Kitengela, Kenya
Santa Fe, NM
WHERE TRADITION
MEETS TECHNOLOGY
nairobi nairobi National Game Park lies on the osuthern border of the city. The dark green line is the Mbagathi River. The Kitengela communit lives south of the river, all the way to the Tanzanian border. This area is known as the Kapiti plains. The city of Kitengela, with 300,000 inhabitants, is the fastest growing city in Kenya.National Game Park lies on the osuthern border of the city. The dark green line is the Mbagathi River. The Kitengela communit lives south of the river, all the way to the Tanzanian border. This area is known as the Kapiti plains. The city of Kitengela, with 300,000 inhabitants, is the fastest growing city in Kenya.
CHALLENGES
drought climate change predators privatization urbanization lack of marketable skills
loss of culture & tradition poverty
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This Maasai community of approximately 7,000 people lives in a savannah area known as the Kaputei Plains, which stretches from the southern boundary of Nairobi National Game Park (dark green) south to the Tanzanian border. It is an area of gently rolling hills, dotted with houses, fences and dirt roads. It is collectively known as Kitengela, as is the rapidly developing town located on the eastern side of the area. During colonization by the British, this community was forcibly moved from their more fertile lands in the Rift Valley. They have occupied Kitengela for over a century and adapted well to their new environment, but they face many challenges in today's world. The Maasai do not hunt, but live in harmony with wildlife. They are a vital part of the equation for a sustainable environment on thee plains.
THE KITENGELA COMMUNITY
drought
In Kitengela, over 300,000 cattle have died of starvation since October, 2022. The Maasai culture is based on cattle, which are used to pay school fees and bride prices and function like a bank. The belief is that, as long as you have two or three cows and can breed with your neighbors' cattle, you an survive. Without cattle, a Maasai is not a Maasai.
privatization
Kitengela is extremely valuable real estate. Many Maasai landholders are forced to sell in order to survive. New landholders always fence in their land. This reduces grazing area for livestock and wildlife and interferes with seasonal migratory routes for species like wildebeest and zebra.
urbanizaton
The town of Kitengela has grown to over 300,000 people in just 10 years. It is an unplanned, sprawling mass that threatens to rapidly eat up the plains and the Maasai community.
In despair, herders let their cattle roam freely in the streets of Kitengela, where they survive on garbage.
ACACIA MOYO
Where Tradition Meets Technology
ikimann@earthlink.net acaciamoyo@gmail.com
19 Espira Court, Santa Fe, NM 87508
+1646 479-5884
PO Box 76, Kitengela, Kenya, 00241
+254741857642
ACACIA MOYO - WHERE TRADITION MEETS TECHNOLOGY is fiscally sponsored by Creative Visions Foundation (CVF). CVF is a publicly supported 501c3, which supports Creative Activists who use the power of media and the arts to affect positive change in the world.