach players in the industry to deny the local citizen the benefits they rip from the sector and called on a sober approach to deal with the insecurity issues resulting at the beach front.

kca call information stractures at county level

why women are forced to deliver on the road

why women are forced to deliver on the road

After a daylong under the scotching sun, it’s time for a walk along the dilapidated Kibao- Kiche Shika-Adabu road to the nearby river Mnazi mmoja for a shower.

All seems too well, a few meters down the river a group of about five women can be seen, beside them a man with a wheel barrow. By the look of things, it is mission impossible.

Minutes later, a sharp voice of a baby is heard amidst them; the wheelbarrow was actually the only available ambulance to Rabai Health Center about 17 kilometers away. The expectant mother has had to fortunately deliver her baby on the way, and now the baby girl will be called “Menjira” - a Mijikenda name meaning she was born by the roadside.

Such scenarios are not new to Jimba residents of Rabai District in Kilifi County. There are no health facilities in the area, which is essentially an island surrounded by seasonal rivers which make the area inaccessible during the rainy season.

According to residents, it is unbearable during the rainy season as roads can hardly be used as they have never been carpeted since independence. This has forced many expectant women to rely on mid wives during delivery.

Kanze Munga, commonly known here as Mechibega, is among the famous midwives not only in Jimba but also in the neighboring villages in Rabai and Kisurutini locations.

“We have adapted to these problems…As women, we lack privacy as some are forced to deliver their babies on their way to hospitals located across the river. I have been called many times in the middle of the night to go and help an expectant mother at her home,” she says.

Munga, who has never been trained on this trade, expresses confidence of being capable to assess the condition of a baby in their mother’s womb just as is done at the modern clinic, an art that has made her famous in her area.

Many women known as “experts” in assisting in delivery the traditional way, have the quest to help and have a new baby born without considering the health risk they expose themselves to as things like clinical gloves are unavailable.

Munga revealed that once she was advised by the area Assistant Chief to keep records of all the children born and take the same to the nearest dispensary at a later date  for recording before advising the mother to make arrangement for the new born to be registered at the Chiefs office.

“I did not have a chance to step into a class room, before the idea to use my grandsons to record the date and sex of the new born; I had a bottle where after a successful delivery if the baby is a boy I used to put a bean seed in the bottle and a maize seed for a baby girl. This made it possible for any person who wished to know the number of children and gender born here,” revealed Mechibega.

She added that early last year, through the Provincial Administration, they went to Kombeni dispensary, which is the nearest, 7 km away to get induction from health officers on how to handle the new born babies.

To show just how bad the situation is, Munga reveals that she has had to use plastic bags instead of the recommended clinical gloves in many situations as the latter are not available.

“I intend to visit the dispensary as there is one child who is yet to have the name recorded. I will ask the officers if they can give me the gloves instead of handling them with my bare hands.” she revealed.

According to her records, when we visited her in mid March, about ten children had seen the world through Kanze’s efforts of which six are girls and four boys.

Mama Kanze Munga, demonstrate how she uses plastic bags in assisting fellow women in home delivery

Meet Joyce Yaa. She is one among the trained community health workers who at least has knowledge of how safely she can handle and expectant woman.

At every place she is always carrying a bag one can simply mistake with the usual hand bags carried by ladies.

“I am forced to carry all the equipment I use for delivery, because you cannot tell where you are going to meet an expectant mother ready to deliver. I have on several occasions helped fellow women deliver on the road side. That’s why I have to arm myself with the necessary equipment all the time,” Yaa asserts confidently.

She revealed that with the help of AMREF, she acquired training as a community health worker with three other women from Jimba area and graduated about 17 years ago. Already one of her colleagues has passed on.

Yaa stresses that the poor infrastructure in Jimba has worsened the situation as the currently common means of transport - motor bikes - are not safe for an expectant women. She says these can easily kill the baby on transit to the health facility.

She revealed that her efforts in partnership with other women in the area to start a women group to  sustain themselves as well as bring medical services near to the community is yet to yield  fruits.

“We formed a women group by the name Jeza Zhomu (Mijikenda for Try Hard) over 20 years ago with the aim of bringing services to our locality but we only managed to solve the water problem,” she said.

She noted that the health sector and the infrastructure is still wanting and soon it will come a reality.

Jimba stretches to about 13square kilometer

with a population of about 5,600 people according to 2009 census. It’s an area surrounded by two rivers at both sides of the road and when it rains the rivers normally cut communication due to flooding thus affecting learning and all other activities in the area.

Depite the Kibao-kiche/Shika-Adabu road that cuts across one of the river at Darajani being a classified road E932, nothing has been done to carpet the road or construct a bridge. This is causing sleepless nights to the residents because life is hard even during the dry season.

The poor state of road is now attracting insecurity cases particularly at night where incidents of cattle theft have been reported on several occasions.

Section of Kibaokiche-Shika Ababu road at Darajani

YOUTH URGED TO VOLUNTEER

Youth in Rabai have raised an alarm over the manner in which youth are involved in drug abuse in the society.

Led by chairman, Ruruma Youth group, Levy Chifuka, he called on youth to form groups and volunteer in community work as it gives a chance to learn more.

He was speaking after leading a cleaning exercise at Makanzani dispensary, in Ruruma Rabai district where he insisted on the need for youth to engage in productive group activities.

“There is need for the youth to be engaged more in productive activities in our community and the best way is for them to form groups and get noticed and guided on what to do. We have learn how to handle the sick in our community and how to keep our environment clean at our home level.” Noted Chifuka.

The medical officer in charge of Makanzani Hospital, Kasichana Kalama, uploaded Ruruma youth for their initiative to clean the area and revealed that the management has difficult time in cleaning the compound due to inadequate staff.

Ruruma youth group members during a clean up exercise at Makanzani dispensary

However, the stressed on the need for clean and secure environment for all citizens and called on elite youth in the society to lead the campaign.

“This is a nice job and I encourage you to continue and educate the community more on the importance of clean environment. If we have clean environment the risk of some diseases like Malaria can be reduced in our society.” Said the doctor.

According to Danstun Mumba, the national youth chairperson, Rabai sub county, there is need for the leadership of the area to pressure the investors in Rabai to employ local youth from the area.

He noted despite the area being rich in investors many youth are still languishing due to lack of employment opportunities despite most of them being qualified.  

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Mechanism to preserve local culture launched in Rabai-Kilifi County

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The war to shun away traditional practices that are behind the clock has been the tune that has been danced in almost all the 42 tribes in Kenya calling for the need to embrace modern way of life and technology in day to day lives.

However there are some practices that need to be practiced to safeguard the originality of each community and probably transit the same from generation to generation.

Coast region has been known for being a hotspot for tourism generating millions of revenue from tourism sector, but stake holders in the industry insist more is yet to be tapped in selling the Mijikenda culture.

Rabai is well known in the annals of history as the place where Christianity and modern learning in Kenya started well over 150 years ago.

 In 1994 the Krapf Memorial Museum was founded to give formal and a perpetual reminder to monumental events during the advent of early missionaries.

Today this place represents a mixture of the history of Christianity, slavery and the Mijikenda culture whose evidence is still in place.

Most Mijikenda are nowadays either Muslim or Christians due the assimilation into modern cultures some on the other hand still stick to their indigenous beliefs.

In a move to show case the Mijikenda culture, at Kaya Rabai, an initiative by Kaya elders, traditional dancers and others stakeholders, have teamed up and come up with a cultural village where in this modern world people can now enjoy and learn on how the Rabai community used to live before the coming of missionaries.

Its “Rabai Museum cultural center” also known to “Kaya Mudzi Muvya” (Kaya new village” where visitors can enjoy the real life or original Rabai person.

According to Mohamed Kadilo, the project manager, the aim for the initiative was to sell out the rich culture of Rabai community.

“Our village tour offer a real life experience dated back to the 18^th century away from all comfort of modern technology and enlighten visitors on various cultural practices that are performed to date.” He revealed

10yrs, Maraga Washe, a syd 3 pupil at Benyoka,playing 5 drums at ago

Kadilo admitted that Mijikenda Kaya elders have been the instrument of leadership before the coming of Christianity and modern technology, adding that they survived without the current modern transport and used traditional healers to deal with diseases among others.

Such innovation by the Kaya elders helped the community to combat vital life challenges that has made Kayas to be strong to present days; some of these ideas are not known to most of the current generation who are overwhelmed by modern life style.

At the cultural center that is expected to emphasize on Rabai community among the nine tribes making Mijikenda.

According to Kadilo, their interest is to encourage more on domestic tourism as their aim is to raise funds to cater for more on education of the young health among other basic needs.

Demonstration how traditional marriage were conducted

“As we motivate our people to preserve their culture, we intend to set out a kitty to cater for education of those parents whom will be involved in the activities at the village including students who play drums. As the committee we will be monitoring the progress of these children in school as we help them nature and practice their culture.” He added calling on need to mobilize schools to visit the cultural village to learn more on the Rabai culture.

Mijikenda community has been known for its rich sacred Kaya forest, but in recent times, an increasing disregard for traditional values and a rising demand for land, fuel wood, iron ore, and construction and carving wood materials have put severe pressure on many of the Kaya forests.

Over the last 50 years, many of the kayas have been drastically reduced in size, and land that was communal property has been registered under individual title and sold to nationals or foreign speculators

According to Daniel Garero, a Rabai Kaya elder, there is need to protect the forest as they have become a target,

“ there is a danger facing our forest as the rate at which people are destroying them is alarming and if nothing is done our next generation will know nothing about these sacred places. It’s in these sacred places that we have been doing our rituals asking for rain from God, but if nothing is done all will lost.” Noted the elder.

Garero insisted on the need for peace and unity for the project to yield the intended fruits to the community.

The cultural village is situated at the heart of the Kaya Rabai forest where Dr. Krapf is said to have lived with the community for two years from 1844-1846; located about 25km North West of Mombasa off the Mombasa-Nairobi highway on the Mazeras Kaloleni road about half an hour drive from Mombasa.

Kayas are among the twelve elements inscribed by the 2003 UNESCO convention for the safeguarding of the intangible cultural heritage and was listed on 1^st October 2009; where tradition and practices associated to the Kayas in the sacred forests of the Mijikenda are recognized.

The cultural center is aimed to create opportunities for the community to earn a leaving as they make a transition of their culture and traditions from generation to generation.

Traditional dancers entertaining guest during the launch.

These traditions and practices protect the Mijikenda’s codes of ethics and governance systems, and include prayers, oath-taking, burial rites and charms, naming of the newly born, initiations, reconciliations, marriages and coronations.

  

The use of natural resources within the Kayas, which are sources of valuable medicinal plants, is regulated by practices that have contributed to the conservation of their biodiversity.

Speaking during the launch of the project the chairperson of Kilifi county, Tourism committee, Naftali Kombo, challenged the leaders of the project and the entire community to spearhead a campaign to raise tree seedlings for indigenous trees found in Kaya to be planted in the forest.

“Now that we have started this program, the challenge is how to restore the face of our kayas because we have turned evil to our sacred forests we need to plant more trees. As we focus on improving our economic well being with our culture we should not forget some of our activities are threat.” He adviced.

Stella Mutta, project assistant of “Smallholder innovation for resilience” (Sifor) who are partners in implementing the project for the community, there was need to get back to traditional means to deal with the impact of climate change globally.

“we need to learn from our elders how they used to survive during the dry period, it’s evident that the rains received are not adequate so we want the community have a test of what used to be done to deal with the challenges that we face our lives.” She noted

Speaking during the official opening of the cultural village, Kilifi county deputy governor Kennedy Mwakombo, called on the Mijikenda community to respect Kaya elders and challenged them to be proud to sell their culture.

He revealed in the new devolved system of government, the Kaya elders will play a pivotal role in improving tourism through cultural practices and celebrations.

“ as Kilifi we are focusing to have tourism to be among the leading sector of Kilifi county economy, so we need to embrace such project and unite with all our leaders for the success this project.” Said Mwakombo

At the same time the deputy governor insisting on the stressed on the need to have leaders lead by example in embracing the project and market the village outside Rabai and other parts of the republic.

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