Torn Between Two Extremes

“We have been burying people [elderly men] who have committed suicide due to the current drought…they have lost hope with deaths of their sole livelihood [livestock],” lamented Mr. Kulei, a church elder at the Kenya Evangelical Lutheran Church in Kajiado, Kenya.

“One of the deceased was not sick. He only looked at the carcasses and collapsed.”

The Maasai people (mainly pastoralists) have been on the move in search of pasture and grazing land for their livestock. “We have not received adequate rains for the last 4 years,” noted Kulei. “Our people [Maasai] have been out for long duration, covering thousands of kilometers to ensure the survival of livestock,” said Kulei.  Villagers in Lodokelani, Orkekoyore, Eldamat, and Matopato have buried many people. One pastoralist formerly had a herd of 2,000 cattle, and now only has 10 remaining. “Livestock that succumb to drought are abandoned as the rest move in search for pasture.” more