Analyzing Kenya's Sugar Industry Competitiveness Through ...
Interim Report for a Study of Income Generation and its Effects among Women's Groups in Kenya's...
Transcript of Interim Report for a Study of Income Generation and its Effects among Women's Groups in Kenya's...
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INgEBIil NEFONf
FOE A SIIDT OF II{COUE TSFTiIERJIIIIOII
AIII} ItrS EEEECTS
AI,l0IIC lf0lfig$rs CROIIPS
It{ mlrtts coAsilr PRovrl{cE
Hartin l{aLsh
subnitteal to l{orlcl Rlucation Inc.1
Bostonl Massaohusettsr U.SoA. 1
Jrrne 1986.
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CONT$ITS-
P f g f a C g . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . o . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . o . . . . o - . . . i l
o v E R v l E 1 t . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . o . . . . . . . 1
AGI{IRATE WOMEI!$ CROI]P, DIANI LoCjUIION.... . . . . o... . .14
AI'KSssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssII WO!{mItS' GROIIPT JISANL LOCA$f0N... ....... .....{!
I{OMEUIS GROUPT Pol{GlilHIDrlfit LOC,!$rON.. ......77
3Ol,lAIfI lJOl'lBIrS G?OIIP, I'IACARINI LOC,![IIO]I.. .. . . . . .. . .109
I i lCOlj IE 6f, ]$IER.0SION AND fTS EEFECIS.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . lJZ
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Preface
This report presentE tb€ prelioinarTr fincti.nge of an otFgping
proggarrno of r€search (1983- ) teing condusted on uome1ls grounts in
Kenyars Coast Provincs b6r lforlct ftlucation fnc. (Boston, Mass.) in
collaboratioa w'ith Tototo Eone Industrdes (Uorntasa). The flnclings
presented here are based prina,rily upon flelclwor{c rrnd.ertaken between
Augrr.st 1985 ana FebnurSr 1986 lcith 4 lototo-spoaeored gtoupso A
second perioct of fielclworltc is now undenragr. llhe results of eanlier
pbases of th,e reEeacch proglatme are aLso taken into account: lts
ftrll coaclrrslons shoulcl be ava.ilab}e soneti"ne in 1987; I:a wr{.ting
anrd researching this interim report the author ba.s enjoyed. the firll
support of aad. tenefited oonsiderably frorn clisctrssion rrl,th both tbe
Direstor and. sta,ff of tototo anil his colleagues (and. employe$) in -
tiorld. Bluca,tibno- So then arid tb.e viJ.lagers who received' liim so weLL1
special. thanks a.re d.us.
leartin ttalsh
Mombasa
June 1!86
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o'lriRwll
lfomenr s groupE do. not operate in a soci.l v&ollllno Any analysis of iheir
roLe antl inpaet rmrst be situatecl in a,n. arlequate d'escription' of their wicler
sdcial a,ad ecoaonio envLronment. Soth pl'anners and researchers have failecl to
take srrffioient acaount of political economy a,t the looal level and, the
constraints lt inposee upoir the operation of tro.ment s grorlpsr The foI1ow5-rrg
reportl based. upon a. studly of sbnenrs groups a.nc[ their incoc're-generating
projeo'be ia K;WatE Coast Provincee renedies this situation"
In i-bs initial d.esi€rr. tlre study ran into sirdlar diffi@lties by. focusing
upon the. inpast of trogenrs gloup nembership arxcl inoome generation upon fertility
rel,ater1 variables. Sunregr d.ata; hor'reverl demonstrated. a negS-i$ibLe relation.
Ehis fjnding oaly becomes intelligible in temi of tbe interpretative
f r a , m e w o r k w h i c h t h e c o m p I e t e c L s t u d y 9 a n a 1 y s i n g i n d . e . b a i 1 t h e o p e r a i i o n o f � �
r.lonents itxcome-generating projects, provicles. This fra;rer'rork is surnmarised'
''be3.or.r1 arnplifiedl. aucl lllustrated. in ihe for:r case s'budies tririch foLlowe and-
related. systenatically to specific tqoios (incluiting attitrxles to fertility) in
the conclnd.ing section of the reporto This provicles a sor:nder basis than has
hithe:rto been avallable for the forrnuLation of pol.icy recornnendati.ons 'trith
regard to tromenrs groups a,nd. their incorne ganeration projects"
Ca,pi-Falism vs. household- economy.
The lcey to unrierstand.ing tire operation of liomell s gfo'Llps a,nd success or
othertrise of their income-generating projects is to be fouird. in the relation
between J.ocaL (indigenous) sociaL formations a,nil the foroes of .capital-ist
penetration r*rich are r.lorking to,tra,nsform therno lhe essential point is tirat
this transfornatj.on is far-fl:* conplete. Indigenous for"mations have been
rnod.ifiecl tnrt rarely oaptruecl outrigbt btrr capital. In marqr respects they
renain, strongly r4sistartt to capitalist penetrationo This is particuld,rLy
eviclent algnS the KAnyan,coast, where the .people
of.Idombasars hinterlancl
have.long been brancLecl tbacli:r.rarclr for their apparent relucte,nce eitirer to
engage in (nig3ant) wage labour on any scale or to arlopt motierrr nethod.s of
farmiag a.rrtl procluce for the narket. l{hile capita} prel-Is in one clirection,
the .stt:uotrrre*. of indigenous econony provid.e via.,bLe. alVem,atives for tbe
investncent of Labour and. cash and. continue to pu]l in another.
lleither of tb.ese forbes is monolithic. Differentl sometiroes com;etingl
. fraotions or' interests of capital can b.e identifiedL - inter:ra,'biona11 .national
' and. incligenous (iocaL); along r.ritb their varior:s agents - foreign conpanies'
and. lI.GOel. the stater ancl LooaL entrepren€'utrsr Indigenous social forrnationsl
alreacly no&ified in differing clegrees'by th,esa interests, vary coilsiclerably
1from one location to anotber.' They share in comnon the fac-l that procluction
, i" precl.oninantly organised. at the jbevoL of inctividr:.al household.s uhich retdin
a largg ilegree of control over the prinoipal means of production: 1an4 e.nd'
tbe'laborrr of their nemberso l'Iomen, vhether -#oop
menbers or not, are first
and foremost members of bousehold.s and as such are subject to tbe d.ecisionst \ I
taken rcithin then. tlomenrs g?oupsr tbeir income-generating proiects icl-ealIy
frrncti6ning l.!ke small capitalist'enterprises; ' stancl ai; the critical- ju:roture
of these oppo"ing forcesl oapitalist ancl household economyi and' rnay be
captur.ed. or e,t Least severe3.y constraineiL by one or. the other.
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A d-evelornontal schena.
llhe operation of tb.ese cons-braints varj.es aocording to the stage of a,
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grouprs (or projeotts) tlevelopment. [hree main stages ca.n be idsntifiecl.. \
t 1gbe first Ftager axperi,eqcerl in all casdsr is oharaoterisecl by lack of ma,jor \
fiucls ancl clomiaated..'-Uy tbe-search for these. llhe second.r pivotalrftog",
. wUicU maqr g?oups have yet to reachl .sees the acbpevenent of tbis goal tbrouSlr
( the injection of oa.pita,l from the outsid.el allowing tire establishnent of a
najor project. Depend.ing upon the nature of the pro'ject a group rna4r then
eitb,er revert io tne initial stage (tfris is particurlarl-y the case r,iith r'relfare
t proJeots) orr in cleveloping an income-generating project or enterprise, nove
on to tbe third, rrith all its aitenclant clifficuLties.
( Stage one. Fron their inoeptidn'groups a,re strongly irrfluenced ir\ their
organisation a,nd. goals by state cLefinecl H.eveloprnent obje.ctives a.nd- are fornal-I'y
tierl. to these W regiqtering with the I'Iinistry of 6\rLture and. Social Services.
t Ae it relates to the womenrs group prog?amne state. clefined d'evelopnent has a
doubLe aspect. First ln its emphasis upgn a basj.c needs approach a.nd- the
provision of soclal and uelfare services (includ.ing schoolsl nr:rserXr a.nd'
I adult ed.rlcation classes, roedi.caL facil-ities agd. adequate trater supplieS); -
.serrrices shioh arE not only conceivecl as being of general benefit but. are also
. recogr1{serl as having a ctireat effect upon the quality of womenrs Lives.
( . Seooritlllyl . ip the prornrirtion of incone-generating opportunities for tromenl
oppor-tunities seen to be most effectiveLy reeil,i,zed- theoug'h the agency of rlonents
groups, although e:actly hon-thi-s rill tatce pl-acd and. uith nhat effects is
( rarely spelt outo ,Itre major prcjects r'rhich ttornellrs.groups p?opose and. for
vhiih they receive offioial support and recognition invariabLy fall into one or
tbe other, sornetlnes bothl of thcse categories'(a water project inayl for
( insta.nce, provicte incone for a group theough the sale of uater to villagers)-.
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. Almost all- groups are committed.r on paper or othertlise, to r.lelfare
projectsr l rhether or not -bhese const i iute their pr imary object ives.. I , ioreoverl
as registered self-help groupsr they are nobilised. at every possible opnortunitl '
by local officials to contribute labour a^nd funds to other commrmity developmenb
projects. l lomenrs.greoups are i lus ut i l ised. io the fuLI in rrhat may be vier;ed
as a:r r:nofficial- fo"T of taxation, its goal being to provid." urra maintain social
pervioes in the nra-1 areas. As the first of the case studies presented bel-olr
il lustrates, 'th-is
may constitute a significant drain upon group resources e^nd
banper tireir further d.evelopment. It is, hor.rever, a'situation r.rhich groups are
prepared to tolerate. First l because-g'rol :ps d.er i-ve._their legi i inat ion from.the
state and are prourl of the recognition uhich follows fron their contribution to
the comrnunity. Second, because ihey arel competing r,dth other g?oups for funds
dispensed W the state and- its personnel. And accessj to capital- fron these e.nci
other sources is the only nears, short of clissol-utione by vhich groups ca:r \
escape from th.e tlemand.s vhich thc state irnpoies upon therno
Tbe second. set of constraints operating upon groups at this as ue}l..as at
later stagEs stems'from.the conf igurat ion of household. economy. Groups
typicalLy enga.ge in a r,licle range of aciivitids over and above those direcied
'tor.rardp the achievement of thelf major projects. But no:re of these is capable
of provid.ing the large inputs of capital l 'rhioh both major r,relfare and inoome
g"n"toiion projects ""q.ri"".. I.{onetary contributions in ihe form of subsoriptions
or shares from gFoup memberg prove d.ifficuLt to s.ustain and. are generally Li'i;tle
rnore than'suff ic ient to cover basic expensesr including the costs of .cornmwrity
participation and tfr" eqpense of en-bertaining visitors rvlro arJ couried'as
potehtial allies in the quest for outsid.e fi:nd.so Collective agricultural
enterprises, while profiting from the advice of government ertension staffl
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suffer from lacl< of purchased. technical inputs a"nd. the high opportunity costs
.of labour. Contributions of cash aria laboui to groups are conditioned. icy the
more pressing clernand.s of the housdhold.s. to ubich'their mernbers belong ancl tend
to be measured a6ainst the possibility of ir.rnecliate as opposecl to long-terrn
returnso From tbis point of vier.l it is significant that more substantial
oontributions a.re often made togards aciivities\ rilr!ch promise a nore tan6'ibLe
benefit to metrbersr household.s ancl only incid.entally (in cases lrhere a cess is
imposed.) ad.d- to ,group
Jfuncls: hanclioraft production ancl various forns of
ind-ividual saving including rotating cred-it associations fall into this category.
Stpge trro. The only uay a group can escape (and. even so only partially) from
these constraints to develop a major r .rel fare or income-generat ing project is
by Securi[g access to capitalr material and other forms of support from outdide.
The main sources of such support are 'bhe statel 1'IGOs, gtate and liGO personneL
acting in b private capacityr' and to a l-esser ertent privabe companies. llot
surprisingly groups inve.st considerable resources and enerfJ in the firq'b stage
in rnaking alLies of theseo In margr cases necessary alliance r'riti:. the state and
its agents acts as. a springboard. to obta.ining the support of I{GOs, r';hose
' networkg of operation are often at a greaber remove fron the experience of
7 womenrs group members. The l{Gose both.Kenyen and internationall provide by
t1t the 1argest fortion of the capital and. befck-up serrices. trhich Stoups obtain.
Asid.e from aLl the gork-lrhich gnes in'bo securing.such aicl1 the mos'b iuiportant
contribgtion r.;hich groups melce to,..;ards the estc.blishnent of projeots is often
.in providing a:rd. organising necessary rrnsl:iIlecl and- semi-s!:j.11ec1 labour.
Oncc a.pioject has been established a group may readily find, itseLf back ai
sgua:.e one. 1'lis is particularly the case trith r'relfare-oriented- projects with
. a minimaL potential for,generating inoome. Their maintenance costs and
recurrent expenses are typical-ly highl reguiring continued support froniI
ggvernment staff gnd.r/or fi.urd.s from ,interested llGOs to keep them in operatioi:..
, , Groups in this position fwrction as localised. IIGOs supported. by larger ones
r..rorking together as ertensioni of the sta,ters eduiational or welfare serrrices.
: Ittco""---g"tterating projeots frequently require a sirnila.r continuity of. :
.- inputs, d.ependin€ upon the nature of the projectr althouglr only pla.ns for
, e:cpa^nsion arrd. diversification into othci pro'jects, or alternativeLy the threatI
. .of fail-ure; rnay riecessitate f\rther injections of e:rtezna.l capital. The
possibility of faih:re a^nd. reversal is never remote as a consideration of the
Droblems inherent in thelr further deveLopment und.erlines.( -
Stage. three. I.Ielfare pro jec'b's are relatively easy to d.efinel if not ah.rays
easy to maxrage. Their go?Is are unequivocal andr trhile the oonstraints
operating upon tlrenn may !e inperfeotly unclerstood (farrily planning protrammes,
discussed'1rt"t in this report 2 a;re a good. example of this), tbe forma.l
.. sector and voLrarta.ry agencies conce.rrred uith their execution have access to. the
r means .and. a d.eterminate iclea of the strategies reqt:-ired. for their attainnent.
Income generat ion is a very di f f""" \" t kett le of f ish. I ts.goals.- in this
'contert the creat ion of income-generat ing opportunlt ies for l {omen.as a means of
iroproving their cornparative status - rest ttno: t set of rxrtestecl assunp'bionst
and scant oonsideratiot..is 6iven of the optinal stra-beg'ies vilrich might be
purr,recl to attaln tlrese, the oons'bralnts r*hich opera,te upon tbernl ' a.ncl- uhat
their possibl-e consequenoes trigh'b be. l 'Brat is not realized is 'bln'b the ir:'cone-
, . , generat ing projeots estabLished. t6r uoments Sroups r i i th erberral assistanoe
fqnotionl or shorgrl fwrc'bion if they are to be suocessfull as.smaIl capita,list
;esr 1he tovernment agenoies cha,rgecl .trith assisting l'. 'omenls grolrps a]'centerpr ises.. . The 6ovenl
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\i1-I equipped- to d-ed,I rrittr this situe.tion a^ncl the IIGos, uhile more fLexible
better praced. to take appropria. te act ione have been slo ' to '
,. real ise al l of i ts impl icat ionso
once incone-genera.tinS projecis are seen in this lig-ht i-t is not clifficr{-t
to id-entify the constra.ints uirich operate upon 'ohem. As embryonic capi,.;e,Iist
enternrises they are first a,nd. foremost constrained by the localised. s-bruo-bgresq l L L e s w J u M
' of household. econoegr
-in uirich they a:.e embect-cled. l,Iha.t r.;omen pu.b in-to their
. e n t e r p r i s e s , h o r r t h e y o r g a n . i s e , u h e n , a n d - t d r a t t h u y n i - 1 . h t e : q l e c t . [ o 6 e t . o u . t o f
tb'em are conclitioned W their rolesl obLigations and- -e;-qpec-ta,tions
as nernbers i
of houseirolclso Resources investecl in a group a,re frequ-eirtly-resorlrces r,,' ithclra.r:r' i:from a houscholclo Pa,rticularlf rihgre surPlus la'bour .anc1 cash are no-b ree,clily i
availa.ble and- the gains from group inves'btrent are not ir:uoed-iately apparent, i
' househofd- ob)-igations are invariabl-y g"iven priori'Jy and col] ective en.berprise I
suffers accord.ingly" This point has already been touchecl upon. above. Groups,' their membership recruited on a volun'bary basis, typically lack the meags of
enforcing their d-ecisions (although naily e{perirnent, unsuccessf\r1lye gith
measure6 cl-irectecl tonards. this end.: for e:<arnBle by irrrposing fines fo3 non--
rf sepa.:.ation of -i;heir
members from.the household.s to trhich 'r;hey lelonA" Household-s, fr:src-bioning as
semi-a,utononous uni1;s of procluction, continue to provid-e inclividuaL rnernbers ..
il ith iireir princinal means of livelihood. a^nd. ihe La-bter reraa.in sirbject to the'decisions
takcn ,rrithin themo . (
The organise,i;ion of householcl-s ancr- lrouseholcl cnterprises a.l so ha,ve'a,n
' irDor'ua:r:i;, oi' i;en neg'a-i;ivep e1'fcct upou 'bire oi.ganica'bion of 6Toup en'berprises. i
. Tiris stents parbly from tire fact ihr,-b for most group merrbers, .'uhe rnejosit., of i
. a
r'ihon az'e uircclu.ce;bec1, these cotrs'bitui;e "cheir primary moclel of econonic anct
ray .be nroclellecL
c l o s e } y u p o n p l . e v a i l i n g p r a c t i c e s i n l r o r t s e l r o l . d e c o n o r . r y r . T r r e t h i r d . o f t l r e. lcase stu.liqs presen-bbd- belou, lfiere a;r eilbe-.,..prise was orga;rised uith
reference -bo trair-itioiral- normS of the cr'irri.s:-on of l.a,bour a,ud procl-uctt
il lustra-beg lro',;l disasi;rous tlre ooilse(lu-ences of tli is ca.n be" I' lore genera,lly
though it is 1e.ci< of e>qrerience, for .e::a::r::le
of collcci;ive ,leoisj-on-nel:ing
processesl uhich .cree.-bes ,probl-ens. Co;uilu:rity Developnent Officers jlrovide ,
groups uiih a ninj-na1 orga.nisa-i;iona1 s'b:uc'buie a;rd. help in opciring ba.n'k
aocouritsl 1irile iIGOs, iirere availe,bler n?;l assis'b 'tiien -';i'bh irr-r'oher ac1-'rice
e,::d -bra,in!ng1 for e::r,;:r';ie r,r lrool:-1:eepiir3" liorever, 'bi:!s is rarel-;r srtfficien'b
-i;o co;rpensa;'r;e 'ior ";1:.e ine:12oiiei:ce of gro.up iicnbers r;ho a,re iL1 prepa,racl 'bo
me,nage their en-'cercrises. The poor sta'be of r,rost Sroup accot':t 'bs ancl the
management and corrrrpiion vhich -i;iris fos'bers is one of 'bJre irlore obvj-ous effccts
of thiso this does not ,nean ihai aIL qroups arrcl tireil en'be::lriscs are 'bo'i;e,1-1-1r
ai; sea. A nun'i:er n',rrlc[e their ua.y tlrrougir arr.cl one of the most in'beres-bing
outcomes of the crises and,soirisras r.rhich'periodically affect i-eveloped- groups
is a tendency touards increa.sing rationalisation of their enterprises along
capi ia, l ist l ines.
[o the e:ctent tha'i; groups a]te abLe 'bo lr'or]c free of the constraints of
. housebold. econoq,r they are 1ii:e1y. to find. tbenselves ia confli,ct '.i ith
s-bronger capitalisro'in'Lerests, restricted by state con'tro1s .a.ncl- in oonpeti'bion
r i ih othere more eff ic ient ly n:r i oo,pi tal ist enterpr ises in 'bire pr ivate seotor '
The seriollsness of this problern clegencis u1:on the"by-?e of i;ror'-p'en'berpriseo
fte.Leri:rises sr1ch c.s bil:er.ies rntl chic!:cir/e3i; fr,::ns l';hich are replice'tec1 j'n the
prj.vate sec.bor fre.}ren-bly face stiff coi;rpetition ancl e'.re fur'bher lrc'r:r':er::c1- b;'
state regula*ed prioing of thair ma.jor in2uts a.nd the proclucts r'rhi'ch they
p'ovideo Eiterprises of this kind uhich l-ie outsid.e of l-ocal e:qrerience are
also rnore Aifficult to na.intaLn and require con''r;inued at'ben'bion fron
governnrent e-rbension ,Jrorkers or i{Go fieLd. staff r'iho may ther.rselves lack the
requisite e:perienceo From this poin't 6f vj-etr a'nd' in the Long;-term tlr'e
safest and arSuablr ao1l. successful enterprises run by groups are those r:hicir
falt.r.;e11 riithin locaL e:clerience a,nd' ta.p e:d.s-bing processes of incligenous
oapital acour,lula-tion. Eirese ba,ve proven vi.",bi1i'by1 a,re easier for group
members to n:n i;ithout exte:rral supportr a4cl 6ive tirem a Srea'ber measr'-re of
indepenclence fr.om outsid.e intcrference and- oonpetition. i ' ioreoverbhey lend"
g3ou?s arr active rol-e in transfornring the local conclitions - ahe stra":rg'1eho1d
of JroursehoLd econow - $hioil 'i;hreaten to cap'i;ure tiien in 'bu:n' Iihabever forra
their e[terprises 'bake, developbcl- Sroups may fin{ it clesira}le 'b9 keep ihe
state ab arnr s length, a,ruious to avoic'l- the burden of obligations. rihi ch lreig'hs
hea',rily upon groups in iheir fornativ: sta'geo It is for this reason that
2groups elser.rhere in Kerqra have'sought rleregistrabiono' G=oopu are less'l-ikelyt
thoug.ir, -uo uant 'bo sever ties gith iiGOsl their rna'in source of continuing
s u p p o r t l a l t l r o u g i r r e l . a t i o n s e a , s i l y b e c o r n e s t r a i n e d l r h e n t h i s s u p p o r . b f a i l s
or othenrise faLls short of ezpeotat ions'
Against -blris background of constraints it is not surprising tha't -re1a'tiveLy
felr groups suoceed ill developing a.nd naintaining profitable enterprises' of
those tha't clo only a sr,ra,Il proporLion clivid'e profits or otherrrise provicle
their members. nitir incone on a, 'regular
be,sis. Their te:rd.enc-ur to a,cct': 'tulate
- - - - - - - a ^ - - ^ . . a 6 ^ J - ^ n < O - n o i ' a i 1 ^ c 1 - 1 a F , i e n o e
noney in -bire bani< can be rela'i;cd. to a :rru.tber of .fac'l;ors.
one !s ine:;2eriencu
.in ne.ne.ging 3-a.rge su-ns of monge uhile the equitable clj 'vision of pro:iits
r e q u i r e s a c o m p l e : ' : o c r l c r ; i - a t i o i r o f r n e n l . . r e r s t c o n t r i b u t i o n s i n c a s h t l - a b o u r o r
tirne *rrich groups are ei{irer s-trc.boirerr 'bo gerfor'r or fi ':rc]- it cl-i:lficir-r'L io
reaoh consensus llpollo In sorne oases the accurnula'bion of capiial for fugbher
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investnent e,nd. expa^nsion is rleribera;te1y preferrecl over the redisiribuiion
1.of funcLs to 1a.rge nr:nbers of grortp members.J llealthy barrk balanoes nra'y aLso
frrnction as synnbol-s of gfoup s'batus, conferring pres';ige u.Don a Srotrp and
hopefu-3-Iy at.bre.c.bin3 -i;ire atiention <if po-bential doirorso'
. l
I.lost itrcorne ubicil itoilen z'eceive tlrrougil their menber,ship of g:roups comes
not frorn -bhe clivisioir of profits but derives fron the proclncts of indivich:;-'1
labour lsing the resonroes uhj-ch a gloup provides' D:ampJ-es of this are
handicraf.b prod-uotion (ritrere tire pr-ocl-uc'i; is na.::lceied blirougir the 6loup) and'
incliviil-ua.l beJling (',rit"ro mc;rbers uiilize a 3?oup baxerXr to procluce loaves
l:hich tirey se1L for incliviclual pfofit) " fira.t ha.opens -i;o 'bhis incone depenc]-s
upon the s'bructure of the houseirolcls to uhich l'ronen belong anci the c'ecision-
nraking processes uitirin tlrese. s:cept r:here householc"s are heaced by group
. / .
m e m b e r s - i ; h e m s e L v e s r ' c l t e u s e s t o r ; i r i c h ' i ; h e i r i n c o n e i s p u t a r e c r ' e ' L e r r n i n e d ' b y. \
r. or in coljrrno'i;ion lri'bh thJir husbands or other ma'le i"Sn1 primarily with :
referenoe to ilre needs of ihe' househol.cis r';hich they rne,nage toge'i;her r'rith otl""o
r.rhich tbey have obliga,tions to w vigbue of ties of kinship or'resiclence"
llomen uho are freerbo clecid.e or are heads of their ot'nr..hottseholds are- no less
oonsirained. by householcl needs ancl obl.ige,tions. Female-hcaded llousehol-ds are
underrepresented in ,.;oncnls g?oups for tlris vecSr season: their inability to
sustain tlie level of contribuiions r'ilrich initial rnembership -bypica'1Ly '
requires. iJomenl g iircohe is irousehoLd incone a:ld as suoil d-oes not necessarily
, i n o r e a s e t t r e i r b a r 6 a i n i n - g - p o l i e r o r s t a t r . r s u i t h i n t i r e l r ' o u s e h o l d - ' s u c h f r e e d o n
i s m o r e L i l < e 1 f , ' b o b e f o u n d . r " ' h e r e o v e r a l l h o u s e h o l d i n c o n r e i s a l r c c ' d y i l ! ' 3 t r l f o r
ei:amp1e :.iher.ej ta irusba',i:C. hae :'eg:;Lar enrp).oyment close to homeo In general
.lwremployeilr vorrren Cirarac'i;erj.se';irei-r'lncone from group enc]' ot-lrel. sorl3ccs a'6
sma1l but he1-pfu1 contributions to 'bheir 1reusst1eJcl.sl par-bicularly importa'ni
11
sSoul-d. other income (for exa.rnpJ-e their husba.::dst) t" in short supply. These
con,oributions help to insulate households fron the demands placed upon them,
including thoser like'the recluirenients of eclucation, which impinge f,rom'
the outside, a^nd have the overall effect of strengthening household econor'\y.l
And not only are inclividua,l group members.d.eeply ennbshed in the horr-sehold
econory but also their g?oups and enterprises are constantly threatened. t6r
capture. The organisation of r.ronnenr s groups arortnd Eroups of closely related
kin ind affines - Honen related. through their husbands ancl household hearls -
ancl.qre likeiihood that cleoeased. group members r';i11 be roplaced by other
mernbers of thej-r househol-cls\ chosen by tlrese nlen are evidence of this fact.
Thc four case studies.
. , . fr" points raised in this overrriev are illustrated in greater d-etaiL in
the four case studies r'ihich follotr. Each of these' covers groups at different'
stages of tlevelopnont. - The firstl Agrriiaye, shows a group sith a r1ater /
project struggling to meet the demands placed. upon it by the state in a
situation r.rhere. househoLd 'econonry
is rapicll-y being transformed- by the effects
of oapitalist peuetration from the outside. The seconcl, Arirlreni; shor'rs'a
group uhich has received massive support from a donor agensy and- has used
this to establisir a wel-fare pro ject and.an enterprise r'thich ini;erl-ocks uith
existing processe6: of incligenous capiteJ accu,nulation'o The -bhirdl ltrcuirol
shogs a group rrhose main enterprise uas moclelled'.upon simiLar enterprises in
household- econoqy anil has conseqllent]y run int6 clifficltl-ties requiring furttrer
interverbions from exterrral donors. The'fourth ancl final s'ftt 't iy', Bonti*rie
describes a lon6-established gropp rrith a bakery r.ilrich illus-brates clearlyr'i;hc
different pressures acting upon colleotive capitalist enterprises and the
T 2
captlure by bousehold econony of the income r'rhich they provide.
Al-l-,four groups reoeive assis'banqe from Totoio Home Ind'ustriest a'
Idombasa-based ltrGoe which has vrorked. ui'bh {} r.romenr s groups in Coast Prorrince.
In this respect they are unrepresentative, ha,ving sudcessfully found an
'erternal al1y' al though this is not always ref lected' in the succesE oT
othenl ise of iheir enterpr ises- and. does not ' f ree' then frorn the constra. ints
(outl-ined above) uhich operate upon all groups. The four gnoups ltere
seLected for intensive study on the basis of their di f ferent stages of
developmente different types of enterprise a^nd (in ttrree cases) hi6lh income
gineration potentiall r.rith a vier'r to supplenen-bing ancl furthering the
analysis of ctata d.erived froro a baseline surqey of .13 To'boto-afifi l iated' gFoups
conducted in L!83. tno of the four SToups, Bomani a^nd'itr<rri-ro1 vtere
represenled. in this surveye the results of trhioh are incorporated' in the
a.nalysis of the ooncLuding sect ion of this reporbo Selec-bion of the four was
aLso made.with rdf"runce to their locat ion in very di f ferent bui interrelated
social a,:cd economic.zones in the hinterland of ldombasa' Each of thq. groups
hasl for exanplel a clifferent ethnic connposiiion. I'he stuclies illustrate
considerab]_e 1ocal v'ariation in the strr.rctu.re of horr-sehold- econor.ry and its
:
transforrnations ancl at th.e sane time provicle a souncl compara'tive basis for
'the anaLysis of its clominant characteristios as these impinge upon'the
operation of r*omenl s grouPso
I
iIo'i; c s .
- ^ r - ^ - l , ^ - L : -
L. Theorists a.re cl isagreed as to the precise charactel ' isa-bion of such pre-
or non-capital ist ionnat ions anci +"heir t ransfort i t i , 'b ioi ' . ; . The nost 'ages;! 'b1e
;;;;:-;;;;;"4 rJ c. Hyden in tse:,iond- Ilje.rnae. in ri.*:ltra.i,u+r1?rsles-elg-. man4 onil on ., lndnnl:rrl.ecl noa.sa.rrttry' (f,olitont itei:tetnarur, 19eO) and in i l is.i io
ment and an unce.ptur,e-q-pla.Es:rllt (Loncment and an unce.oturccl -goeE!:{fl[5 (il6-nc1on::::--::-::- . - ; " --ffiim r bousehold econoirly-r ]-nHeinemartnr 1983). This report
13
preference to l lyclenrs tpeasant mod.e of produot ionr. \
2. Personal comrnu:rication (L985) from Dr l{ariara- I'lbuguao
3. A sinj-Iar phenor:enonl ari'sing frorn the potential conflict betr'reencon-binrrin.g profitability a.nd benefit to membegsr. has been observed forcol leot ive vi l lage enterpr lses in Te'nzenia' see D' Hassett l rThe
Devel-opmeat of Vi lJ-age Co-operat ive Drterpr ise.. . t i4,R.G. Abra,hams (ed)
.Vi]-lagJrs, Vill-aael frrd ihe State in rnocle.rn Tanzania. (Cambridge: AfrioanS'budies Cenirel 19t i5) '
I4
AGI{rMYE l,IOl,tAI{'S cliotiP
. \
DIAIII LOCATION
Agwiraye vromenrs group is located 31 krn south tf l,Iombasa, just north
of the bustling oentre of Ukr:nda on the rnain highvray to Ta.nzania. Ad.min-
istratively it is in the village of Irlwamambi in Gombato sub-Ioca'bion, Diani
locationl part of the southern (I,lsambueni) d.ivision of Kwa1e -district.
The 1ocal population is predominantly l{us1im Digor swe}1ed. in recent years
by an influx of up-country immigrants attracted by ertensive tourist I
tlevelopment along Diani Beach, 3 km to the easto Settlement is comparatively
d.ense: +he 1979 census records a figure of 418 people per sq.km for Gombato
sub-Iocatione r.rith a total population of 111355 divid.ed amongst 11941 ,
householdso On paper there ate 22 lroinent s groups in the location, Agr,,liraye
being among the most developed" Fieldr.rork there r.ras conctucted in August and
September 1985.
TIIE ROLD OF THE STATE
The state provicles uomerlr s groups r.ri 'bh their primlry source of
Iegitimation. To exis'b they must submit.to its influence and acquiesce in
furthering its community development objectives. To survive ancl be
successful they rmrst malce effect ive-use of ' the connect ions which this ' ,
involvement supplies. The experience of Aguiraye d.emonstrates how d.emand.ing
a process this can be for " tg"olrp
in its formative stage.
Beg'innings
I
Agwiraye grer.l out o'f aAuft education and- nurse4r classes b,qgun blr a Loca1
man in 1982. These r^rere attended. by Digo r.romen ancl their children in the
neighbourhood of their founclert s homesteadl each pupil paying a lOsh
subscription per month for his teaching. After finding alternative
r 5
,employment the following year, he called a meeting to revive the classes
in his absence. A committee'was formed and a nelr teacher, a young wrmarried
womall, r.ras chosen to continue his vlorl:. This was in early 1984. ,
Shortly
aftervlartfs the chai:rvoman of the classes? committee took the initia.'bive to
form a womenr s group. A localIy-born r.rornalrr she rvas uelI qualified. for this
role. She had starbed attending adult ed.ucation classes in 1958 in Samburil
\rllear l,Iombasa, uhere her husband ,worked. Tlrenty years later she had joinecl a
new vloments group in Mvraroni (its project lras to build a nursery school) and.
subsequently serveil on its comrnittee. Her husband had. retired. to I,IuaronilI
nert'door to lrh.ramambil the year before. In late 1983 she ended. their rurhappy
marriage by n:.nningrurry to settle plone on her deceased fatherrs Iarld. in
llwamambi. Her fatherl who had arranged the marriage, had. prevented" such a,
separation while he was alive t6r threatening to d-isinherit her. She,
meanwhiler had bidetL her tim) r:ntil her ! sons 1{ere sufficiently inclepend-ent
before making the decisive break. Freecl at last from close family obligations
she was in a goocl^ if financially insecurer position to d.irect her enerry
amd experience towards the forrnation of a ttoments group. She Jecame the
To*pts chainroman ancl was joined by 5 other members of lfuamambirs aclu1t
education cIass, all close neighbours and. related by rnamiage. O'bher l,Iomen
hr€re sceptical of a groupts wiability and pood-poohed. the irLea.
Pgogressing in a cirol-q
ttre group bega^n, thenl as an indirect consequence of government policy
towar"d.s ed.ucation a,nd r.loments groups: un'bil, the ll80s most of the ttomen of
Idr,lamambi i_rarl enjoyed neither, in the fonner case because of the same paternal
dominanoe vrhich hatl fired the chairr.romants independ-enceo The subsequent
history of the group was very much a direct Ronsequence of iocat policies
designed. both to help and make fuIl use of vromenr " 6goop="
L 6
At first the group was litt1e more than an iclea: the women were at a
Ioss as to how they could raise money and r.rhat they cor::Ld. d.o r.rith it if and.
when they got it. A rotating ored.it association ofganiseil, tryr the Community
Development Assistarrt (CDA) for r.romenrF gtoups in the looation provicled. part
of the ansller. originally this vras to involve ! rvoments groupsl bub 2 d.id.
not last the course. Each grorip vras to contribute 22osh a month (zosrr to b'e
set asid.e in a fund. for official expenses), topped up by voh:'taryrfr ienr lshipt paymentsl the sum .being presented.during a harambee or
commwrity fund-raising event for the benefit of the group r.rhose .turn j-t wBSo
To signal their intention of joining in the l,lya.mambi r.romen sent an gosh
t friend'shipt payment to the first of these in April r9B4 ana in d.ue course
beoame the eighth and- last group- to benefit from the round.r in Febmary L985.
rn the processr d.ifficuLt as it turned out to be, Agniraye became an
establisheil woment s group.. tRaising this moneSr uith so fevr members lras not easy. 0n1y 3 r.romen
afford- to contributl on the first occasion, leaving a d.ebt to be paid.
second. The second time ror,md they raised. parb of the cash by serling
ma'lcut!1 roofing pieces mide from d.ried. coconut palm frond.s and an important
seasonal source of income for women. One r'loil&n1 the divorced. mother of their
adult ed'ucati-on teacher, for:nd herself in .such financial straits that she rvas
unable to contribute further and subsecluently aropped. out of the group.r
l'leanr*hile the husba.nds of tuo members offererl to help ruith their or,rn monetary
contributions ancl r^rere -bhus accepted. into the Sroupr bringing its active
membership up to J. One of them climbed palms to knock down froncls for lr.is
vrife and. defied. the 1ocal norms of gender*specifio labour by plaiting makuti
himself at night inside their house. ny this time the long rains vrere
rrnd-err'ray and the makuti-producing season drar..'i-ng to a close. For the third
could
on the
u
l
,l
;harambee 2 of llae l.romen vrere reduced to selling the printed. pattern cloths
that they wore to raise the money in time.
The third rogncl rvas followed by the month of nrnuntafr".n, ,rn"lt norr"ehold
resorlnces are traditionally diverted tovrards buying new clothes for the
family and food for the nigtrts anc] the feast of ldd-el-Fitr r'rhich brings it
to an end.. '
l,{wamambi womenr s groupr as it r.las then knortn, failed to give
anything at all in the next 2 rounils, leaving them rsith an even greater debt
and facing the possibility of having to drop out. Dismayecl by this prospect
the chaigwoman paid. a secret visit to the CDA anrL clidcussed. ways in which the
group could be enlarged, a move which her fellor.r membels were unenthusiastic \
about. The result was a neighbourhood meeting held by the CDA at which am
enlarged membership of 2J, not more than ) of nhom should be,men, was
proposeil. OnIy thus could the group pay its d.ebts ancl be in a position to
obtain fu-ll government recognition and support. The requisite number joined )
on the spotl including a third man, the husband. of another new member.
. This proved. a decisive turn in the for*r,ures of the SrouPr t' lhich was ':
cornpletel" "uorJgrised.. 2 experienoed and qualified sisters of the CDA joined,
one of them livi,ng on the plot r.lhich r.ras the groupr s meeting-pIace. The CDAr.s
young sister-in-1avr, a seconclary school leaver, replaced the first group
secretarXre a 30 year-olcL r.rith only 3 years of primary schooling who became
vioe-seoretary. i, ,r"" but uneclucated treasurer - the old.est trom€ul in the
group - was also chosen, along r.rith a vice-treasurer a,ncl oommittee oi 6,
2 of them original group members. A seventh, husband of one and' secret
makuti-proclucerl co-opted himself as self-declared I speaker masterr r a tit le -
which none of the other members claims to understa.,nd.. Following this
enlargement and. reorganisation the group tras eventually registered vith the
Irlinistry of Culture and Social Services, in January 1985. \
1 B
The groupr s fina^nces were nolt on a sowrcler footing. In recognition of
the various contributions rvhich the J earlier mernbers had alread.y made, it
was agreed. that the new members shoulcl pay off the tvro d.ebts as r.rell as the
next round in the. locat ion associat ion for t r-romenrs groups. Al l of the
members vrould pay for the seventh round, before it nas their or'm turn to
benef i t . Table l below shows Agr.r i rayets total contr ibut ions to the ? other
womenr: groups in the association. ,
'
TABLE 1 -
BEI{EFITING GROUP TOTAI AI'IOM.IT COLLEOTM
J. I'lbuwani
2. Magaoni
3. Bongwe
4. Kinond.o
J. l,lvindeni
6. shamu
l. Mwaroni
3OO sh
280 .^
230
?n2n232
240
including 60shspent ontransport
L 1 JB2sh
In all_ the group contributed lrl82sh tor.rards the locationts rotabing cred-it
association for uomenr s groups. At their or.nt ha.rambeel hel-d in February L985t
the group received 4r677sln. 1r085sh of this came from its ovrn members ancl a.n
estimated lr4oOsh from other womenrs groups. On paper the group had made a;
profit of 2r895str, or llBtOstr if its self-contribution is discounted, from
its earlier investmen'b in the association. The exeroise hadr howeverl proved
near fatal. Some of the other groups involved had even greater ctiffioulties
than Aguiraye. Of the 2 vrhich dropped 6ut one lras all but dead in 1985.
Another 2 groups gere left or'dn6 money to Aguiraye: oner Shamul had yet to \
1 q
repay i ts 232sh by September 1!8J.
it was hopecl that it wouLcl become a
it has noto
l'lhen the association was first conceived.
permanent firbure. .Hardly surprisinglyl
Payment for the location rorxrd. had continuing repercussions rrdthin the
group. Follorving Agrvirayets harambee the vice-secretary complained. that
individual members had. still contributed. rrneclually. The J original members
had. contributed. much more: they had paid. for the first 3 round.s of the
association whil-e payment for the nert 3 had. been shared. arnong the larger
nurnber of, new members. Although this ha.d. been done to even up their
contributions the result vras clearly stil l rurfairo lleanwhile ind.ivid.uals nere
falling behincL in their payment of a 2sh weekly subscription r.rhich had been
instituted. .follorving the'g"otrpts enLargement and reorganisation. sor with
the CDA| s hel-pe the total monetary contribution of each member to date r.ras
oalcrrlated. 3 original, members, the vice-secretary, her husband., and. the
uice-ohairttomanr had. g'iven close on 3OOsh. The rest had given rather 1ess,
some oomparatively littleo As a resul-t a 3oosh share *,"= ""t'. I,Iembers rvho/
had reachect this figure were henceforth exempted. from paying subscriptionsl
rvaiting for the rest to catch up. Subscriptions uere raised from 2sh to !sh,
but members were no longer obliged. to pay every l{eek. This r*as in Apri1 ;1g}11,.
By september most members r.rere stilL far from paying up their shares.
The price of suonont
. rThe group is subject to other, more direct, demands from the state, most
of tthich are oha.nneLed through the locaI chief I s office. Agr,riraye and other
groups in the location are mobilised at every possible opportunity, being
asked to contribute to harambeesl attentl meetings and. entertain at a variety
of official frrnctions. Often they have no choice and. must subject firemselves
to the whims of administrators trho are apt to keep them ilL-informed and. d.emand.
20
action at painfully short notice.' l lhero are consid.erable <l-emand.s upon
time, labor:r and oash. rn August 1!B! Agrdraye and. other groups in the
Iocation had to break off from the festivities of.Id.d.-e1-Haj to procure
and start preparing local dishes for a visit by the l,l inister of Cul.bure
a^rld Social Senrices, rrnexp€ctedly brouglrt fortrard a clay. During the visit
and speeches.the assembled women r^rere kept busy cooking the food r.ilrich they
then had. to serve up to the hwrg:y rnisitors ancl the loca1 men r.rho had. had. a
more leisureS-y time of it, f-istening ancl'r,ratching the entertainments
provid"ed. by school choirs and r,roments d.ance g?oups. This labour was unpaid,
arrd. Agr.riraw nanrdifficulty in squeezing patrrment'for thE- food. they had.
bought from the fi:ncl which they had. helped to establish vlith their
contributions to the rotating credit association for !.romenrs groups. Andr
hauing missecl the Ministerrs speech, they had to return another d.ay to hear
a.n elaboration of his message by the Diani chief. This r.ras not an isolated.
caseo The attitude of locaL officialdom is sumrned. up in tvro acts by the
c}l.|ef the following month.. One day he d.ecreed. that henceforth all the
vromenr s da^nce groups in the location should fotm into proper lromenr s group6:
th-ey were alreadlr subject to calLs to perforrn free at official meeti-ngs; this
d-eoree put them eyen more firmly und.er the control o{ the state a^nd promised. to
double the number of woment s. groups in the l-ocation overnight. On another day
the chief announoed that al-I the groups in the location r,rere to give him lOosh
each to take to a harambee in ltlal-indi vrhere he had been invited as the guest
of honour, a demand. not quite in keeping with the voluntary ethos of haram\ee.
As registerecL agents of the state they hacl no choice. From the point of rrier.r
of the state and its locaI. represen-ba.tives r.lomenr s groups are aJl important
instrtrment in implementing ancl disseminating its developmen'b objeotives. For
the womenrs groups thenselves r:udh pa.rticipation is both a source of pride and.
2T
the necessary price of obtaining much-neec1ecl support.
Examination of ind.ivid.ual monetary contributions to the group over the
18 months from April r9B4 to september 1!B! shorrs that over harf of ilre total
incluct ing the locat ionr s rotat ing crecl i t associat ion forr. lere for )rarambees,
l lomenr s groups. Table 2 is based. upon existing recorcls of ilrese contributions.
TA3DT_2
I'IB.BDR and.posi'bion
H+RAtrBEp nrTER-TAI}II}IG\i:tSITORS
a
GBOUP GROUP SAIJ:IN'GS.SUBS; ROTATI}IG CLUB
CREDIT. ASSOC.
mis6. : IOTAL
1 secretary2 rr ice-sec.*3 '4 vice-chair.lc-- J treasurer ,67 conlnittee *
'8 v ice- t r€asr! conrmittee10 (mare) xLLt 21"3 comrnitteeL4 committeeLl committee *L5 chainyoman *L7 committee18t920 CDA21 m. speaker *22 (nate)232425
.26 { j o ined . }9S5)2J ( jo ined 1985)28 ( le f t 1984) *2! ( left 1984)others
130255100225L24120zLO135115130r32
.LIoL25l . 20135r-30133Ll_o555
LI585
10575n
401 5362,2
3031222g23n1 B303 0 '362533332L237B
198B
t527
37
7o
66
36235933933131929828627727727o2682642fr24t2352342Lgt66t56148r_31_t27L23118TLz105n3o22.37
@670f r i&7oNn50L090
' 7 0306502010n?o
10
422B6t2453571064491028722533t 5LL23l_328
20
4 6 ' 6
6 , 1 44
40100
52
T 6
10
L2
66
10
I1 3l_o25L2
B
4
10n6 30
10530r530
3r109 629
3 r 7 3 8
'73256
* inclicates one of the
1'r100
Lr62.8
528 6 t t54
orlginal- members
a/-
The first. ancl second. columns in this table can be lumped. 'boge'bher as
representing investment vriththe ultimate aim of securing erbernal support,
finanoial or otherwise. l,lonetary contribution" ai"octly to the group are
reLatively smaIl. The fourth a^nd fifth columns, d.iscussed. in greater d"etail
belowe represent forms of individual saving through the group rather than
for i ts benef i t r hence the CDAIs contr ibut ion. I f these are r l iscounted as
being inoidental to the corporate frrnctioning of the groupl then externaL
investnent oan be seen to comprise over b/" of member3r record.ed. contributions.
TOTOTO IIOIT]I II.IDUSTruES AI'ID THE TIATER PROJECT.
Through its close links with the Cllt, Agr.rirayets investment was
beginning to pay offl and. it harl found an external aI1y. l'lhen the group was
enlarged. she had intimated. that this might increase their chanoes of being: - \
aclopted. by Tototol with vrhom she -'was in contact throu6$r her vror[,. The
pred.iotion was fuLfilled.r ma,king Aguiraye the enr4y of surrounding groupsl
all oompeting for similar attention. Agr'rirayers taunting nigo nane, uhich
loosely translates as I I Iold onto your orm! 'r1 ref lects this competi t ion (an
earlier name, implying rtl.lhat are you staring at?tt, r.ras reiec-becl by Tototo.
One of. Aguirayers competitors is similarly called Lolarakor rrl,ook after your
orrn! " ) o
. Tototo staff first visited- the group in 0ctober 1984 and in the lferv Tear
they ohose their educated secretary as 'bhe Tototo co-or^r.1ina,tor. In Febnrary
and litarch she rtent on a 3-l,reek training/course r.rith other new Tototo reonrits.
Among her new d.uties, for lrhich she r.ras paid 3OOsh a monthr l 'Iere to open
group meetings with the nonfonnal erluca-bj-on techniques promoted. by Tototo (and
ad.apted. from l;orld. ftLucabion) and to complete a r,reekly log of group meetings
23
and- act iv i t ies. These logs were submit 'bed. to 'one of Tototors 4 assistant
I field superrisors, who thereafter paid. regular visits to the group.
In the absence of a l i terate 'breasurer responsibi l i ty for f i l l ing in
the book o, ""to.*ts provid.ed. by Tototo also fell upon fho secretaryfco-
( ordinator. These were begun in April 1985 wittr l86sh in the petty cash ancl
nere onLy skefchilf completecl. ,In l,lay, ldth the onset of Ramaclhan, only
one entry r,tas mad.e anil in Jr:ne and July none at a$. In August they shoued
t a balance'of Z)Js]n, with lr48Osh in the banlc. The bank account had. been| ' - '
opened in April uith a cleposit of llIBOsh from the CDA r.rho had. earlier been
given 2y3OOsh from Aguirayers harambee for safekeeping. t'Ihat happened to
bhe other half of the money from tha ha:rarnbee is not recorded, ancl inI
September the CDA still- oue<l them '/OOsh of the half entnrsted. to her.
Ib April Tototo also introducecl a savings club for ind.ivid.ual group
( members. This is part of a scheme.'both 'bo encourage lromen t; save antl to :
enable them to d.o so: inctivid.uals are harrl pressed. to raise the JOOsh d.eposit
which is recluired. to open and maintain a bank savin55s account. A chair\'roman /
. ( the groupts vice-secretary), t reasurer and secretary rvere chosen to rrrn
this club. By September 13 group membe.rs plus the CDA had joinerl and.
d.epositect l28sh betw6en themo \ l
r The r.rater project
Under Tototots guidance the group chose i ts main project - the provision
ard. sale of pipecL water. Group members buy their r.rater,at 1O-1! cents a
I buckct from taps along the main pipeline uhich serrres Diani. This is S,cross | .,
the main road some {OO metrestfro* Agr'rirayets meeting-place ancl is something
of a^n inconvenience. For some r.romen'it is a r.lalk of over 1 km, thcre are
I long queues before the supply shuts dovnn in the early afternoon and. it
involves crossing the busy highr-rayl a cla"ngerons uhdertaking for gjrls given
24
the chore. Thus the group decid.ecl to 1ay i 'bs omr.extension
bringing this to their meeting-place from vrhere thcy l.rou1d.
10 cents a bucket.
to the mainl ine,
sell l.rate4 at
l
Plans,for this project r . rere dbar 'm up ui th rototors help, r"rorking r i i th
the group co-orclinator" It was estirnated that materials and labour for the
project r,rould cost some 30lOOOsh. In the first ferv months r,rork'progressed.
slowly but surely and. the r.romen began diggr4g a srnall trench in uhich to lay
the pipes. But by September nork on this ha.d. ground. to a hal-t. Il.rmours
vrere circulating that the government r..ras about to clriIl a series of boreholes
throughout the area as part of a project funcled. by SIDAT . thp Sl"red.ish
International nevelopment Agencyo If this lras t:rre it uould. render Aglvirayets
project red.undant: no one r.rould pay for r'rater uhich the;r could. get free
from a l'relI. A general d-isillusionment set inl exacerbated. by the inability
of the chiefrs office to give the group an unecluivocal response to their
questions. Some members pronounced. Agl'drayets r.la'ber p::ojec'b to be rursound.
arLy'valt't g'iven the irregularity of supply fron the mainline. Uncertainty
d.ragged. on -bhrough to early 1!86 r,rhen the r.rater project r.ras finally aba.ndonecl.
I{a^lcing mongrr r4sirlir frurcls
Another problem vrith the r^rater project had been in raising the necessar5r
fimds. A plan for gloup members to make money t6r ueauing table-mats out of
coconut fibre and. then selling'bhem to Tototors ha.nclicrafts shop in l,tombasa
.oamb to nothingl partly because the r.romen r.rere unable to copy the samples
brought by Tototo staff. I 'tore cons'bructive uas the help given @ Tototo in
organising Agr.r i rayets second. harambeel helc1 in Oitober 1985.. This raised
11r632sh. The major d.onors are shor.m in Table 3. Over 3If'" of the totaL
raised oame from vromeurs gl'oups, (f?73 from Agrriraye itseLfl L4'/, fron other
e from thegroups) and- zJf, from ltrGos. In effect over half of the money cam
rl volwrtary sector. This stil l left Aguiraye a 1on6 vray shorb of its project
- estimate, but members remained hopeful that it lrould be follor"red by a grantf - _ ,or loa^n from Tototo and r.lou-Ld also enable the group to seek funding from
iittrer sources such as their 1ocaI I,Ip and the beach hotelso
TABLE }-- :
CATEq.ORY DONORS COUTBIBUTIQ.N
t rtI
t .
l r
I !
}:- I i
f1tIit
'l.tot{E[I I sGROUPS
Agr.liraye members
other vromenr s groups
c . 2 r O O O s ha r660t r 6 6 r
/NG0s
( '
Tototo and staff
Y .W.C.A. r Coast Branch x
- l ro7or e<r 2t925L r v ) )
STATE
/ sEcToRChiefs
KAi'IU officials \-Councillor
3452006oo r'44D
I'linistry of Finance and. Plaruring 300
rl
PRIVATESECTOR
The Agrarian Suilding Society . 500 500'
Br5z5stt
* The Crr""t of Honour, chosen by Tototoe w?S the GeneralSecretary of this bramch.
' l l
COI'ISTRATIITS OF HOUSH{OLD ECONOI'ff.
The loca1 econongr'
To rrnderstand the constraints imposed. by looal household econorqf upon the
grouprs op.eration i!-.iS*nec-essary to beg{n-r.ri-th. q,.rerri_ew gf .r9ge4t developmentsO
(
26
in Diani locat ion.
I,lwamambi is surroundetl by alienated land. To the north and vrest are
ttrousanas of acres of farrnland. first alienated Uo"rrr* the colonial period".
One of these plantations, a few hundred metres inland of Agr.rirayers meeting-
place and known by the name of its present Inclian ot,rner, I(as1ak1 was the
scene of violent clashes in the early lito" vrhen a group of Kikr4ru land.
specrrJ-ators tried- to enforce the ="rorri. of loca1 Digo squatting and farming
ilLegal-Iy on La:rd which they stil l- clairir as theirs. But the most d.isnrptive
alienation in recent years, altering the entire character of the 1ocal I
econor{f; took place rrnder President Kenyatta in l)'12. This comprised. the
decision to oonvert the whole of the area betr,reen the main highway and the
beach into a tourist ..paradise-under the name of the Diani Complex. The
Complexr stretching some 1O km from Kongb to Kinondo, r^ras subd-ivid-ed. into
4 str ips or tbeachest. Beach 11 a 1 km lr id.e str ip along the shore, has
become the si te of more than 10 major hotels. Beach 2, f , km wide, comprises
an aocess road and. the services along this. Beaches 3 and. { cover the rest
of the ,La.nd inland to the main road. From here locals were to be resettled'
along'the road ancl to the uest on land designated as a Rese:lre, where most
of Aglvirayets members live and the group meets, Houever, d.evelopment on
beaches 3 and. 4 was stopped in 19?B by the neu President and Digo continue
to live and farm there. But the damage tras done. Localsalost land on
beaches 1 and 2, some selling and. some receiving compensation. Othenvise
considerable uncertainty remains over land rights in the area, and only some
Landol'rners have been issued. vrith title d.eec[s.
Before this d.evelopment the local Digo grew most of their grain crops
(especiall-y maize) ,g!igi,r or1 the rocl',y land. just inland of the sea, aued.
tended. coconut palms interspersed with other crops (including cassava a^ncl
rice) tjSgt r on the Land rising up from the main roacl. Young men sought
i;I
27
wage labour in lrlombasa and elsevrhere, eventnally settling dovrn to look
after their la^nd and d"erive some income from the sale of copral dried.
coconut kernelo This pa'btern has norv Seen tfrorougtity transformed. The .
beach hotels have brougi-tt an influx of. migrant r.rorkers from up-country,
Kikuyur Luos Lulya and Kambar spavrning the rapid grouth of se-btlement
a.nd. services along the main highwayr especially in lJkunda. ,DiSo have also
found. work in these hotels a.nd the sector r^rhich has grorrn up around. them.
ldanye a]1eadf suffering from land pressure, -
have sold their lancl to
imnigrant entrepreneurs, rvhile othersr morg canqlrl have built accomodation
to rent out t6 immigra^nt !,rorkers. The r-esrrlt is an incipient class
d.iwisione partiallyl but not en'bire1yr . along ethnic Iines.I
lhis has }naf- a furthere d.etrimentall effeot upon 1ocal ag:ricultureo
Beoause maqy menr yolrrg and old; are noll in paicl emplotrrment they have l-ittLe
time to d.evote to their fields. Consequently a fLt of land. between palms
whioh used to be uncler cultivation has rever*ed to bush: the women alone
cannot clear a.ntL cultivat" "ff of it. This r:ncultivatecl la.nd, including
large areas of alienated 1antl1 harbours wi}rl animals r.rhich are d.amaging to-
orops: 'monkeys, warthogs and l'.riId boaro \ It also encourage" tt. few looal
stock olm.ersr lrho would have once graded. theii a.nimals far inlande to
leave them to roarn in between the lromesteadso I'leanwhiJ-e men are. no longer
free to guard ttre cips at nightl while the culling of wild animals is
discouraged. by the government and prohibited. rvithout a l-icenoeo llomenl
,especia.lly those rtith smaLl shiLdrenl are urable to guard 'bhe crops 2
themselves. As a result a very high proportion of vromenrs agricultural
enterprises faill inoluding those right nerb to their homes, the crops
being eaten or trampled by a.nimals before thcy are rea.dy for harve"t)-ng.
Agviraye members were seriously afflictecl uith this problem. As TabLe
28
( .
{ showse most had. husba^nd.s l'rho were employed or otherr^rise absent, and. a
number d.itL not have husbancls at all.
rABr+r 4 _
]'IO.HUSBAND HUSBA},ID H,IPLOYM HUSBAND UI{N,TPLOYtrD| . .
- ' ' . ' t " ' . .
-- dxvorced/ dead in at Diani self_ retired. cultivating
separated. Iilombasa beach employed..
3 \ 2 5 l
. t ' '
Their agricultuial -enterprises
suffered. acdorilingly.' ,IabIe !1' shov;ing
35.f ieIds belonging to or othemise uorked, sometimes joint ly, by l -? grou{
members d.emonstrates this. Over half of ttre field.s rrere not cultivated in
l-985t in mar5r cases because of the threat from r.rild amima.lls. I,Iost of the
successfirl crops llere grol.tn by those fortrrnate enough to have fielcls chinj, 1'below
the main roacll where cultivation is more intensive (ttrere being few
palms) and. r.riId. animals """"tlpenetrateo
I fhe reiu1ti i" " vicious circle. Because such a high proportion ofr l
agricuLtural" enterprises fail. households are becoming increasingly
d.ependent for t-treir subsistence upon food staples pr:rchased from the local
( shopso Thus hou-sehold- members, partibularly men, are uncler increasing
pressure to find.ca.nd. remain in vrage ernploSnnent, one of the major causeb of
. 1o"4 agriculturaL deoline in the first placeo This has d somevrhat
I cLifferent effect upon gencler relations than the well- known scenario in which
.: women uith labour migrant husbands find. themselves bearing a much heavier
agricultural burden in order to stay aliveo In l.hramambi most of the r.rorking
I men continue to live at home and do the shopping themselves -bo feecl their
/
29
TABLE 5
LOCATIONof fieltl
CULTIVATMrN 1gB5?
I.I.AII{ CROP cuOPHARVESTD)?
COl,ll.llIN'IS
jlg/trome.juu/home
@ttom"chini.iuu/Kaslakt s.'luu/nomeiuu/Kaslakr sJffi/Kastakr sj3g/homechini
yes
yesyesyes
yes
yes
- yes
yesyes
nonono
nono
no
nono
nonono
nono
nonono
nono
cassava
co'hr-peasmai�zer ice
maize
rice
r ice
:maize
maizecassava
lr""cassara
maize
cassava
io.ir" '
yes
yes
yes
yesyes
yes
yes
no trarnpled by goats.guarclecL.eaten by lrild. boar.last crop spoi led.
guard.ed. but eaten t6rr.rild boar and. warthogs.
guard-ed- bub eaten t6rr,rild anirnals.
gua,rcled. but eaten bybirds ancl wild. animals"
d.iscouraged t6r amimals.
!
discouraged. by animals.
soil exhausted.
eaten by r'riId. boar andvrarthogs.
d.iscor-rraged. logr an:imals.discouraged t5r arrimals.d.iscouraged W animals.eaten by cattle anil boar.
dow-peas tra^rnPled t6rcat-ble in short rains.
d.iscou-raged- by animals.cow-peas d-rieil uP.
j31/Kas1akr s
1g/trome
Kibara.ni
114/trome
chini
@omeVukani
irlr,iuu/Kaslakr sj*?u/fastat<t s yesIdwakido.'luu;i_911/homechini
jg/Kas}akr s - yes
ohini yesiissjuujuu/home
- t -
Jllg/nomejsrchini
Idsambweni;1gg/ttom"chini
yesno
yes
yes
20
yes
1 q
30rh
-n-'-
\
households. The burden of agricultural la,bour upon their r.rives is recluced,
and in l-9B5 a few group members had abandoned cultivation altogethero But
r'Iomen rrithout working husbands are not so fortr.rnat!: a fact reflected, i"
we shaI1 see, in the d.ifficulty they experience in susta.ining membership of
the vlomenl s groupo.
tloTgn. household.s and income
I'lembers and their households. _ Ln september rl8l there.were 2d r,romen in
Agwirayer 3 of anhom were more or less inactive in the grbup. Tlhey r,rere agecl
between 23 (trre secretary/co-ordinator) and 53 (tire treasurer), vrith a.ri
average age of 38. ''
TASLE 6
.., AGE..I}I YuARs20-24 25-29 30-34 35-39 40-44 45-49 50-54 55_5g 60_64
1 1
:AI--of th"ese were Digo, Jt rot onu r"o* ti" co*st"f belt'betueen Dia^ni and
ldombasa where a single sub-d.ial-ect of ttre Digo language is spoken. B. rvere
born in Mwamambi itself, J elsewhere in Diani location arrd.6 calne from Tiwi.
On1y ! women hacl.reoeiivecl some primary eduoation and 2 gone on to second.ary
school. Most of them first married a^nd went to live vrith their husbancls when
they were in their mid. to Late teens. Over half of them have been d.ivorced"
and. married. again: Digo marriage is notoriousLy r:nstablerl while the social
a^nd. economic pressures acting upon divorcees are such that remarriage wi-bhin
a year or two is the normo fne cfritd.ren of a broken marria.ge often remain
vtith or are later claimed. by their father. The sample in Table 7 Jhous a1
average of { surviving child.rbnl rather fer.rer (a mean of 2.'l) remaining
31
TABLN 7
AGET9B5
IDUCATION St i'I- ' : - cl n. Hlnzn3rrtrP
20
23
25
29
30
30
31
35
3737
39
40
4447
4B
std.. B
Form 4
none
Form 4
Stcl" 4
none
none
std..2
s td .Bnone
none
none
none
none
none
D 1
l r l
lil 2
M 2
t d 2
11 2
l { 2
D 1
I
2
L+2
2+3
l+2
y 2
2+l
l+1+1+l-+1+1
I+1+2
10
O+3
B
510+O2+O
1 1
2 2
2 2
L 4 2 t r2 2
2 2
2 t
2 3 2 L
signerl-up but did notcontinue as member
secretary
vice-secretary
. , 1inactive and status ingroup rurc_ertairi'
vice-chairwoman
chairr.:oman
vice-treasurerI 4
1 1
D 1
I { 1
M 2
l d l
D 1
M 2
l { 2
32 7 3L 2 t
7 t
l 2
2 2
I
1 3 2 l
2
I2 1 1
1 . ,
Explanation of symboLs: St = marital status; II = nr:rnber of marriagesi C =. number of children by different partners (not all- marriecl) i C- = number of
these childrep non dead; H = number of these clilcLren stiLI in her .1householdt H; = of theser stilI pre-schoolq H- = at nursery school t H" =at schooL1 ]lT = post-school , unmarried, H/ = [a,!ried or separatedi &n =total number of adult children in fuIl-time emplotrrment (ie potential- sources-of remit tances).D = divorced. or separatecl; I = married.
Irlean number of marriages =1-o5; mean nr:rnber of chidren born = 4.?i mean numberstill alive = z!; mortality yate = 1{lbi meam number of dependent chiLdren
-(torn W the woman herself) = 2.7 i .me.an mrmber of ..child1en in fr:lL-timeemploymente ie able.to provide'support = O.2.
within their mothersr household.s. On the other hand. r.romen are liabIe to find.
themselves looking after children by their husbandst former vrives. pol-ygr\y
is practisetl, though mar\y r{omen are resista.nt to this and it is one of the
causes of divorce artd so of seriar polygamSr.. 5 group members are in\
I
I
3 2
polyrynous unions: 2 sets of co-resid.ent co-r.rives (one of uhom r.ras in the
process of leaving her husbancJ.) and one lrhose husband., a1 so a group memberl
Al.eo haal a r*ifq in a^nother location. ' '
I,larriage. is virilo9al_ and most wom,en Live and oultivate on 1and, ovmed. by
their-husbands- and husband.sr kin" Land is inherited. patril ineally:'. 'sons are
e-rpected. to rernain on their fatherts la^nd r,rhile d.augh-bers marry out, thus
forf"iting *n"r" right to inheri* ,* "*""n, *rdu" special circumsteunces, for
example lrhere there are no male heirs and a d.augh'ber is on lrand- to press n , ,
cIaim. This is what the grouprs chairuoman had doner moving onto her
cleoeased fatherrs land after leaving her husba.nd." Other l.Iomenr particularly,
divorceese &re f-ikeLy to return to live with their parents or brothers for
period.s. 3 group members, 2 divorcedr had returned to lancl managed. by their
' .: brothers, a,ncl one had moved ar.ray from her retired. husband- 'bo farm on her
. lfathgrrs lando One group member rtas living with her husband. (who hatl ]-and. :
and. another ldfe elsenhere) on land or'rned by her motherr s brotherr by viriue
of a right of access to land and properby novr severely weakened by Islamict -
rul-es of inhetitance and. the effects of land registrationo
HousehoLds and the larger residential rrnitd of r''rhich they Jre frecluently
. a part are' .ot t""porrd. ing1y complex in their composit ion. 'Table
8 gives a'
sufinary indication of this. Two thirds of group members live in extendecl
writs or comporrncls upon la,nd or.rned- and managecl jointly by groups of brothersl
, men through rvhom most of the lromen in the group are relatecl. 0f the
remaining, isolated. householdsr over ha1f, are similarly linked onLy
resid.entially dispersed; refieoi;ing fission of their original clonestic
(sibJ-ing) groapso Through their membership of such g?oupsr household
members are enmeshed. in'a web of obligations. Thc consequellces of this for
the group a.nd i'd's members are sufirnarisecl belolr.
33
TABLE B
RESIDBTTIAIur'rrTs/NXTDI'IDMHOUS]HOLDS
ltro. OF'GITOUPIilEl'IBIIRS
I {o. OFHOUSE-}IOLDS X
I
ADUTTF
male f enal-e
/CHILDRITI TOTAL
No. OFI,IEilIBtrIlS
L2
1
5
3I
I
I l _
1 1
1 1
. B (geographicallydispersed.)
3
5D , 3 5 6 1 6
E
4F 1 3
244- I L
H;
6
24
4
11
I
B
t
5
1 1
L 5
Ii (geographicallydispersed.)
1 2 4(
L 6 8
1 1
L 1
J (geographically' dispersed.)
L610K
x excluding accomod.ation rented out
90 4T 79 r49TOTALS 25 lo
34
Labour'. The organisation of labour in and. between households praces ,
, considerable d.emands upon r,romeno They are responsible for a long rist of
_ d.aillr horlsehold- chores, chilcl care, and. 'most
o, *nu agricultural workto be doneo Tlris includes clearinge plzurtingl r.reeding andi har,resting
d'uring both cuLtivating seasonsr the long and short rainso l,Ihile they canercpect to dravr upon the rabour of other members of ilreir immediate and_
extend'ed' househotd.s as well as that of other kin, most of this assistn'ce\is provid'ed' by other women. Tabre ! d.etails the assistance received by 11group members on their fierci.s d.uring the long rains of L!BJ.
TASLE O
I'IINiIBER FIELD SOURC]I OF ASSISTAI{CEhire$'Iebour men
I rromen no assistance
P some from mostly alone
entir.ely alonealone, stopped. blr
__ i r inessr L + t d ' -
Sr_her sistepin-lar.rl.ieedecl uith
labourerspaid. 796sh by husband.
7 - -r-"r-"[af
raFor:r6-r-- - -
paicl JOsh and tractorhired for 16Osh byhusband
help from 2 cultivated. r"rith -
her labour inputbro ther fs sons V, b ro ther fs restr icted by
bro-bherr s 2sons
U, husbemd.t ss is te rqultivated. r.rith co-r.iife ancl ad.ult<11
he1 sont s h'ifeto11 I LabourerTz- -
cross-cortsin-
Tr_ _ _ cross_cousinrJ cuftivatea-anal - - -uEe[eE
a-f6-n6guarded- by hrtsba^ncl(a group member)
35
- )uring the short rains of 1984 group members experimentecl by uortin/
colleotively upon one a^notherr s fiel.cls. 16 uomen to,ok parLo Tlr.e rest r.rere
ill or othe::vrise occupied, it being d-ifficult to co-ordinate collective
cultivation vrithr the agricultural time'bables of households all demanding
labour.at the same t ime. This r ' ias a ctegree of co-operat ion r .r i thoub precedent,
and. following the generally poor results of this season only 2 r,romen (R and S
in Table 9) who rni6;ht otherwise not have d.one'so continued to help one a^nother
d-uring the nerb season. A sirpilar fate befell the grouprs first collective
enterpr ise: the plant ing of a I$ acre f ie ld ( lent by the rspeaker maste?ts
father) uith corr-peasr also in the short rains of lpBz!. Group members
worked- on this fieltl at vreekends. Those, inclucling 2 employed. male members'
who d.id. not participate nere asked. to pay lsh in lieu oi their labour (ttrere
is no record. of horq many did.). But after lreeding in September the crop
shrivelled. in the sun and there vras nothing left to harvest. The enterprise
was not,repeatetl in L!8Je members preferring to concentrate on their
inclividuaL fields.
Coll-ective labour is not easy to enforce, cornpeting as it rloes vrith
household. clemanclso. l^lork on the grotrpts pipeline tre]ich-uas not r.re1l at'bend.ed.
and. one of the reason g-iven for not fining absentees rvas that this lrould. be '
too d.ifficult given the large number of goocl reasons, such as the illness of
a ohiltL or other householcl member, uhich might prevent a l.rgmall from taking
part. Attend.ance at group neetings, recorded in the rveekly logsr was
similarly affectcdr rarely exceedihg half of the membership. Sometimes the
logs give a^n explanation for cancellation or poor attendance: funerals,
oocasions mobilising the uidest netr.;ork of household-related. .obligations,
figure prominently. Among the persistent absentees, 2 r.rere in nrourning for
olose kinl 2 r.rere in the process of leauing their husbanrls, 1 r.ras afflicted.
tiI
36
by spi; i t possession, and 3 l{ere usually avray at vrork.
Sources of income. only 3 women in the group had paid. employment (see below).
main sources of spcncling money vrere from nal<uti procluction,
fooct arrd., g.iven the seaso nari,tyf ,r.*oil, .b'ese,
t6r their husband.so /
For the rest their
the sale of cooked.
cash given to them
The main season of malcuti prod"uction is before the long rains, October
through tiIl I'larchi, The clry palm frond.s from rvhich these roofing pieces are
made canr be gathered. at wili_1 though occasionally r.romen buy them for.5o cents
each from the ovmers of large plantations. One frond malces up to t$ rinisrrea
pieces, t'rhich in l"!B! were so1d. for Ish each. I.{ost bqyers are Loca}: makuti
roofs need replacing everTr 3-4 years. Al-most all Digo l,Iornen in the area make,
makutil usually in the afternoons uhile they chat li ith neighbours and. friends.
I0-2O pieces ca^n be made in a single day. The rnost energetic prod_ucers are
said- to be able to make 2rOOOsh in a sea;on (year)., Rut most v,omen average/ r
much lessr a.]rd group members reported., making an average df eOO malcubi each in
the L9B4-BJ seasonr ma^r\y of these d.estined. for their olrn roofs. others were
d-estined- for the groupr which turned to ma.rke'bing makuti betr.reen Jarruary and.
Idarch 1985. I,lembers were asl:ed. to bring 10 rnalcuti a r.reek to the r speaker
masterr vrho soLd -bhem from his home at the normal priceo For every l_ot sold
Jsh vlas taken by the group and. the rest returned to the producero l,lon-members
vrerb also invited. to sell their makuti through the group r.rhioh in this case
took a LO/" cttL from the proceeds. Records r.lere not kept of this enterprise,
but on all accounts it lras reasonably successful, making some loosh.
A large number of vtomen afso had experience of cooking ancl selting
d.ifferent kind.s of breacl and ca,l',es mede frorn rdreat and rice flour" These are
sold in and. outsid.e Jhe shops by the main roadl r'ihere regular traders fornn
their .or'rn rotating orcd.it associations, the set contributions varying
i l
37
aocord.ing to the profitability of the trad.e .bheir members pursue. In the\case of small bread- and cakes claily profits are usuarly in the range of 3_Bshr
90-248sir a month. The vrorlc is erLremely arduous and entails getting upbefore d'awn to slave over a hot and smolqy hearth every morning. As a resultfew women ca' sustain production for more than a fer.r ,orr.*no at a time. of thegroup members
.intenrier.recl only 3 r.rere currently engaged in this trad.e and on1Jfone belonged to a roadside "ot.t:.ng crecLit associati.ono Others had. given upfor the time being because of exhaustionl il lness and the need. to 1ook aftersmaII children' other forrns of smarr trading includ.e the sale of fresh fr'itand., in indiv:iclual cases, herrna d.ye, kerosene and. dried. shark meat, .bhelast two brought frcm lrlombasao AI1 of these lr""u .""oo, *rU conclucted fromthe home'without licenoes. rn september '!BJ one group mgnlberg praruring to
-- set herself up as a traditionaL d'octor, r*as mortified by the heavy ricencingfees which she had. to pay (450sh plus 2Jsh per month)
I{omen aiinost invariably descr:ibe income from these different souroes asd'oing ng more trran ,rrerping'at homere a d.escription r.ilrich they aLso apply tothe results of their agricultural labour: in no case, crid" the harvest ofstaple crops meet the subsistenoe requirements of the household fo4.more tlpna few monthso rn the main they.are d-ependent upon their husbanrrs for theprovision of cash and food. through much of the year. Liker,rise they arelargely d'ependent upon them for their contributions to the r^romenr s groupo
Those group members with empl0yed. husband.s, almost tr.ro-third.sr, are ina r'elatively fortunate position. IIen lvorking at the beach hotels, for examplelclraw wages $hich far exceed. anything their rrnemployecl wives might earns c.lrOOO-lt8oosh a month d'epencling upon the type of r.rork. Tlds inconle can be furthersupplementecl by sales of copra frorn the .pa,lms r.rhich men o]m anrcl manage, anenterprise- which recluires only period.ic labour inputs (no more 'ran 3_4 times
3B I
Il
j1 1
I
j; r; i' i
Iill
. lI ia year). At the other end of the scale those r.ritlrout husbands at all are
in a somer.rhat tLifficult position, particularly if they d-o not have gtown
children rvho are able to support them ( see Table J). In such cases it is
not easy to sustain group mernbership. Of 3 inactive members one, with 3
young children, had just separated from her husband; amother, al-so wj.th
3 chilclren to look after, nas divorced; ancl the thinl r{as a wid.or,rer with
little means of support beyond her membership of a dance group vrith its own
rottbing cred.it association. Of 'f r.romen who had left the group sjrortly after
joining it 4 r.rere divorcees with child.ren to supporb" ",phus the most
disa.d.van'baged category of women is effectively excluded from the g?oup.
Uses of income. The investments uhich households are prepared to make in the
. womenr s group are conditioned by the sum of d.emands upon housebold incomeo /
A rotati-ng cred-it association vrhich group members set up in April 1!Bl
provides a clear il l-ustration of 'this. Contributions t,rere set at lOsh per
week and. ind.ividual bene-faotorsr ohosen on the basis of their requests for
assistancee' received all of the money contributed. Table LO shows the
arnounts they received and the uses to nhich they put this money; -
TAsLE 10
DATE A]'TOUI'IT BINEtr'ACTOR AIID USE
1? April 2oosh ?::;:.*:;r:itT:3:"ffi:l ffiil:":;"":::"1":"*li:":H*come to 2lOOOsh plus). ,
2r Apnil lposh ffi;:l::":T?:; n::':1."fl:*""Lx"l:ir"1,xi:H:u'ilf""rest spent on foocl. -
9 Yl.aS l?Osh The vice-treasurer. Her son hacl been sent home fromschool for failing to bring a 2OOsh rbuildingl
contribution. The money vrent tovlards this.
16 I'Iay l4Osh To a vroman ulrose husbancl r'ras seriously ill ancl had notresponcled to hospital treatment. Spent on talcing himround. to traclitional d.octors (ire aiea shortly after).
iiil
39
TAstE 10 (cont)
23 li lay iroun The rrice-secretary. spent on banclages ancl med.icinefor ber sma,lI son lrho ryas in hospital j_n l,Iombasaaf ter breaking a leg.
5 rwre llosh :ffi*:f.:";"rf": ililiil;, ':Tjri: LHI*o:t'""'
special school in l.lombasa.
1 .August
loosh The secretary" Spen'b on treatment for her motherr s
iilHi:":; ulrli"lSl; ":l:",535ufl1""" in Likoni
- By the seventh rowrd, sepairated from the sirLh by a gap of g ueeks, "";
11 women were still contributing. Thus the associa,tiol l.ras wound. up a^nd
, members set a,bbut calcrrlating what they or.red. one anothero Given the d.ifficultyt
whioh they,were'having in paying their or' 'dinary grgup subscriptions it is
hardLy surprising that this should have turned into a rotating d.ebit
association. In effeot it failed. because of the problem it was d.esigned. tol
alleviate: the consid.erable pressure placed upon household. inoome.
Some houseir6ttl expenseg are recurrent, others irregular and. unpredicta6le.'
. Some derive from the structure of households ancl the obligations between them,I
others from .the d.emand.s imposecl directly arrd inclirectly upon household-s by the
state. The constraints placed. upon food procluction have already been outlingd.
A significant proportion of the household budget has to be d.iverted. touarclsl - ) e
securing lasib subsistence. A vroma.n living alone estimated that she needed J-lsh
\- a dayr.450sh a, month, to-spend on food; adding a further 3O-45sh a mon'bh for
' vrater. For a couple the montlrly food. bill ca^n rise to ?50sh a month, 9OO-
lle2oOsh if they have small chil-dren. These figures can be compared with the
wage levels citecl aboveo
l'lon-recurrent expenses are manifold. A number of these appear in f'able 10.
A 4-roomed house built largely of local materials can cost llOOOsh to build;
40
a ooral and. cement house uprrards of lOrOOOsh. Illness is not only a drain
upon labor:r but also upon the financial resources of a householdl especially
when (government) hospitals require patients to buy their,or^rn medicines anrtl
other mater ials. Spir i t posseSsion const i tutes a special case. This can
partly be rrnd.erstootl as a mechanism through nhich attention anil cash are
transfenecl from intlifferent husband.s to their long-suffering vrives. 4 group
members hacl been ttrus afflicted, 2 in l)BJ (one of rvhom had a co-r.rife vrho had
opted. to quit her husband instea,cl). Burial ancl .funerals can cost arorrnd.
lsOOOsh; the ceremony r'rhich conolud.es the long peniod of mourning 1O-2O1OOOsh,
coll-eoted from a rvide range of kin. Bridevealth paSrments are in the range of
2-{rOOOsh and a wed&ing/dowry carr cost relatives arq;thing between lrJOOsh for
a plain do and Z5rOOOsfr for a.n el'.borate event (only one group member, the
sedretaryr 'had been treated. thus).
. Bridewealth palrnents tend to correlate with the Ievel of a briders
eduoationr in reoognition of her parentsr investment i.n her sohooling
Secondary school fees average 2lOOOsh per &nJlurno fnimlry ed.ucation is in
tlreory free. In practice parents are asked to make frequegt contributions
tor,rards the maintenance of school bui}dings and the purchase of educational
materials on threat of having their children bamecl from the olassroon.
These dema"nds vary from schooL to schooL and. parents may find,themselves
paying JOOsh a year for each of their childrep at primary schooL. This pLaces
a oonsiderable burden upon most householdsr' and one r.rhich is particrrlarly
wrwelcome because it appears as a forrn of taxBtion. Group menrbers suffer
acconlingly. Only a sma,lI proportionl those lrith ltorking child.ren (mainl1r,-
sons) who can send them remittances, are in a position to benefit from the
ent l results-of the educat ional process (see Tab)-e J a.bove).
ri
:iii tl
4 T
GM'IDtrR. DI}"FARNITIATIOI.T AI'ID COIITITOL OF lTItr CIIOUP
Not all group members faI1 into'
employed and some orrrn their own lemd.
importa^nt role in 'blre conbrol of the
the pa,ttern described. ibove. Some are
in I'lrvamambie playing a corresponclingly
groupo
The 3 men in the group are less pbr.rerful than migh'b be ertrrected. The 2
nho are employetlr one a rvaiter and. the other a tailor, are largely inactive
for this very readdh: neither has the time to invest in the group. The self-
declared t speaker mastert e a farmer and agitator for local, 1a.nd. riglrts in
the 1ocal branch of KAIW, is rather more active in group affairs. Although
he tend.s to be very vocal when present in group meetingr an:l is clrdck 'bo act
as its spokesman in front of visitors he is easily shouted dor'm or ou'b-voted
when oocasion requires. IIe lives vrith 3 other group members: ltis rrife, his
fatherts sisterrs daughter (tne vice-secretary) and her husbando All rvere
early memberg of the group and nhile the l-atter ma.ll d.id. suspiciouslq welL out
of the shift from subsoriptions to shares (engineered W his rdfe) their role
as an impor*ant faction in the group d.iminished. upon its enlargement a3d
reorganisation. Othenrise the group has not suffered d.irectly from male
interferenceo The vilIag. oio*"hairmanl trusia,nrl of one of the members,
dispenses usefirL advioe. In private he is patronising ancl scepticaL of
woments ability to organise enterprises alone2r a:r attitude shared. by the
I speaker masterr: but in praotice he continuesr l-ike other husbands, to
supporb his r,rifets involvement in the group. '
lrlore pouerfrrl is a smalL core of relatecl r.romen r.rho have succeed.ed in.
esoaping the domina^nt pattern of gencler relatj.ons" AII but o'ne, Agtrirayers
chainromanl &re members of the CDA! s farnilyr her 2 yotrnger sis'ters a^ncl her
younger brotherrs r,rife, the group seore'bary. The CDA ancl her junior
siblings jointly own and. manage 5 plots of la:rrl inherited from their father.
42
/
As vrel-L as living'and. cultivating on this land. they sell coconuts from the
palms whioh grow there and nou! 2 houses rented out by the room for a to.bal-
of some 115OOsh per monthr an income they planned to increase by build.ing
*:=:. A11 3 sj-sters r.rere educated through their fatlrerrs foresight, and ,
although they moved. away from home 'bheir overlapping histories of employment
and 'the
ind.elend.ence this has brought have enabled them. to returrr to Ir1r^ramarnbi
and. their f,atherrs lando AJ-l 3 worked successively as adult ecluoation
teachers at ldsambrven:i. The CDA returned. to l,luamambi after taking up her
present job: her husba^nd, now dead, .
r{as a Tanza.nian a^nd so absent for. much
of the yearr The seconcl sister was teach:ing in l,Isambr+eni uhen her class
beoarne one of the first experimental r.romenr s groups in Kenya, ulder the Special
Rura1 Development Programmu'irr 197I.3 She left to become a nu?se (she sti11
is) a^nd. met her current partner, a clinical officer and. Giriama vrho lives
eLsewhere. Tlie thirdr half-sister steppecl into her teaching post, before
transferring_to.$himoni a^nd laterbo Mwaroni r.rhere-she is now a fuLl--time aduJ-t
education teacrr-er ear:ring c.leoOosh a month. She is also secre*ary of aLl the
lromenrs groups in the logation, a^nd. secretary of Agwirayets sawings clubo
Her second. husband. vrorks and rents accomodation in l,tombasa and. manages a farm
in l{sarnbwenie his home" The brother a^nd husbanrl of Agr,rirayers secretary also
r'rorks in Mombasa. His r.rife is paicl 30osh a month as the To'boto co-ordinator
and in September 1985 began receiving l5osh a month as Agrrirayers part-time
adrot ed.uoation teacher. The role of the CDA in the groupts d.evelopment has
aLready been dooumented: in sum her family exercises considerable influence
within the groupl &n influenoe r'rhich rui1l probably grow overLimeo
The chainromar, also a relative of the CDAr - accluired control of her
fatherrs 2 fields by taking advantage of the l-a.nd reg'istration r:l:,ich began in
Ivlwarnambi in L9'lB-79" fhere rrere no male heir: "rrd she iook the opportunity to
lod.ge a claim by herself a.ncl her elcler sister (norr rlead) in'Utre absence of her
a
I
i
I
43
l l
i
./
hal-f-sisters who had. a1L married outside the areao This lrmcl provicles her
vrith a small income from sales of frrrit, casher.mubs a^nd coconuts (less than
J-lOOOsh a year) which is macle up by remittances from her 2 vrorking sorlsl who
send the money (a tota"1 of 3OOsh plus per mon'bh) uithou'b their fatherts
lcrol&edgeo She cloes not pleur to remarrTr, currl in September IIBJ lras building
a house with 4 rooms to rentl malcing the most of her ner.fly inrlepenclent
'status. this is a route to capital- acoumuLation vhich the group itself has_ 1
now decided. to follow: after the failure of its water project Agr,rira.ye set
about acquiring a roadside p3-ot to build rlpon, at the same time opening a
smalL kiosk (shop) near aits meeting-pIace.-
In a double sense, tine6, the group is witness to an emergent procqss of
d.ifferentiation. First, in, its internal compositiorr- a^nd leadershipl
favouring a potential class of accu.rrntators: though argr conflict this rnight
engend.er has yet to come out into the openo Secondr in its virbua.l- exclusion
of. the most vuLnerable househoLds, those hea.decL t6r women,w"ith/yor:ng children.
\
Notes
I. See Roger Gonunr rHarlots and Bachelors: marital instability arnong theooastal Digo of Kergrar , I,IAI[, VT't (t972).
\
2. rrWomen are muoh stronger than u) men'rl he once d.eclared, trbut they havenotsense.tr Lhis statement legitimises r.romenrs role in performing thegrbater burd.en of househoLd. l-abour ancl menr s in making the most importa^rrtd.ecisionsr '
3. See A.O.Pa3-a1 ld.H,Wal-Lits a^nd J.E.ReJrnoIds: rThe uoments groups prog?amne '
in the Special RuraLTevelopment Progranune (SRDP) t , in A.O.Pa1al T.Aworiancl A.Krysta11 (ed.s) The Parlicipation of llomen in I(en"va Socie'by (Uairobi:Kenya Litera'bure Bureaul 197t3) "
A A
N'KTXII. WOI,In.IIS, CROUP. JIBA]'IA LOCATIOI.I
Arkeni uomenrs g?oup meets by Chilulu primary school in rolling palm-
coverecl countryside 3 km north of Kalo]eni. This is in Chi1ulu-Tsagr,ra sub-,
locat ionl J ibana (nombo) locat ion, parL of the Kaloleni c l iv is ion of Ki l i f i
district' I,lombasa, to the south, is 5O km away by netallecl ancl rrnnretalled
roado Ln 1979 the total popr:lation of the. sub-locatiort r.ras 5fl41, r;i-bh a
d-ensity of 312 people per sq.km liwing in B4B households scatterecl throu;hout
- the ?r€&o Jiba^na predominate !:-tfrough many tromen are Chorgri follotring a
pattern of intermarriage betr.reen these two neiglrbouring and verl' closely
related ethnic group6. A third related Sroupr Giriama, is steaclil-rr
encroaching upon lancl on the sou'bher:r border of Chilulu, a stonets thror.r
an'ray from the primary schoolo Arnlceni, 'rAwaken!", was the first uomenrs
group to be formed in the location. It had been joined W 1{ others by
Octoben-l{ovember L9B5t uhgn research was oonrtuctecl in ChiluJ-u.
TTIE CIIII]ULU AI.KU{I PROJECT
( rAmkenitis distingu:ished. by having early found a verXr committe{ a1ly -
I{orld Vision International - allowing it to pursue a d"azzli.,ng amay of
. successfr8 enterprises under {he thrrrsting }eadership of its d.ynanric and(
, por.rerfi:l chairrroma:ro Its first year, honeverr was not u:rtypical for a group
in its formative .Flage, with littJ-e prospect of assistance except that
provided. by the stateo
(The group r.ras formed on 2 Ja.nuary 1981. This'followed a public meeting
held the previous month by the area CDA after consrrltation rdth the chief and
the groupr s future clrairwomanr then chain^roman of Chilttlur s small Anglican' l(
congregation and a member of the Looa.l school obmmittce. 29 lromen paid 5oslr
45
each'co join the gloup, r^rhich uas registered vrith the I'l inistry of Cul"ture
a.trcl Social Seruices later that month" They r.lere cluick to choose a vrater
pro ject, reaironing that c lomest ic hygiene (t t rus health) and. otber projects
:;uch as rearing stoci; first required a good supply of-natero Before they
cor.tcl be consiclerecl for a grant the Social Serrrices advised them to continue
l . - \
coll-ecting subscriptions, set by the group at 2sh per r'reek r+ith a yearly
p;yment of losh -bo rener.r:nembershipo In l-981 members al-so tried to raise
rnoney by cookint and selling chapatie and ctttivated a.borror^led. fielcl--with
rita.ize, neither uith any great successo
Chilulu Arnkeni Proiect and ita ogga.nisation
The big break came in l-982, engineered through the initiative of Amkenits
chainroman. Her elclest daughter r,ras then r+orking for tlorld Vision in Nairobi
as ilreir: project co-ordinator for South ltryaxrza. pitfr her encouragement the
chir.in;orcan rrrote to the I'Ipirobi office requesting assistance. The Coast region
co-orrlinator visited. Chilulu and discussed local- problems uith the l'romenrs
f,'Toupe As a result of his report the Chilu1u Amkeni Project was botnr one of
a 1a.rge nurnber of Kenyan projeots run by llorl-d Vision in conjr:action uith the
C,P.Ii., Chur'ch of -bhe Province of Kenyao
The Project uas clesignerl to help the local commwtityr lrorking primariJ-y
uith Chilu}u sotrool- and. Amlceni r.romenr s groupo A committee l.tas set up, chairett
by an Anglican pastor (tiving ln ldombasa) a,nd inclucting B AmXeni members, their
rnail job being to revien the Project and its accor:nts and report to llairobi.
evet1r nonth. A yorurg man from the area nas appointed. Project manager anct the
groupt s chainroman ta.lcen on as its social r'rorker. In Late 1!82 they were
joi-ned by a Project r.rorker, a recently marriecl Jibana man from Chilulu. In
J;r.nna.r7 l9B4 a Chonyi secondary school leaver r+as ta.lcen on as the Projectrs
i'-grj-cultrrril extension r.iorlcer and. the team r,ias completed in Jrrne of that year
4 6:
1
I
with the appointment 1f
a book-keeperr also Chorllri a]Id unmarried' In 1a'te
I9B4 the Projeot manager had to qr:-it after making one of the Projectrs
sponsoretl schoolchildren, the d.aughter of a gToup member, pregnant t
behaviour inconsistent rrith llorlcl Vision and C.P.K. e-bhics (l1ortcl Visiou
elvelopes are hea.ded.tr$ar ing for people Ir i th the Compassion of Cl l r ist") ' The
book-keeper took over his duties. In October 1985 they uere being pa'id the
follordng monthly salaries: book-keeperfmanager IlOgOsh; Project rrorl:er
lOOsh; sooia] r.rorker BtOstr; agricrrltural extension uorker 6lOsh; attd r';ere
shorbly due to receive fl/o taj.ses. Their office is a' corrugatecl-iron sled
rented from the husba.nd of oile of Arnkenirs members' The Project itself has a-
large yearly budget: 36orlzosh in 1!B{, 33or26osh in } !8! '
Pro j ect. contslrnitlr. group
O n e o f t h e p r o j e c t t s s t a t e d a i m s i s ' b o s e e t h a t r ' S r O O O p e o p l e a r e :
evaneelised arrd spiritualLy nurtured by organising evanSelism canpaigrsr bible t
study gpoups a3d training 10 mothers a^nnua'I1y on evangelism, equipping them
rritlr Christia.n literature and other facilities for sprea'ding the Gospel'"1 To
d - a t e o r r J . y B h $ ' m n b o o k s l a p r a y e r b o o k a r r d a b i b l e h a v e b e e n b o u g h t a n d t h e
Project has conoentrated instea.d upon more vlorldly gpals' This' as l'te shall
s€er, has been much to the benefit of the t^romenrs group and not alvrays in line
with llorld Visionr s explicit wishes'
Iduch of World Visionts funding comes from overseas sponsorships of
individuar. schoorchildren. Tn'chilrrlu the r'rork this entairs is handrecl by the
projeotrs g?and.ioseLy titled sponsor Relations Departmentr 'bhe- responsibility
of its Projeot Horkero children from the most needy homes are selectedt
photog:raphed., arrd reportecl upon every year. 686 local- child'renr most of
them at Chil*Iu primary school (lrhictr has,-ar8lo pupils), are sponso::ccl, ma'inly
b y f a m i } i e s i n t h e U . S . l A u s t r a l i a a r r d ] I e r . l Z e a l a " r r c l . 1 5 3 a t t e n c l o t } r e r s c h o o } s
4 7
in Jiba.na, Chonyi and. Kaloleni Locationsl r^rhi1e Ir having graduated from
ChiLr:J-u primary schooll attend various secondary and technical schools. For
the latter sponsorship rneans that their fees are paid; for the rest it rneans
receiving the occasional Letter and. sma1l gift a^nd-, more importan'bly1 beiug
provicled. with schoo]- uniforms. In l-984 the Project paid 2rBSOsh to an Inclian
firm in l,Iombasa to have r:niforms made. Follovring this Amkeni clecitled -bo get
in upon the same act. In December the Project paid. 6rBOOsh for 2 Singer
serring machines, duly installed in the chairuomanrrs house. In l ' lovember I)BJ
the group held a hararnbee a^nd raised. Tr5O8sh to pa,y a young ldomarl to teacl:
members to ser^r. By April 1!86 Anrtceni was reported to be cloing a roaring tr;v-l.e
in ser.ling school uniforrnso I
The Projeotrs agricultural extension worker is detailed to help 5-n'uroduce
mod.erzr farnring techn-iques into the commr.rnitye explai1ing efficient nethods of
cultivation a,nd storagel the use of fertil izer and pesticiclesr ancl encourag'ing
the plantation of sma-11 vegetable g::,rdens. To this end he visi'bs local farmerst
mainly group members, amcl works vlith LocaL vromenrs g?oupsr Amlceni in
part icuJ-ar, on their col . lect ive f ie ldsr d.5-spensing advice, vegeiable seed,
sprayiing lrith p""ticia"6 a,nd grving fertilizer to those ruho cau affor.d to bll]'
it. As a result most Amkeni members have suitched from trarlitio:ra1 prac'Lice
and- begqn bta^nting in linesr, gpd most have vegetable gardens. iloreovcr in
1984. ana 1985 indiviCual group members r,rere allocated substantial surns from
Project funds to pay casual labourers to cultivate and rreed their fielcls. I:r
l lBJ alone.bire bi l l for this came to 2L1lOOsh, to be divic ' l -er l arnong 4l tnembers"
3y llovember L9B5 the agricultural ertension worker harl
rioment s gToups in the area and ltas planning to worlc r'tith a
received the most clirect benefit. Table 11 shons sales of
coll-ective fields betr,reen 1982 and late 1!Blo The Projcct
vis i ted- 4 other
fifth. Bui Anl'leni
crops [tror.al on i bs
has brou.glrt a
/,t)
TASLE }1
CROP t982 1gB3 rgB4 L9B5
bea.ns
maize
vegptables
1 r 3 9 1
1,7oo 2r620
548
r,ols500
1r3g r 1r?oo 3r158 5r 538sh
x J!'fsh spent lry the group on seed a.nd tractor ldre
demonstrable improvement, d.efraying e:penses, eq"rartding the acreage r':ncler
crrltivation (see later) a^nd impioving yield.s through the use of modern techniques
a.nd cheraical inputs.2 The harvested orops are stored. at the chainromanrs home,
ghere storage r,ras built for the frurpose, and a small portion of each harvest is
r e d i s t r i b u t e d . a j n o n g g r o u p m e m b e r s . I r r N o v e m b e r . ] . g 8 5 e a c l r m e m b e r r e c e i v e c l a s m a l l
measune of bea^ns (r :nd.er 1kg) from the latest harwestr in recognit ion of the-
l-abour they had contributed"
The project a1"J ho" plarrs to introduce grade dairy caitle, but has ha'rl
difficul-ty in acquiring a suitable plot: zer:o-grazirLg, the preferrecl methoclt
requi ees Z acres of 1and. in an area r*here watcr is read-ily available a'ncl-
consta't supe:rrision at hand.. rn Laie 1985 tire chilulu sub-chief offered- io sell-
his pregna.nt gra.de cor^r to the woments group for IOlOQOsh proviclin3 theSr coulC'
ernploy a herrlsma' ad iending them his shed a"nd. la,ird u'til thel' ssultl build
their orm (at a cost of some lrOOOsh). The offer remained to be put i :e i 'ore
l'lorld Vision.
The pro ject has also initiated- a scheme to build small hou,ges. for reccntly
bereaved r.rid.or.rs1 arguing that they are often unable to maintain tJre 1e'r3er
d.r.rellings left b,y their husbaldso The work is done by loca^l builclers and so
far 3 people, 2 of them Amkeni membersl have benef i ted ' '
49
t-
The water pro,'isct
ChiLulu Arnkeni Projectts most ambitious venture has bcen in organising
a.nd financing the groupts water project. This has 3 pha.ses. The firsil uhich
was completecl in August l994t rvas to bring piped vrater from the mainline b;r
the Kaloleni-Kilifi road to the area around. Chilulu school t 2-3 krn a.r'ray. Tho
second phase, stil1 awaiting the appcararce of llater Department surv'eyorst
entails taking this water west to Swere; a.ncl the third phase rri11 take it east
from Ghilrrlu to llurima l,Ikulu. Project accounts record a:r erpense of sqme
2!2rOOOsh on the rvater project between I'Iay L9B3 a.ncl September 1!811 over half
of its cost to d.ate. lluch of the rest has been made up by the governmeirt.
$re sources of fr:nding and other aid are shor'nr in firll in Table 1?.
TASLE 12
SOIIRCE A1,l0UI'IT cor,[,InrTS
t982
l-gB3-B4
1984
10 eOOO sh
\
273 rooo stt(183,2?4)
" r {2 ,000sh
g'iven to Am]:cni ttomenr s group inOctober; cleposited and kept inthe grouprs bank account. -
alLocated. in the form of ma. 'bcr ials;B9r726ih r.ras not usecl ancl tal:enbaclc by the I'l inistry (balancegiven in bracke-bs).
much of -bhis money appears to ha.vebeen embezzle& by one of I Peace
.Corps volunteers rvho he1pecl otr thepro ject. The Dnbassy also prorriclecla soLar punping machine and PVCpipes in Jr:ne 193/,.
provided., in Ju1yl in the forn ofBO 1#' PVC pipes. Anlcenits chair=lloman co-pplqins that the gra"nt lrasfor the purchase of metal pipes;the pLastic ones they got ob''riousl-ycost rntrch less.
Idinistry of Gultureand Social Senrices
I,linistry of l.laterDevelopment
\U. S. Dnbassy
f9B5 ldinistry of liealth 10 ;OOOsh
50
TABLE L2 (cont)
1gB3-8,
llorlcl VisionInternationaL
2!2r000sh ( see above) Isal-aries and
exclucling Projecto ther cos ts .
TOTAL
Amkeni members alcl others in the conrnun5.ty contributecl labor:r for the fj-rst
phase of the project, d.igging the main pipeline trench between l{ovcmJler L)82
and Febnrary the follorring f,€&ro 0n1y one of three successive Peace Corps
volunteers r.rho he1-ped. i,s considered 'bo have made a positive contributiot-".. I'luch
of the work has been overseen by the Project vrorker, an experienced plumber.'
When the first phase was comptretedl he turned to the worlc of maintenancer -b]re
lafing of individual ertensions and fittingsl and the cons-Lruction of r'rater
kio.sks and storage jai.s, al-L for the benefit of Amkeni a.ncl its memberso 4
kiosks vrere bui]-t asrd. fitted. for the sal-e of vater in August-September 1985.
Tbe sales of water from these are to go to the rvoments gtcoupr and in late 1!8!
they r.lere r,raiting foybhe installation of meters and a licence before beginning
their tra.de. I'Iork on individual ertensions begari the year before: by Oc-bobcr
lg15 L7 group members living near Chilulu primary schooL had s'ba.ndpipes ou'bside
their homes. They l{erer ,no""orrJ., d.rawing 'ater free of charge in the
absence of a'y meterso ,Oilrer residents uithout access to 'biris lra'Lcr continuerl
to coll-ect gater from the Local springs, l- }3n or so from tlre school" tlor'l: tra"s
also in progress to provide group members uith concrete storage jars, each r;itb
a capacity of c.36O l i t res, to col lect and. hoJ-d:-a{nuater from-bheir roofs
as a precaution against failure of the piped. supply. The'first of -bhese riere
built in october L9B5 by a mason from Kaloleni.
62'f rO00sh$x rzl.q)
the 'total in bracicets ca:rfurther correc'bed to tal<eof unused al locat ions.
h o
accorrnt
a l
SATIS}TING T}IE STATE I'lAl'lI PULATII{G I'l G0s
Rrblic image
A:'lheni is no less subject than other groups to dema^nds from the staJe.
In July llBJ group members uorked on repairing the dirt road vhich serves
Chilulu at the request of the loca1 sub-chief. In October they cool:ed. bananas
and. took them to KaloLeni for a meeting celebratj-ng World Food Dal'. 4 cla.ys
later they treldced to the diwisional headcluarters to sing beforc the guests at
wr all-day assembly marking Kerlyatta Day, Over the past year the group had.
spent 314?0sh on matching dresses and headscarwes to.vlear on such occasions.
Earlier in the month they ha.d been held. behind at a village meeting by iireir
sub-chief to be toltl how to present food for visitors and hoir to courbsey a.:rcl
s ing before themo At th- is meetlng z) ls.n frad teln t 'a ised. for the Ker,yatta Day
celebrationso On the day itself they queued for food r.rhile honoured officials
gOrged. themselves and sr,rilfetl their free beer: failing to get any the lrornen
returned t_o Chilulu hulgzTr,
One of the speakers at this assembly was Amlcenirs chain'Ioman. She r'ras
later calLed upon by the area I'lP to tour all of its sub-locations in the first
half of 1!85 to press for the forrnat ion of more l romenrs g1'oups. This is some
measure of the ertent t,o whigh 4mkenir bolstered by llorld Visionr ha.s
succeeded in l.lorking liithin the framer.rork of state obli8ations" The r'rater
project is direct ly in- I ine l r i th state development object ives, a fact ref lecLecl
in the considerable government funding it has received. Amlceni ha.s also
proposetl a variety of other community projec'bs: the building of a nulserX'
schooJl a d-ispensary, and prorrision of a market for women. In llebruary ).!8!
the chairwoman wrote to a bus company in I' lombasar asking that its serrrice be
ertended to ChiluLu. The first bus came the follor.ring month. The bus come:i
every ni$tt its conductor is accornodated in a house olrned W the chair',roma'nrs
52
husbancl and it leaves for l,lombasa at d.ar'rnr t[e chairrtomam is nolr pressing
i'or a mor.e regular senrj-ce. The Projeot itsel-f has paid. for the building of
a roof for Chilulu pri-rnary school-rs ne\,I Standard B classroom, while its
agricul-r,ura1 prograrnrne is matched. ,perfectly trith the message most frecluently
relayecl at rallies and meelings in Kalo1enio
In August l9B5 the Projectts committee was changet l to ref lect thi-s role
a:rd "bring d.evelopment to the vi]Iage" rrith greater haste. 3 Amkeni members
r.iere clropped. and ! state employees taken on: the sub-chidfl the CDA, the
loca1 agricultural technical assistantl the headmaster of a looa.l Oti*oO
sclr.oole and the headnnaster of ChiLulu prirnary schooll aJ-so a church eldero
The goverrgnen'b agriarl-tural- assistant novr works closeJ'y with the Projecbrs
ag:ricr:-Itural ertension r.rorker, uho has begun attending fortnigttly seminars for
agriculturaJ- officers in l(alo1eni" In Septembdr he vras introduced by h:is
goverrunent colleague to Umoja r.roments group in llurima I'ikulu and sprayed- their
seseuTle and cor,;-pea crops vlitlr pesticide. In October they visited. the sesame
fielcl of l\inani lrornenf s g?oup in neart6r Tsakarolornr and he was asked to do the
sa1ne: :lesar1e seed. has been prorricled free by the governrnent to encourage its
pro<luction ancl on llorld Food Day-Amani wls presented with a certifioate
corrnetlding its efforts in this d-irection.- Uleanwhile the Rrojectrs agricultr:ral
r:oricer has been a.dvised- to rnalce more use of fertil izers: there is no shorbage
of (i.lortd Vision) funds r'rith r,rhich to br5r them. In this and other respects
1he project has been appropriated. by the state as an ertension of i ts ovm
cleveJ-oprnelt ef'fortsl vrhile through its commwtity progfamme a.nd schooL
sponsorships it helps insulate local- households ftpm the clemand-s which the
sta'be i r ;poses upon themo )
furiceni, rneanr:hi-1e, is rel-ievua of the greater burclen of state d.emands
i:lrrough the support and- fr.inding it receives from I'lor1d Vision. Other t'romenr E
groups in 'Lhe locat ion are not so fortunate. At Amkenits harambeer held on
/
53
TASLE 13
CATOCCIIY DOITORS COI'ITRISUTION
t ioi i luir sGITOUPS
Anheni members
11 other ltomenils Sroups
21000
1 1 1 3 13,L 31
i lGOs Toto'bo arrd staff
tlorld. ftLucation visitors
600
4001,OO0
STAT]'S]'CTOR
agricultural officer
councillor
CDA
chief
22L
31
100
n
OTIIIIR, i /
guest of honour
ex-Chilu1u PuPil
col lect ion macle W the'husba:rd of a.n Amlceni rnember
11000
500
200
,,r10
ri lreaclmistress of a secondary school
in l ia loleni
6ro52sn
2 ltovenbey :19}5t l.romenrs gToups'nrovid-ed-r 4ir% of the J1508sh raised (26'1" fron
a,rnlieni itself , 15i; from other groups). Adding the contribution from IIGOS,
54,,. of the total came from voluntary orga.nisations. State personnell who did'
nost of the ta3-hj-ng, contribut ed- a mere J/0. The GDA complained that some
lro*ent s rJroups are formed so that they ca"n get grants3: instea'd they must
help thcmselves first. Notidthstanding this, marly of the groups which sang
and da:rced before ilre guests sang about their problems and presented- thinly-
veiled requests for aid. In contrast vrith Amkeni the state is their only aIly'
l . ia l : inn the most of f r iencls
As Table 13 inclicates, Amkeni has securetl another ally besides World
54
Vi,sion: Toto'bo llome Industries. Hot^reverl much to Tototors a^nnoyance,
they have had to operate in the shadolr of their international cousin. Amkeni
r.ras taken on by Tototo, then unar.Iare of Uorld Visionrs involvement, in
early 1983. The Chilu1u Amlceni Project marager vras chosen by the group as
its Tototo co-ordinator. But frorn the start *Yry did not go well. I,ecL ty
their chainroman the group hatl hoped. that Tototo yrould. gr-ve them money and
,l.Iere not interested in the training given to their co-ordinator. Frustrated-
in irX,'1ng -bo explain Tototors purpose, the co-ordinator gave up to concentrate
on his more l-ucrative Project job. In 1984 a young grcup member was chosen to
succeed him: initial-Iy the chairr^roman had wa^nted the position for herself.
\Her st/Ie of leadership is anathema to Tototor md on occasion theSr have:
consiclered uithclrarring from Arnkeni al-together. The chai::r'romarr mea^nvrhil-e1
coltinues to l-oolc upon Tototo as a possible source of funds. 1n August 1985
Tototo pro-rir)-ed. some ma'Lerial for the groupt s sewing machines. In October the
chi'.igionran r.ras busy pu.rsuing Tototots direotor for help in securing a banl< loa.n
.bo buy a tractor ( see later). In the garne month Tototo introduced. a savings
club for Anr]:eni members: 31 'nomen joined. a.nd deposited 442sh betneen them.
The f'ollordng month 49Osh uas deposited: its acoounts, hor'rever, r'rere in a
cornplete sharnbles follorring the chairvromanrs reoeipt of palrments outside of
schecluf- ecl meet ings "
]tal-rns. coDra a.ni l:omen
chain.lornanr s rnost spec'bacu1-ar mani.pulation has been of l,lorld. Vision
Sone instrulces of this have already been cited. It is nowhere more
iiran in the establishment of Arnkenits main enterprise: the production
of copra.
The
i L ; e 1 f .
eviclent
a.rrtl sal e
Irt
- c i" Lher
early years
cult ivate or
i-L s
L o
Arnl,,cni had considerabl-e clifficulty in obtaining land
j:uild a mee'bing-place upono Different fields were
bomowed for short periods. One, just below Chilulu primary schoolr had
I to be aba^ndoned by the group because of a dispute betueen its Jibana or.tler
. a:rcl Giriarna cLaimants. In L9B4 the grcup cultivated ^ E acre fiel-d at
Kizingol € tm awailr and lent for just one season. In the same yehrtire
I group also bega.n cr:-Itivating a * acre field. at Forirrie or.rned. by the locaI
church and rented- by Amkerri fort5osh a year. Then, in August I984t 'blie I
group and. Project embarked- upon a nelr trackr accluiring assets in land., na.Ins
( a^nd- tree produce using tlre consid.erfble financial resources at the Projectrs
disposalo Over-the nert few months 3lr680sh r,ras paicl out for this p' l rnose,
mostLy to local landor.nrers compelled. to raise mortgages on 'Lheir prcnert;i
( through pressure of financiaL circumstaJrces. Thts separate transactions are
d.etai led in Table 14 belou"
TA3Ltr 14
t
DATE PAYI.TM{T NATURE OF TNANSACTION ltIl'1iltssB5
August/ 2rJOOsh lO coconut palms pledged to (r) the chairrrome.nrsllovember in 2 Amlceni for a period of I years claughter a.nd 13 yearL9B4 payments by an or,rner r'rho wanted. to raise olcl son, e.nd a loce.l
the money to send his daughter ma:r. (t) 2 menl one'bo secondarXr school. the husband of Anl:enits
sccretary.
September 4r040sh lJ orange and tangerine trees the ProjecL nanager,l9B4 iw 2 together r.rith 'coconut .paIms t:orl<er, and
payments pledged for a period. of I years. agricul'bural e:t-bensio:rTo enable the or-mer to send his lrorkeroson to secondary schoolo
September 1r2O0sh to be re-burned to Amkeni in the rlr4oform of 2r4DO coconuts valuedat 9 cents each. So that theol.mer cor:J-d pa,y his sonrssecondary school fees.t -
1984
56
T.I$LE 14 (cont)
DATtr PAYi:i]-{.lT NATURN OF TRAIISACTIO}T tI.ITIfESStrS
Sep'Lember 1 lz l {Q5[1984
4? pal-ros pJ-ed.ged. to Arnkeni foran indefinite period. Theoriner (now dead.) did this toredeem his debt on the samepalms to a previous morf6ag'ee.The present nr<.rrtgage must nowbe redeemed. by his sonso
.tho Pro ject r,rorker a.ndagricultural ertensionr.rorker, the chainlomanr shusband and. his youngerbrother.
0ctoberr9e4
5r 5O0shL n 2palnnent s
100 palms pledged. to Arnkenifor a periotl of 10 years. fl: 'eol{nert s d.aughter had left herhusband and returned. to herfather: he needed the noneyto return her bridewealth"
the Project managertbook-keeper and r.rorker.
0ctobe-cl9Bri
!1O0Osh 10O palms pleclged. to Amkeni' (per iod . no t s ta ted) by the
Chilu1u sub-chief so thdt hecould buy cattle for zeto-gtazi,ng"
I I r 3o
Oc-bobcrL9 'd4
!O0sh to be repaid to Amlceni as11000 coconuts valued a+ n
' cents each. To enable theotrner to send'iris d.aughter toI(aloleni village poltrrtechnio.
the chain"lonanr shusbanrd.
Oc'r ,obcrT9B4
5r 5OOsh purchase outright of 2 acres oflarmland (r.rithout palms) atI{izingo. Solci by a young Jibanarna.n to pay brider*ealth for hisr'rif e-to-be.
the seller agreed. to goto Kilifi r'iith Arnkenirepresentat ives to changethe nane on the t i t led.eed. from that of hiscleceased father to thelioment s g?oup.
December 6rOOOsht9B4/ in 2Selrternber PaYmentstg85
1f; acres of farmlancl lrith pal-msat Vuga, pleclged- to the Projectfor a period of ) yeard so thatthe Jibana or.rner oor.rLd repay
brider"realth received- for hisdaughter, nou separated fromher husband.
(a) tfre Project book-keeper a^nd agricuJ-tura1bxtension worker plus 1LArnkeni members trnd thehusb:rnd of one of them.(t) 2 men.
31 I 6Bo sh
jI
Three types of t ra^nsact ion are represented in this l ist . First l ouir i6ht
purchase of lancl (t case). Secondl the mortgaging of palm produce, the loan
to be redeemed upbn the collection oI*a fixed. nurnber of coconuts by the
mortgagee (.O,rntceni) r the fruit valued at a price loruer than the going ma.rl:ct
rate (2 cases). Third, the mortgageng of l-and and/or palms to be recleened
upon repalrment of the originaL Ioa^n r'rithin a fixed (4 cases) or inclcfini'bc
period. (2 cases). Failure to recle:m may be avoicled. by'bra^nsfer of the nnorbgr.ge
to another mortgageer or settled. by outright sale of the land.
Thus, by acting as a mortgagee, l,mkeni/the Projec'b has acquired i-bs ? rirain
f ields, one purchased outr iglr t , and a hos'b of r igtr ts in trees, especial ly
pa1ms, ancl their produce. This couId. not lr.ave been achieved r'rith.oub the
filr.ding unrrittingly provid.ed. by I'Iorld. Vision. The iclea to start acqrriring palns
orig'inated w:ith Arnkenirs chaizvoman a^nd rras approved bythe Project cornrnittee.
Ilor.revere r.ilren repori of this reached. World Visionrs headquarters in l{airobi
they ord.ered pa6rments to stopo fho reasons were given. First; because tiris,
enterprise clearl-y d-id- not benefit the commr:nity as a rihole. Second, because
it ma.cle the chr.:rch look Like a iinancia.l- institution. This r,ras in Decernber 1984.
l' ieed.less to say it was too late. A large number of patr'men-bs had- alreacltr' been
rnade from Project funds ingolving long-term committments of up to 1O ;;ears.
tr\rture d.ealings lrere shifted ffom Project to gr-oup accouuts. Until Janua4' 1!8!
these ha.d been kept by Project staff; hencef,or-bh 'bhey r'rere entrrrstecl io the
group secretary. Procluction and sale of tcopra. as ltell as fruit f rom the trecs
pJ-ecl.ged. to the group vlent aheade sorn€ entered into tlre group accounts a.ncl sone
going j-nto a clrurdestine savings accor:nt1 free from llorld. Vision scrutiiryl
opened. by Project staff for the purpose. It r.ras agreed that thj-s and- va.rious
rrritten agreements r.lould be passed on to the r', 'omenrs group in the event of the
Project being r.ror:nd up (at tl/e moment Project staff are on I year contracts).
'sli
The enterprise
m6ans to continue
Recorried. saLes of
in Table I j .
TASLE Iq
I.iOIi'III
has proved. trery successful; provid-ing Amkeni rdth the
its investments trithout Project a^nd l'iorld Vision frrncls.
corrra and fmit in the first B rnonths of 1985 are shor,n
I
TYPE OT PRODUCtr SOLD I]i00i.lt
Ja.nuary
Febn:.ary
Ivlarch
April
May
June
August
copra
oranges and tangerines
copra
oranges
copra
copra
copra
copra
oopra
4 r 1 3 3 s h
2n
1 , 8 1 4
300
3r/ioo
2 r?no
2r4O0
4 r lOO
700
TOTAI, 19 r 897 sh
Labour costs in collecting cocorruts are rninimal - in Jairuz'E7 r'|tc 8roup
. ' l
spent 2O2s:n on having coconuts felled. a.ncl in building s'Lorage - anc]" rnuch of
the' laboux in preparingfhe kertrels for dryi i rg is provicled' by 6Toup;nernbels
themselves. Amkeni sold i'bs copra for 4sh 8O cents per }:ilo io tlte Cltilul-u
bra.nch of the Jib:r.na C6-opcrative Society. It uas, hottevcr, air erratic
-Dayer, a1d. the group r.ras pla.nning to talce future !6rvests to Indian bqyers
in lriornbasa (vrhere the offered price r^ras 6sh) in defiance of l3ovelnrnent
direct ives.
59
I:r September 1!Bl Amlceni had a healthy bank balance of 2!r8!Osh and
';he che"in,ornan lrar,s se'btinga"" sights on a.nother'enterpris.e: purchase of a
tr:ictor to hire out to farrners in Chilulu ancl furthef afieId" Given a clemancl
far in ezcess of the meagre supply she estimated that tiris coultl bring in an
income of l-OrOOOsh in 2 nsnlhtr ploughing "*,jryun p"" r.""". A tractor a^nd
its i :ccessorj .es nas costed, at 286rO00sh:, 23OlOOOsh for the tractor l 30lOOQsh
for a pLough; 2)rOOOsh for a harrowl anr l c.LrOOOsh for the f i rst yearrs
insurauce. This i'roul-d require i loan" To this end. the chainroman tal}:ed. to
chulch officiaLs in ltrairobil visited banks in l.Iombasa vrith Tototor and- r.rcote
Le-i;ters to the area councillor, d.ivisional officere ohief and. CDA. Nottring
had been fixed. up by early 1986. I{ea^nrihiLe the grsup ha.cl embarketL upon yBt
another enterprise, opening a shop in a builcling or.rned.by the chai:r.romanrs
lrusband"
i ts acr luis i t ion of palms and other assets Amkeni has acted. as a
corpora.te en-breprene-ur" This represents a novel variation upon the process
clescr.iirecl'by Darvid- Parl:in in ]ris Palms. ll ine. ancl tlitnessesl a stud.y based
upon resee.rch among the Girianra of Tsalcarolornr in t966-57.4 Parkin fowrd. that
irrd-iviJLual Giriarna entrepreneurs tlere obliged. to cultivate locaL networks of
j-nforlrr.tion anrl secure the approval of local el-cters a"nd household- heads in
ord er to pursue and. val idate'bheir t ransact ions. At the same t ime some
r;ucc,:sr.jf!r1 entrer.,reneurs achieved. pei,rtial release from the redistributionaL
uetnr::rds of irou;ehoId economy by converting to Islamo .Among the Jibana of
neiglrl;ouring Chilulu conversion 'bo salvationist Christianity pla6rs a simiLar
role, rc leasing conver*s frornthe obl igat ion to d.r ink pal-rn r ,r ine rdth their
treighbours a:rrl clivert cash tor.rards the meat-sharing ceremonies which are
clurll+c'ber"ir:tic of i 'rurerals and other ritual oocasioqs. Among converts both of
these precLi-ces are strongly cl isapprovod. They are also disapproved W the
:; t ; r 'Lc. In ) .979 ' t ,he col . lcc ' t ion of palm uine, which rendors coconuts useless
50
t
as ,a
source of copra, was bau:ncd. by the governrnent., Eouever, its
consrulption continues, although less openly aJrd on a muoh reducecl scaleo -
At func;rals a.nd. sinrilar gatherings purchase of a 2Osh permit from the police
scsull'etj irirplicit approval for the open consumption of patm rrine a^nd it is on
snch occasiotrs that friction be'bvreen Christians and. trad.itionalists can be
r:ros-b conu:ronly obselr/ed. . ' '-
As a corporate entrepreneur legitimated. by the state Amkeni is spared.
cornrrrerltia.l obligations: its involvement in comrnuhity d.evelopment fulfils a{
parallel purpose. I'b has rel-atively little need to cultivate locaL contacts;
inore i-rnpor-bant are the nider netr"rorks of inforrnation whj.ch haie secured. access
to outsicle funds. Its possession of thqe anct high profile in the community
ar'e sufi' icient to rirav lanclor.nrers in need of loans tcvlards it. The pattern
of these ireecis, rneanuhi lel has changed, p.r i ty as a resuf-t of increasing
sbi.,Je in'Lerventiono llhere Parkin for:ncl that brid-ewealth demand.s and. to a
l-esser e:,:tent sickncss and d.eath prompted- the majority of Tsalcarolorm
'Lransac-bions in lanc1 and pe"Ims, tire small- Amlceni sample, for r.rhat it is
'.:ot'i it, shor:s a strilcingly different patterno 4 out of t lc,utdotrners gave
school fees as 'blreir main rnotive for mortgaging property, nhile only 3 cited-
br ic leueal- th e:rpenses ( in 2 oases the return of br idewealth for a d.aughter: see
Table 1{.). One ma.n, -bhe local sub-chief , needed a l-oan for investment in
I
air alterrrative enterprise: the establishment of zero-grazing forr daiqg
nrorluction (it is not recorrled. rvhy he subsequently offered- to dispose of this
-bo Arni :eni) . State interwent ion in the form.of land registrat ion has also
reciuced- the role of elders as ui t i resses to tra^nsact ions. One of the Project
uorl:crs obserwed that any Kenya^n is nor.l .entitled. to aot as a r^litness, a claim
born6-out in tlre contracts clrar,rl up for Amkenirs transactions. Project staff
t iere anong the ui tnesses to a number of theger oi l one occasion along r. l i th 11
Aml:cni mcnt l)erc. ' f l tc rnost crtreme instance of this shi f t in the reauirements
6r
o1' 1 egi-bimation r.ras
year-o1cl son"
the inclusion in one contract of the chain+oma^nrs 13
Boosted by i lor ld- Vision fundsr Amkeni is beginning to outstr ip i ts loca1
cot:tpetito:"s. One accrunulator o{ palms in Chilulu is the husba.nd of 2 group
members. Another is his son by the first of t!es9 tromen, and it vras from
hirn thrr.t one landoirner sr'ritchecL his d.ebt to Amkeni (see Table 14). This son
a. lso orms a sl : .op. His brother, a son by the,second- r .r i fe, is the or.rner of
uhat r'ras untiL recently Chilululs only otherlretail outlet, a smaIl kiosk.
These 2 stores nor,r face competition from Anlcenirs ner.il-y opened. shop. None of
these relatecl men can match the scale a^nd. d.iversity of Aml;enits enterprises.
iThe ner.r tailoring business poses a chal-Ienge to Chiluluts 2 ind.ependent tailors,
a r:riul ard a r'Iomo]1o The r.rater project will bring Aml.ceni a monopoly on sales of
r'iater, rilri le plans to expand- into dairy prod.ubtion ancl tractor hire rrould, if
acirievecl, put the group r^relI beyond- the "u..fr of its rivals. Oil'renrise it is\
lef'L to enterpri-sing individ.uals to mal<e the most of their corurections lrith the
iir.oup. 'fhis is t,iha-b the sub-chief has done, his mother and younger brotherrs
tdfe bo'tir nembers of Amkeni. One memberrs husba^nd., rrho runs a smalI tea-shop,
has rented the shed l.rhich used. to house tlie vill-agers only grincling machine to
-Lhe Project to use as i'bs office, and it r.ras he r,rho coll-ected. 20Osh for
funkenits ha.rambee in l lovember 1985 (see Table 13).
This pattern of competi t ion and uneasy al l iance is reproduced in Amkenits
rela'Lrons rr i th other groups in the areao One of these, thc Bid- i i Coconut
Business Self-Iie1p Group, based- in Jiba^na Tsakarolovu, was founded. btrr the
husbanrl of funlcenif s chainroman in late 1!B{. To put it mild}y they do not see
eye to eye. Unlike his vrife Bidiits chairrnan is only a nominal- Christian, all
irrveterate boozer of palm rrine and. a fail-ed entrepreneur. A retired schoo11
teacher he tror.r rents the buil-ding uhich once housetl his oror slrop to Arnkeni-,
62
-bhe Projec'brs agrisu-ltura} e:rtension lrorker and the bus oonductor. Bidii
meets on Sunclay rnorningsl when al-I self-respecting Christians are at chr:rcho
It rrn,s registered in April 1985 r.rith the aim of prod.ucing and. sell-ing copra.
In October i t paid out 33!sh for.6?0 coconuts, dr ied. and solt l as copra to the
local co-operative for l8Jsh. By itrovember it had. ano'bher 31J1O coconutsl -
pledg'ed. to i* by 1oca1 landormers and rias hoping to buiId the on1-y drying hut
j-n tlre ii.rea to procluce first and. second. grad.e oopra rrhioh could then be sold
fot'a higl..er price than the j-nferior grade oopra which Amkeni ancL other local-
entreprcneurs procluce" C,overnment agricultural- officers had. promised. to g'ive
adrrice on the constrarction of this facility and Bidiirs chairmax/vas on the
lookout for a loan for this purposel complaining that Amkeni (his lrife) wou1d.
not g'ive him any help and access to its or.nr channels of information.
lrollor:ing-bhe untimely d-eath of Bid.iirs male secretary (who had. earlier turr:ed
clorm the position of Chilulu Amlceni Pro ject manager: he had a kiosk to rrrn),
he asl:ed his rrife if he conld borror+ the Projectts agricrrltural- ertension
rior'l:cr rulli l another literate member could be taken on" She replied. by
advisrng him to d-o the job h:imself , relinqu5-shing the chair for someone el-se.
Bicl i i ts t reasurer is also a man, but l -4 of i ts 2/ t members are nomen ancl i t is
the oity r,rixed group of its lcind- in the area. 11 of these rlomen have also
bccornc rrrernl)ers of Urafiki r.romenr s group in l,lr.randaza, formed in August 1985.
Urafilri mernbers had- started- selling rnalcuti and had rented a fieLcl at 3o0sh for
'/- ycttr:. i idiits chairmar l,Ias, rrnderstandablyl rvorried that this uouJ-d.
d-etract frorn their committment to 'bhe gruup and. in November r.ras busily
exJrorting the lromen to pay up thei:: 3OOsh Sidii shares before sribsoribing to
Urafiki.
Also in the Jiba:ra part of tJakarolovu, a short r.raIk from Bidiirs meeting-
pIace, is the sesame field qultivated. t6r Amani vornents group. This and 2
o l , l t r - - t ' l ' i . r - ' l 11s r rc l rc l c r lb ' l ,o 'L l rc g ronp by a locn l J ib r rna e l t l c r ; nn accumula tor
63
of palms anrl, Ii l:e his Giriama counterpartsr a l'{uslim convert. d I' luslim
riientbers of his family nere also members of Amani" Bidiits chairrnan r'las not
on 6oocl terr,rs r'ri-th himl the resu-Lt of a past dispute over the mortgaging and
orrncrship of palms. Amanirs members, meanrrhil-er .wef@
"d'isparaging about the
overi; Christianity of Anrkenj. and its chairr'roman: the group had been forrned.t -
after its fou4d.er mernbers trere denied entrance to Amkeni. Allied. through their
comtTlon obeisautoe to the state a^nd the agricultural- assistance which Worl-d
Vision provides, the different r.roments groups in the area are also competing
I
for the funds r"ilrich such bodies can supply. To date only Amkeni has succeed.edt
amd nonel uith the partial exception of Bidilr has startecl investing in
pa1ms, not to mention the host of other.enterprises which Amkeni has embarked
unotlc The rest remain more cl-ose1y tied to ggvernment objectives: their
producti-on of sesame, a ner"r and wrtried cash crop in the localityr being one
e:rarnple of thj-so '-
l lCUi.i l i l lCLlS Gi{IDER AlfD DIIIFEREITTIATI ON
Cor.porl,.te. entrepreneurs do not automatically confer the same status upon
1:eir ipdiviclual members, especially vrhen these individualsr are llomen and the
fruits of entreprenerlrship are not divid-ed. among them; Most Amkeni members -
are l.ockeri in a patter.n of gender relations and clifferentiation from uhich the
gr.oup has yet to extricate thern.
j , iembe' 's i rnr l 'bh.e i r househol-ds
In late l_985 Ankeni had {.! members, aLI of thern uomen. Irlost were Chonyi
ancl Ji-ba:ra l{omen t'iho had married into the area: of 43 surweyecl 23 were Jibanal
18 Chonyi a.nct 2 Giria.ma. I.,lost l-ivecl near Chilulu primary schooLl 11 at
Kizirr3o a"ncl one, a daugirter of Amlccnirs chaintomanr in llombasa. A number
ita,i- rccei-vecl sorne p"irnoJ eclucationl but ve'ry fer'r liere literate. The yorrngest
6nT
rnember vas 1! and a sample of over' half of the group members sholls an age
distribution uhich refiects the chain'romanrs recruitment of her age peers
to6;etlier vi'ttr junior lromen from the same extend.ed. households.
IAI]L]I 16
T5-L9 1V- t t l .
AGE III YUARS . I-
zj-29 3o-i4 3j-39 4D-44 4>49 n-54 5i-r9 (f,-6q
Table 1? prowides further information on the 28 nomen in this sampleo
The stnrcture of households a^nc1 residence is broadl-y similar to that found
in Diani. one large extendetl compound, the home of the man who owns ilre
Projectts off icel housed p 6roup mernbers, whi le.a fur*he" 4 io"=. c lose kin
l iu ing elsetr i rerei in al l over * of the groupts' total- membership. The
rela.tionshi.p between these r.ronen is shor.nr diagramatioally in Tabl-e lB. There
arer houever, tuo important points of contrast r.dth Dianil a d.ifference in
the s'Lrrciure of gend.er relations _reflecting
the d.egree a.nd- form of capital
pene'bra-tion in Jibana"
irirstl Lhe rate of divorce and separation is ertremely low: alnong Sroup
t;rem'i:':r's i 'b is non-existento 35 mernbers were mamied and 10 were r.ridons: the
large tnunber of r.ddows reflecting the higlr propor.bion of olcler members ernd a
lor'l rate of remarriageo 0n1y one l'roman had been married more thah once, after
being l.ridorrecl by her first husband. This can be taken as a measure of tbe
resilience of hortsehoLd. econor{r in the &!€&r hrt another r{ay, r^romen in and
erounc]- Chi1u1u remain more firmly uncler the controL of men a^nd divorce ls not a
verl' viallle option. i ' lonen themselves rationalise this by saying that even if
thcir lmL:'uancls are ubter clrwrkarrls-ttrey feel obliged- to remain at home to look
65
Tial,ti l-7,a \.
AcE iiAitrral, Tor/il, tlo. oF I{uliBANDts IIER PosrrroN rl't GR0UP
STA'IUs IiO. OF TIii'SE Tfi,iPLOYI.I]il'iT I'IIPLOUIIEI{T AI{D PROJUCTCI|ILDRN'I T)IuD
)-g I'1 1 I'lbmbasa(
?3 I.1 2 IooaIIy nelt treasurert Project(= rrojuct
t- comrnittee tnernberr'lorl:er)
27 i.I 1 lJombasa
t 2 8 i l 52 8 l i 4
2 g i i 3
2g i,i 6
2 g r r 3
31 I,1 4
32 I,I 9 ^' Ioca11Y
-r r. i1 t{) ) i r u I.lornbasa
3 5 r i 6 t
3 6 i i 3 t . I i a l o l e n i
4 0 I 1 7 1 l o c a l 1 Y!,5 tl 6+O 2 -
t 7 1 1 9 I l - o c a l } Y
!,9 1.i 10 1 -
, L I I B l,lombasa
1oca1Iy
I,Iombasa sec. sbhool Prn ject oonm.treasllterteaoher
Idombasa
I.lombasa
Garissa
ex-Project comfn.lemb
vice-chair-tIoR?rI1 e:c-
Project comrn.member
vice-treasurerr Pro jectcomrn. secretary
52 ': 11 2 - l::i:i*,,""o", lliil;;Sil#l
Pro ject
S 2 I i g r o u p c o r r r n . m e m b e t
5tt I.i 10 ?
55 l'l 3 1 group comm'member
5 6 1 , 1 : - . 2 2 - o L d t r e a s u r e r
56 II 9 <- g:roup comrn'member
56 l l 11 6 - Project comm.member
& i l 5 2
60 II I 1 Project comri 'member
6'.2 u 10 6
66
TA3Ltr 18
rIIIIII
J
t]II
I
IIIL
-l
IIL
L-1
I
IIL
H
t-I
IIIIt 'I
IIIIIL
EIIIIIIII
IIII
J
| ^ rA-s l,_ _ _ J
key: A = m a l e 4 ' A ' = m a r r i a g eQ = female -f-.,
^l o = cleceased A A= :ilil';3i, :1.
residcn'bs of ihe sa,mecompotucL arc sjro::rencloserl ui'i;hin -l;ire
brol:en Ii-ne -
the above
X.= o1-Ir€r of the Projeo'Lrs off ice. A - I ' l = Amkeni memberct one deceascd:
A - group rrice-chai"rlro*rn and ex-mernber of the Project cornmittec; B = ev--neml)er
of i l re Projec-b committeei D = group vice-secretary; F = cl ied in 1!Bl, her
position in the group inheri.bed-ty iu; G = group secretary, Tototo co-ordina,''cor
and member of thE pro ject committle;' Ir = a primary scirool teacher at zia.ni.i K,
L arrd. I,1 joined the group in 1983.
67
af'ber il ieir chilrlren rather than nrnning auay, rdriLe they ascribe the higtl
rate of ciivoice arnong the Digo to Islarn and" the greate_1 d.egree of economio
freeCorn rdtich Digo r'rornen enjoy. If a r.;oman runs ar.ray from her husband- then
her father must return her brirlewealth: a reversaL of fortrures which fathers
are not very hapoy to entertain, as it rnay plunge them into debt (tirus the 2. l -
cases in Tab1e 14)" Bz' ideuealth payments are d.ouble those-in Dia.ni - 6rooosh
can be asl:-ecl for a d.aughter uhether ed.ucated or not - another mark of the
conpe.rative strength of househeld. €conorrgo I,IaIe household. control ertends to
8?oup membersirip: the inherit*rl" of a d.eceased r,Iomant s membership and.
subscrip-bions by her sont s r.rife in lp8! was deterrnined. tpr her husba^nd-. In
funlcenirs seconcl sarrings cLub meeting women e:qpressed. fears that tbeir accowrts
tniglit be inherited. by child.ren other than their orrrro The meek submission of
Sroup netnbcrs to their chairvrornanr s dominance is part and- pa"rcel of the same
synclrorrte: rnost rrere not prepared. by 'Lheir erpOrienoe at home for ar5r other
ro le . r
Tjre seconiL cont;-ast r.ii ' i;h Diani is in the nJture of male employment and
ac'',;i.rity. A l-arge number of men find and. remain in employment rrntil
re-Lj-r'enen'L: 75"i in the sample of group membersr husbands shor.m in Tabl-e 1!.
qla rtT. ; l ' l o
ilO i{Uii31ilil),. i i-,, ior: ecL
IIUSl]AI[D- t
l_n i . lomDase/el serrhere
lu,rplorm1ocaI1y
TIUSBAI.ID UIIU,IPI OYuDretired no riork
B4I 610
11=4.4
,Secause of th.e clistances involved men r.rorking in
acco:nodation in tor.m, returning to 0hih:J.u only
iitr ot-li i i 'Lionlrl rlr.in upcX'L'cir incomel aIt'ough
l,lombasa usr:a1Ly irave to rent
at neekends. This provid.es
they are at least regtrlar
68
TANL]I 20
GiTOUP }Iu.IBER SI.IBIJCRTPTIONS PAID HUSBAI{D I S OCCUPATIOItr
1 \
2
A
5 .6. conr.r i i tee
626sh60B6q6oo)yo596
none, accumulatornone, accumulaiorl' lornbasa, or.rner ofnoneno huebandno husband.
of palms tof palmsPro jec t o f f i ce
l . vice-secretaryB. cha.irltoman9. secretary1 0 .11. vice-chainroman12. cornrli-ttee1 3 .I4.. corrunitteeL5 .I O o
L' l .1 8 .L9 "20. old. t=.easurcr
) o lt r t rQ
5582)o542534q ? 2
5305265265235r7qno
t | Y o
I'[ombasanone, retired.Itlombasano husba^nd.1ocalI(alo1eni'nonenoneI,lombasano rhusbancLloca1localLocal .none
. )1- ) - o
2 2 .2 3. rri ce-treasrr-:rer. ) i
25. cor ' . rni 'btee2 6 .1 1 .
28.2c l
J U r
3 1 .
47o4.64
4.474364134.134 0 3395) A A) v +
218
I'iombasanonel,lombasal'lombasanone, ret i redno husba^nc1no husba^nclnone, ret i red.i'Iombasa]10neno husband
vrsi'Lops 'bo 'bheir hornes, not migrant laboJers in the fulr sense. orry a
fetr rttvest in palms otherbhan their or,n:r. arrd ther.e is consiclerable ind.ividual
variaiion in the arnount of financiaL help they give to their lrives. This
varia-bion is ref l -ected. in 'bheir r . r ivest contr ibut ions to the group. Table 20
recorcls the totar subscriptions paid betr.reen r!81 and. 19g5 by the 31 rvomen r.rho
joined- -i;)re gpoup in its first year. The 3 most regular contributors ha.d.
inir ;bi ' " rrr l I u l ' ro can l tc cl assccl as accumulators. .Othenl ise men l iv ing at home
69
are liable to d-ivert what income they have torra$s the consump'bion of palm
lri:te. l{idovrs are not necessa.rily-r,rorse off than their married neighbours,
especially if they have no children to support but ones r.rho car. suppbrt ihem
in turn" Others, houever, are_not so fortrrnate. Thus the rioman at -bhe
bottom of Table 20, a vridow with a d.aughtcr in seconclary school e.nd a
dauglrter (divorced-) o,nd grandchild. at home to support.
Hornenl s income cu]tivation ancl d.ifferentiation
AparLrfrom the cash suppl-ied by their husband.s or childrenr ntost ',;onen
have access to comparatively little income. There is no market in ChiLulu arrcl
little d.ema^nd- for cooked food" Some women seII bananas a.nd other fru.it from
their homes on a casual basis" tlomen, child.rene and. to a lesser ed;ent ncn
make roofing g$[!e sold at .a much Iol'ler price tha,n in Diani. During tire
production season the price can drop to 30 cpnts per piece, rising to '[O cen'bs
in Jgly and August, and it is difficult for even the most energetic proclucers
to malce' l -rOOOsh in a year. One eld.er l-y r .romarr able to make only J 'pieces a
dayr obserrred that it took her 4 deys to earn the price of a 2 i:g bag of
rnai_ze flor:r._ Othervrise marly r'romen keep small herds of not morc than 10 goa'bst
often bought t6r their husbandso These are kept for meat-sharing rituals or- sold
nhen occasion demands. I,larried r.lomen generally look to their 1115!3.nds for heln
in paying -bheir group subscriptionso
Idost r.ronen cultivate field.s or'rned by their husba^ncls and husbanr4sr }:in anc1-
perform tire bulk of agri c6tural labouro Group members rnalce considcra"ble use
of oasual l-abour on their fields, as a :rrl-e employing other l 'tomen' Ta"blc 21
d-etails the agricultural enterprises of I group members in thc long rains of.
1985" Some, but not a111 of the casual labourers employecl by tlrese lromen
were paid from Project funds. Group members ,*"" *torted eur avcrage of 4OOsh
each in L9B4 and 5o0sh each in 1985 for this purpose, .plth.ough some lrorien
70
TA]]Ltr 21
I'Ie Fi OINJDR AIIDACULT.INACIIES
LASOURATIDCOSTS
CROPSi iIARTESIOFSTAPLE
c0t[,im{Ts
T 1 husband. 2+ prepared by tractor maizefor lOOsh from Proj. (8).money arrd most of bdanscultivation done by (+)a pcrmanent labourerpaid c.500sh a montht6r her.
no palms on thisfield. and" enoughmai-ze gr-own to lasta1I year.
good
U 2
?
husband.
husband 1o fpara11e1cousin -l:orror.led
r.reed.ed. W 4 Jibanar,romen paid by her.
N- acre cuLtivateclby labourers usingProj. money, therest herself.
rice $ sacksmaize. poor
mar-ze poor(g)
beans(+)
onJ-y errough for afer.r months, byl{ovember buyingmaize flor.rr fromthe shops.
V 4. husband
husl:and 1+
4 r'romen paid. a total-o f l2Osh tocuJ-tivate; lleed.ed.herself .
3 uomen and one ma"npaid a total of 360sh to prepare thefiel-d. J }abourerspaid loOsh from Proj.money to weedo
maize goodcassava
maize v.goodcassavaCOl,J-peaS
fert i l izer andpest ic id.e used. (herhusband. is the Prpj.r.rorken). IArougirma,ize to last formore than a year.
lJ 6 husband
husba^nd
2 Duruma and. 2Jibana tiomenernployed, adcling or.,rnnoney to Proj. grarrt.
(as above)
rnaize 3 sacks insufficient forcassava the year.
maize 1 basket crop shad,ed b'y
, glosely growiug) palms.
X B elderbrother
3 Jibhna women paid ricea to 'baL of 2{Osh;also r,iorked. herselfand 6;uarcled, r,rith herchi ldren.
l- sack '
poor, too margrweeds.
?r
TARLII 21 (cont)
I.ie Fi OiNIDR LA!OUR CNOPS IiARVtrS[ COI.[,Ifr.{TS
Y q irusbancl cul-tivated hersel-f rritfr2 Dunrma a:rd 2 Jibanar.Jomen parid 35osh.lieed.ed. for lJosh (rnoneyfrorn the Pro ject) .
maize f sack buying maize flourfrom the shops.
IC lci.3hbour- renteclfor 20Oshe) year
11 husba.:rdI sp;:.ternaJ.uncle
I+ ! Jiba^na r.romen paid atotal of 20Osh tocultivate and 1!Osh torleed. I acre. Other $acre r^rorl:ed herself.
1+ uorked- unaided.
maize 10 saclcscassava
t
maize 2 sackscassava
field at Kizingor'rith good. soi-l.Ilarrrested. enoughmaize on bothfield.s to last allf ,e&fr
'Z 12 hu-sbandt sfat l rer
-1-3 l rusbanclIsfuther
r.iorked r.rith husbandr srnother.
crrltivateil by 7Jibana arld J Durtunal'romen for loOsh fromProj. money. I' leed-ed.r.rith husbandr s r,rothen.
maj'ze 16 saclcrCassava
maize 2 sackscassavabeansCO1,l-peaS
enough maize tofeed. the house-hol-d. all Jrearround.3
ile = lll,i.BilR, Fi = flt}llD.tlt = &:rl:ctti!s ciralin'tomanr V = thq nevr treasurer, X = group committee member.
claimecl rnuch less ancl- others received- more - one is recortlecl as having used
Ir62osir frorn Projec-b firncl.s over the 2 years. Large though';lr.ey are, these sums
are not sui'ficient to cover all of the r.Ioments recltrirements in agricultural
labour ancl nnany acl-ded'bheir or.rn fabour and-for money to complete r.lork on their
fields. I,ioreover, this assistance did. not tnansl-ate directly into agricultural
Procluc-bivityr rilrich l.ras more closely linked to soil qualityl use of chemical-
inputsr and. presence or absen'ce of paIms. It is ironic that one of the most
successful crops in the sample rras grol.rn t6r a member r.rorking alone rdth her
rnother-in-IatrJ.
7z
. i l i-rwes'bs of -Llre rnain staple - a loca1 purplish variety of maize called_
Jibua - exhibi t a rr j .de,rat lge of var iat ion betr.reen lrcuseholds. 3 of the l
r;rrmrrlecl I'e1I r.lay short of subsistence reouirements.and rrere forced. to rely
upotr ma'ize flour purchased. from the shops. others prod-uoed. sufficient maize
for hone consurnption, and one proCuced a surpluso ltronel hor"rever, rras
plairning to offer maize for saIe. Iilaize, like,-bther.crops g'otm by lromen,
is cuJ-'Liva-becl almost exclusively for subsistence purposeg: only one 6roup
ntember, r"iife of the gl'rner of the Projectts officel r,I&s fou:ed. to be selling
surplus rnaizeo 3 group members - the chai::woma.rr, her sister.-in-J-ar.l, and.
tlre vi-ce-secre'bary - hirecl tractors to s*ltivate in ]r9}5t rirril_e 2 others _
the vice-cl'raj-::r'rotnan and the rvife of her |rusband-rs brother - used. anr ox-drarsn
plough. The rest r.rorked. their fields W hand," Accorcling to the projectrs
agricultural extension trorker this rnirrored pr:actice in the conrnrrnity as a
t'iholer r';here agricultural enterprises r'rere subject tcj the same range of
vl l r ia ' i ; ion
Gr:oup rner:ibers have, hor'rever, received. a degree of assistance denied. to I
their ueighbours" -AJthough this is not r6f lected. direct ly in i l re success oJ
othcn; ise of ' their ef forts to secure subsistence i t d.oes point to a pattern of
tiiff 'crcntiation t':hich increasingly favours Amkeni members. First, through'Lhcir dr i l i ty to enploy casual labourers. The sample in fable 2I incLicates
the e; ' :s 'bence of a pool of such labourers outsid-e of the group, most of them
lcca1 r"olilcll, mlLny rritlr child.ren to support and l.iithout lrusband.s to support'thcit' Tal:l e 22 shotrs tlte provenarlce and- sex of 18 paid cultivators r"drose na,nes
:!re recorded in Projec,o accountsr OnLy 2 members are recorded- as having been
pa'irl to d'o suchl'torl:, both on one-of the grouprs fields. one r.ras a r+idor.r ' lr.o
r'lori:od' i 'or' 2oosh1 the o'Lher a yourq lrornan uho r.rorlced for rloosh in Ausust I9B5
&i"ber lr::vi:r5 l;-!'olr11 t:nougJrlo feetl lrcr or'rn ]rousehold earlier in the year (f in'r'airle 2I). ()-Liier Jloup mcrrl;ers intervier.recl only actmitted- -bo having perforned
7 3
such irorl.: in 'bhe Pirst.
TAlI,ll 22
JIRAl{A CIIOIffI TOTAT
f,ti.iALIl
TOTAL
l lSecond, although 6roup rnpmbers d.o not receive a,:ny cash income frorn
A r n j < e n i l t h e a s s i s t a n c e g i v e n t o t h e m . b h r o u g h t h e P r o j e c t h e l p s t o r e ] . e a s e
incorne fr.orrr other sources r.rhich would othenrise tb tiea to the sane tasksc
Conpl'.ri-son betr.ieen A6riiraye a.:rtL Arnl',eni shorls that in general Arnkeni members
have r;ruch l-ess difficuJ-ty in meeting group subsdriptions and palrments,
r;hile in 2 months they cleposited almost tr.rice as muoh in their savings club
as A5.drrr3le rnembers clid over a period of 6 monthso Amkenirs chai::t'Iomall
conpla.ins that sorne of the l.rorse subscribers can l"reLl afford to Pail uPr but
fa.i1 .Lo do so clespite the threat of expr:J-sion from the group. This threat
las 1ot lteen ci1r.riecl out: none is f-ikely to give up the va.rious benefits
r;'; '. i nl, +la 'r^1r11 and Project provide tlithout a figlrt. The Pro ject r'lasr / r r I v : r
p.:.{::. '}r ' l i ,-rtrpr' l trrr l.{61lf,. Vision l l i th a vier' l to helping the whole connrunity. In' , j ! v q | J . '
. : r rn l . nrqnon-rq- par t icu lar ly through i ts SpOnsorship programmer i t hasl r L ' L
e r Y ! g ! 4 - - d
hclperi to insulate l-ocal- households frorn demands made t6r the state; But-this
bencfit !s equally distribu'ted among Amkeni membersr who have reaped maqy
o'bher rerrards fronr the Project besiri-es. Through Arnkenirs calculateil
apprropriation of the Projectl l{orld Vision has become the r:nrritting sponsor
of cconoriric cliffcrcntiaLion in the commwrity: a differen'bie"tj.on mo.st clearly
oisp1.;ri,cc1 in i\nl:c1its accu,Tulation of palms anrl its membersr emplofment of
a5ricuItulal I a.bour.
L2
: oz /
74
m.""i t " "tr"i",.t
The architect of 'bhis appropriat ion has been Anrkenirs chainroman, a
na,"sccni.; entrepreneur in her or'm right. I'b was trcr deLision not to divide
-bhe profits of ^A.,,nl:enirs enterprises, but to plough them back into further
venturesr argrting that to do o'bhenrise vrou1d., d.iminish the groupts capital
ancl only prowicle small short-terrn benefits, to1t" members. Askect if she
r:ould divide profits from a tractorr she replied. that she thought instead
that it coul-d. be hired out to g?oup members at ha1f the norrnaL rateo As the
Projectts social r.rorker she already has a regular income of her ovrn, enabling
herbo ernploy a full-tilne labotrerr a Giriarna man r.rho earlier worked. for the
or,mer of the Project office. A rborn-againt Christian since l-956t she has
progressively clistanced herself from her palm wine-drinking husba^nd.;' assumi-ng
li role in tire household, then the groupl rflore generally rese:rred for men.
Leadership of tire group has brought further status ancl recognition" She is nolr
vice-chilinronaJr of the sub-location d.eveLopment committeer vioe-chairr.roman of
r lorrents i i roups in Kaloleni div is ion, s i ts on the committee for r . roments
clevelopment in Kj. l i f i d. istr ict l and inr late 1985 was appointed. nomenrs
representa.t ive on the distr ict development committee"
By contrast most Amkeni members are ill iterate, do not go to church, and.
]rave no paicl employment" ,t" a mle they submit to the chairwomancs dorninance-
oi' the gi:oup: it hasr after a111 brought them a number of benefits. [here
are, hor:ever, elements of a passive resistancer rooted in their posi t ion as
mernbers of less progressively oriented householtts. Attenda^4ce has proved.
clifficul'b to enforce: betrveen I'Iay 1984 and August 1985 an averag€ of 21 t{omen
r{ere present at group meetings and. only 21. members attended. more than half of
thcse" In 1984 the chain^roman rro'be a set of rules threatening expulsion to
poor subscribers and persistent absenteesr ar ld had these typed. out and
clis-Lributed- to 6Toup mernbers. Bu-L no action r.ras taken i:nd the chainroman later
7 5
confirled that she r'ras afraid- of the consequences shouLd. she try.
I f a locus of opposit ion can be ident i f ied. l then i t is to be for:nd. arnong
the 13 riternbers associated. uith the extencled. household shor.rn in Table 18, the
vice-'c\irirlJornan anrl ihe secretary.of the group among them" l.lhen the Project
cornr:ritiee uas reor8anisecl in August 1985 the vioe-chairr.Ioman and- her co-yifer -
r;ere clropped. Other appointments shovl the chairvloman strengthening her hand.
The 'breasurer of the Project committee, vrho also became a group member in 3_t8l ,
is her 2) year old daughterl a secondary school teadher living in ldpmbasa" The
secretary of the corunittee is her nextdoor neigh.bour, another committed-
Christian, often cal1ed. upbn to reacl the pra1rer at the start of Amkenirs
meetiugs" In 1-!86the 2l year olcl r ' r i fe of the Project worker (she joined. the
group in 1984) r,ras d.ue to take over as the'grouprs treasurer from the chainlomants
fat i rerrs sister, rrho had ear ' l ier replaced- a member of the vioe-chai: :vromanls
e:ttentieci househ.old. In lTovember 1985 stre was locked in dispute r,rith the group
secrc'bary (the vice-cirain.romants daughten-in-law) over palrment of a baby-sitter
ihey hird- shared. vrhile attend.ing a Tototo savings club seminar. Her husband.,
al-so ernbarking upon a career as an accumulatob of pa1ms, remainsl like other
Project staff , f i rmly at the chainromanrs beck and cal l_o
Tlte signi f icance of this exbendsrbeyond mere patronageo As a result of
these rnanoeuvres a nunber of educated. r.romen have moved into key positions vrithin
'Li're g::oup. This eviribits a patterrr common to the clevelopment of marly uomenl s
groups, as t,hey corae increasingly under tire control of members more qualified.
to rtur their enterprises and less likely to submit to the j-nfluence of household.
econolny. I
l l o t e s
A't:cni liot:tct'r.r s Group a.nc1 Chilulu Aml<eni .Project'. tlntervievr r.rith the above
r; i ( : ) l r , : r .ono(r i ; r 'or,rp anrl | r 'o. icc 'b 1ty l i t r . r ; jo Voivoorn rrnd l - istcr Kl"dzu of ' the Trainingl o
I U
I
Projeob in Pedoloey, I I th October 1984. ' 5pp. typescript c lated l iovember
,- 1984r avai labLe in the Projectrs Chi l rr lu off iceo
4 r
| 2. Early improvement is documented in the repor* cited above"
3. One r"romenr s group in Tsalcarolornr is saitl to have been formed. at the promptingof memberst husba^nds, hoping to sesure aid forbhc constnrction of a 1oca1d.ispensary. Personal comrnunication from I'I,onica Udvardy (f 995).
, 4. David Parkin, Palms, l{ine, anrl Witnesses: zuUfic Snirit anA p"lvlffi'in an Africa^n Farr,ring Commr.:nity (London: Intertext Booksr f972). This
;mH-t5"T;t-tz"::*i;-"l:H"f householcl economv and inclisenous capit'a'
_ /
a
7 7
I , [ . : i ; i ro uonie]rrs SToup is base' j in thef is ir ing vi l iage oi ' I ' I : r : - i ro on i ' lasini
islandl .lZ kn souil: oi l,iornbasa alrcl Ii; l.rn offsho::e of ibe Shinotli peirinsula.
I . [ :uirn is a conpact set i lement of sone 5o house]rol . isr r : i ih a total popuiat ion
of about 4OC. Its iDhibitari' i;s clescribe t}:enselves as Shira.zi and speal: a
cl.iaLect of Suar-ril i calleci Cl}ffunii; also spol;en on !'.:-:lzi islancf i;o the nortir'
ancl in a fer.; villages on the nearby coast. It:r' iro has its ornr sub-C-ialeb-b of
Cirifurrdil refleci;ing a higtr c'i.eg:ree of in'terrriarriage r:iihin tlic village. Tire
an1 r:. n-i,her. rri ' l lage on 'uhe is3-andl tiasini, is populaiedr by Vurnba, speal;ers ofv r s J
a ver?r di f fereir-b Sr. ;a1i l - i c l ia1ect. There is a histor l- of coni l ic i betr :eetr ' , ;he
2 peoples, and i lasini bas i ts ot 'n l - :omeitrs g?oui lo Tl :e is land as a r ' ;ho1e is
ac'i_rninistere.i f:.oi:: the naiiil-a,rrd. as pa.rt of Sli.inioiii-ii'a.sitri s't-b-l-ocai:ionr Potr3r.'e-
r1i A. i r . r l naa=i nn, in t i :e l isanbi;eni c l iv is icn of i i r ' :a l-e disir ic 'L . Researcl l t i lereI \ l - V - J l l l J ! V v c ! v I v
r.'irs coticiuciei. in January a-nC' Feb=crary L)86"
FCIJ:;DAT]ClIS:
I,X:l:i:.o l.roriletlrs gToup r'las fouriried. on 2i \',eq[ 1979t follor'i ing the e:lanple set
by Shirrioni o1 iire rirainla:rci. | ' l:r:irors 1^ias tl:e firsi 6r'oup olt "he isla:ido It
r,,-as forsecr on ilie initiative of 2 loca1 neir, one of -blier' matr?+er of the South
Coast Frsheries co-opera-bive in Silinoni a:rcl- nor.: Ii.frlIU chairuan for the locatiotr"
i i is e1der. s ister, the: l in her late 20s;, becane the g:roupts i i rs i chairr ' :onan'
Slre renaine,i in the post rrntil 'uhe follor:ing yeart r:hen slie stepped cior':r a:rd
r. :as succeedeci by her younger sister. Uucler i i reir lear iership the group macle i ts
f i rst forays into incone gel lerat ion and chose i ts f i rs i projec'b, securing a
gpvernnent grant for tire Dlrllpose'
l ,cnbers l :erc reo.uire ' f to
subscript ion, l -ater sPPecl to
pa.y a. lOsh cirira:ce fee auc1- a 5C cents l:eelil-1r
Ish. A dozen or so l;onelr joi-ned- r"herr the Group
l o
uas found-eci anci mer,tbership grev in a steady tricl:Ie rrntilr bf, 1"984, it
haci reacired. 63. Uncicr the first chairrronall group menbers started making
oor.'rie sJreLl trecl:I aces after 2 itinerarrt entreprelleurs, a naJr anci a l..:onan
frorn Kualer lr.ad prornised. to fincl a market for them. 3ut the couple fail-ed
to return a"nd members r.rcre left trying to selI their neclllaces to tourists
at Sirinoni" liauy rrere solri to the chailr^,'o::ranfs father, one of I shop ol-nrers
in i'[ci.:iro. At 2sh per neclclace the return to the proclucers L'as too 1or.r ancl
the enterprise r.ras subseouently aba:"icloneiro
Undr-er tl:e second cha.inrorno,rr ?, rior€ pronj-sing trad-e r.las fou:nc1. This
fol-l-oi.ied. a visit froni the chairr:on:an and. co-o:'dinator of Shimoni',;rorTlcllfs group.
Sirinoni hacl begun r.;or.I:ing uith Toioto ilonte In,iusiries in 197E1 producirrg r.;overr.
handicrafts -bo be r;arkeieC. throug'h Tototots shop in l.lonbasa. The co-ordinatorl
a youns rilan, suggested" ihat ihrliro do the sa-:ne, bringing its gooi.s to ihe
mai i tand- to be coi lected by Tototo. This t i rey bcgan to do, in 1980. ( fne
hisrr ,orX; ' of t i r is enterpr ise is exa:, : ined. in ctetai l i r i a later seci ion). In early
1982 the gfoup v, 'as adopted. bi 'To'boto. The f i rst co-ord. inator, a troman of 181
proveC r:apopular uith otlrer inembers and quit the post in liovember. Unrie111
slie later dropped- ou'r of the grrcrtp, Her place l.;as talcen in 1983 bJ'the grouprs
first secreta.ry, then 20, anci another Jroutlg secretar-'r,- rias appointed.
I . ieairr ;hj- l -er the group hld cirosen a projec' ' ; : corrstr t tct ion of a rnuJ-t i -
purpose bui lc l ing to act as a kiosi- , (sr ia1L sirop), i lursery scirool , of f ice and
rneetJ-ng-place for the groupo In August 19BO the g:roup was reg5-stered. r.,' ith the
Iii-tristry of Culture anii- Social Ser'r5-ces audr helped. b3r the CDA' opened a banl:
account in l,lsanbr'reni r.rith the nnininunr d.eposit of loOsir. In Oc'i;ober the grolrp
rias g:iven IrOOOsh for its project by the l,l inistry. I{orlc on tbe building
progressed slot:ly: by Scnternber 1981 the group harl bought 2 tons of cenent,
4OO coral- blocksr ar1d. had paid a bui lder 11OOOsh. I lor:ever, no sooner haC.
79
uorlc begun on the fou:rd.ations than a local man informecl the group of his
or.rnership of the p3-ot they r+ere builcl-ing upono !'oIlor.{ng his refusal to come
to terrns r.ror}: carne to a halt. The project was not abaircroned, but it was not
until December lpBJ that another pl-ot was fowrdr on land belonging io l 'Ii:r' i iro
primarX' school.
SUCCUI.TBING TO TRADITIOTI
Choosin8 another project
Follouin.g its adoption i4r Totoiol the group l{as encouraged. to choose
another project. I' lenbers d.ivicled over 2 alter::a'bives: const:ruction of a r,rater
resevoir or purchase of a. boat. Bo' i ; i r of these ref lected l , I l* i i rors is lanci
isolai ion" A boat co'ul- i r be usecl to fer-r1' passengers and their l -oads bctr . ;eeu
i.i:r-.' i-ro arril- the mainland at Shinoni, site of the nearest ciispensarnr a"rrd teriinus
fora bus r.ihich travels tjrrj-ce C.ailJ' to l,lsarrbi;eni a:rd ldonbasa. I.,iost of the
poientiel passetlgers r.rere l.Iomen airci il:eir snal-1 children trho othen,-ise ha.d to
rely upon the irregular servj-ce provided by local fisherrnene charging lsh per
adult for each crossing. The srnall hand.-padd.1ec1 ciugouts usually useir for this-
purpose tal;e tl:e best paz.t of an hbur to cornplete ti:e crossingl a ris$ venture
r.:hen seas are rougho A motor-driven boat rrrn by tire group r.:ould cut dorrn ihe
crossirrg to 1!-20 n: inutes, calr l ' n lore passel l€iersr md reduce the long hours
of r.;aitil,1g o11 the shor.e for a fisl:er,iran r.:j-l-lirrg to riclle the trip. Cotrstnrction
of a vater resevoirr olt tire other hand. I uottJ-ii- sern-e arr equa1l1r pressin6 n.eeci"
Apart fror: raintraber Hasini island lias no natura.l, resenres of fresh l;ater. For
over half of the year villagers are denendeirt u-pon r';ater ferried. across frorit
the nainland: d.uring the rains rainr,iater is charuelleC. dor',n cot-rcrete slipways
into ccucrete-I ined. pi ts and drar.n from these. In i i : r : i ro there are a smaL]
nurnber of privately-oinied. resevoirs and o:re bel-onging io the rfioIe village frorrt
r . ;hic ir r iater is sold for as long as i t is avai lable. A resevoir or ' , :necl by the
BO
6:roup riould oonsidLerab}tr' inprove the loccJ suppIy of r.;ater. arra help reduce
i.coendcnce upon thc e>:pensive inports from Sjrinoni"
The r.:ater pr-o jec'u r.ras pr\cposed i4r the ge.oupr s ner.r chainloma,nr its
treasurcr, ancl- a conrmittee r,rember, thc mother of the first 2 cltain;ometl.
[iris fanily fourrecf i;he core of r:]la.t can bc iresigirateci as o D]o!'r.cssive faciioir
t:itirin the group. Their irnneciiaie rclationships are shor.rr in Table 23. Unlike
nost lkuiro vi l lagers thetr 'are Sajuni (G\ur} 'a) f ron the Lanu area on Kenvats
norther:r Sr:ahili coast an:.d- have continued to marry outsid.e of as r.rel] as
inside the local Shirazi cor:r.nulity. Their r,iobility l-ec1- to tire first 2 cirair-
lrorTietl relinquishing the post, subsequently tal:en bt'a Ioce"l uor:ten r;l:.o put
i:erself fon;ard ancl- vas accepted. td,- the i:hol-e 8-r,'oup. To6ether tirey pressei. for.
co:tstluction of a t';ater resevoir, argu-i-rr3 that this l.rouJ-d. be easy io nai.ntain
alrri rlur, pror,'ici-ing a" seasona1 souJcc of incor:re a:rd- r.tater to irelc l.'lonen rr-itl:
tireir hous;ehol-d choreso A boatl the;' argneci-" 1a,1' too far ouisicLe of
t;onienl s erperience: to opcrate ani. nain';ain the enterprise they r.roril-d be
heavily d-epencl-ent upon rnen, uldle tlre naintenailce costs of a boat a:rd en6'inc
r';oulci- be much higher tiran ti:ose of a ruater resevoir once ii hari been built.
A boate hor. iever, pz.onised a nore.reg-:J-ar incorne as rrel l as easier access to
tlre nainla,ni. a.trct all its facilitj-es. Suppo:'ters of a r.rater prcject r"rere
ouitl.u.::ibered a"nd.'Lhc group cirose to inyesi in a boe*. In the eve1t, the
rrro.-T,esisi' i rrn f:'n*i orr nr.orinrl irrsruified. in its fearc. Thc l1e1i c11.r,efp::ise, nruclr.j - - " 1 r 4 v r L , j r y r v v \ ? r r J u : J u r r + v r , . r t t J 9 p I
to i ts detr i rnent, l ras mociel l -ed closely upon i ts courrtcrparts j -n a nnale-
doninateC- rlornain. Control of the group, mearwhile, slipped out of the
ha:ri]-s of the nrogressive faction alrd into the arms of traditiorr"
An enternr ise at sea
Tototors i . i - rec'cor begam sol ic j- t ing ai i . for l ,ncuirols ner; project in l jB2
secu:reci ti:e support of i,lAlCil, a Canaaian donor. After ilr.e ctistrictanC
81
TAtsLril 23
Shirazi/t'l:rdro
Sajuri
Penr'ba(Tanzania)
Bajuni
Bajuni
sli.op-ormerin I'l:r:j.ro
Vurnba
Vr:-r,rba
Shirazi/l'l:r.;iro
born and marrieoin Larnu before movingto l,[',rriro
A ,
iu l,ionrbasa
Shirazi
/tii:r.iroSirirazif ii;rtiro
In l.ionbasa
Segeju (Tanzenia)
l iey as in Table L8: shor:s ci ivorce
I.!',iriro r.rer,rbers A-D: A = corrnit'fee r:cnber, supportr,er of r:ater llro ject; 3 =
frrst chairr ;oman, lef t the posi because i t r , rade i t di f f icul t for her to
travel ar:c1 stai ' eI ser;herei C = second chair i :onan, appoiutecl not electcda
left the post and- trr.oup ltpotl rer.rarriage in l,iombasa; D = collccior of
subsoriptions for I'[cua;itur5- uari..E = i rr i t ia ' 'cor of the vlonents gToup, forner manager of Souih Coast Fisheriesco-operative and 1or.r }',AlU chairman for Pongr;e-Iiidimu locatioir.
BZ
corin'r:rrii;y develop::ien'i; officer ha.c1 6jven Tototo aJr assurarrce that -t,hc r.ronen
l'iere capable of managiug this en'bernrise, the group t;as .presel-becl r.:igr a
cheoue for 35ro0Osh. Tlr- is t ' ras rn August 1983. Group nembers themselves
raiseci j r loCsir rr i*h a losh subscrip 'c ion. This covered the cost of a neu
eug:itrel bou3i:t tor 2{r5t18sh iu l,ionbasa, but r.;as not enoug}r for the boat as
r;e111 Friced a'o 20rOO0sh. This hari been Locatecl in Lil:oni bj, tlte j,kr:iro
rril-lage clia:inlan a:rd. ihc CDi\ from iisanbr:eni. Ti:e Digo sel-Ier agreed. to talce
I3rO0osjr ai ld gave-bhe Sroup 3 r ' reei :s to pai ' . t i re remaining ?rOOosh. After tal : ing
ciel ivery of the boa'b the group ask-ecl Totoio for a loan of 5rooosh io help meet
t h i c n c r ; : r a r *u.r!- ,Jsit,rerlu. The loan rlas gra:rted, ',o b€ repaid. b;r g:.oup nenbers j-n nioiii irly
itrstr.Llnreir.ts of 3l_0sh"
I ' ln i i rors boat wen.r, into oirerai ; ion oi i 8 Ociober 1!831 plying betr, :een
lQ:r:i:. 'o and- Shirnoni" A rdriverr, tire ]msba:ri of a group rnenber, r^ras ernplcjrecl
to rrur the boat and. bu;' peirol fror,r ui:turd-a. for iis en5ine. Group rnenlers
thentselves tool: it in turns of 3 d.ais eacir to r.rorl: as 'ch.e boai t s t couductorr ,
collectiirg passengerst lsh fares and- ilre varying amorrl.ts char.geci for their
Ioads. Apari from occasional interruniions the boat ra:r everl' ciay of the rreeic,
betneen about 6 otcroci ; in i l re nolf i ing anc 4, in the aftenlooric
Fron the outset the enterprise t{as 6sir-g.l:t in ilre tran r.;hich i;he progressive
fact ion had r;arnei. agai i rst . FoI lor: i i r3: the pract iqe of local- f ishemen incone
from tire boat r.;as C.ivi' j.ed. into rougirly equal por;ions. In ilre case of fisi:ing
boats these vary in num'ber according to 'uhe coinirosi t ion of labour. , the relat ion
bett leet l am. olmer and his crstr ' ( i f not the same person)r aJld ihe techl ical
requlrernents of a part icuJ-ar enterpr ise. In other r ,rords thej-r shape is
d'etermined- by the relations and means of proiuction as, these varlr from boat to
boato The o'.'ner of an outrigger ca^rroe ndglite for examplel set aside a
port ion for hinself , one for the crerr, ano a t i r rrd for t i te purch.asq, of bai t .
The ot.'::er of a notor-por.,'ered. loat night mal:e further provision for ihe rurchase
R: '
of peirol anC maintenarce of the boat an<i
the nornent s group bega::. by dividing their
for the d.r iverr one for petrol , anld. one
generaL. Later, nJren the enterpr ise ra:r
cleated a fourth, separate, port ion for
i ts engine. Copying this model-
boat irrcone into 3 port ions: one
for the €Foup a^rrcl expenses in
into teclrnical dif f icult ies they
maintena,nie of the englneo
Tz'anrsfereci to the groupr s enterpr ise this pract ice had a number of
unfortu:rate effects. First , i t . rneant that the boatrs dr iver reoeived a f ixed
proport ion of the boatrs inoorne: ol1e third in the f i rst per ioC of i ts
operatione much more tiran if he had been paid a set monthl-v r.rage (see Table
2r', be1,or';). Secorrd, and to conp.orlrd ma';ters, group rnembers liorhi-ng as the
boatrs conducrr,or lr,€re paid ai the srna11 fixecl rate of lOsh per clay: conCuctors,
least of al-l- l{orflen, are no-b a nolnal feature of boat crer'rs. Sor r^ilrere a rnal-e
driver cor:J.d average 1r?OOsh a rnonth, 'r,he r,,oneu thcrnselves nade litFIe rnore
ihan 3OOshe rnucj: less indi',ridtr.al1yo Profiis fron tire boat r.;ere not othenrise
i.ivid.edL arTion6 group members- a"nd by follorring the rnodel of menrs fishing
enterpr ises 'bhey effeci ively overpaici their dr ivers and. exploi ted their olrn
labour. Third, ihe praci ice of c i . iv ic l ing their income into port ions had a
d. isastrous effect upon,the enterpr isers accouniso In the records r ' : l i ich the
group kept the ciifference berr,ueeil bud.geted- incorne - the portion set asid.e for
a particular purDose - and actual exlenditure is'rrot ah'tays c1 ear. Over time
the accou:rts becane prosressively rnore confused, a confusion ' ; . :h ic l i r ias to cost
-r,he group dearo
The appropriatror: of the enterpr ise to traci i t ional pract ice r ' ras conf irnecl
in uneqrrivocal fasirion by an ear1y action orr the pari of some rnembers of the
g.roupr s connittee. Acting riithout the lqior.iledge of other nembers they bought
a piece of blacl: cloth ancl, a chicken with group funcls and tool: these to a
traci i t iona1 i .ocior o11 the mainland io provicle the boat rdth protect ive meci ic ine"
Againl this rras in keeping ui th t l :e prac-bice of local f ishernenr or at Jeast
the
the
Q Ae+
nnore trai i t iona. l l -y-or iented- of thern" Fol lorqing this act conf-I ic i with
procTessive fact ion came incleasingl l 'out into t t te openo
Tlie first victim was another committee nernber, the rno'Lh6r of i,lkrrirors
first 2 chairi^:oilero The corn-nittee had agreecl to carry bo]:es of maize flor:r
d-estined- for the shop she ran r.,' j-th her husbancl ai half the norrrral rate, n
cents instead- of lsjr per boxo Hor.:ever, after loacl.ing a consig,rt:rent oirto the
boat at Shimorri the d.river, r:orl:ing as conductor as r.relI, refused. to accept
hal-f pa;'r',rent aud ordered. -r,hen turloaded. (this r.ras the second. d.river em.oloyed. by
tire group, the husbancl of a cor,rnittee rnenber and- also of l,&trvirors first co-
ordinator.). The argu-nrent r^:hich ensued r,;as oi-ilJr seitled b1i the inte:rrerrtion of
l'kr', ' j-rols village chalr'rnan: the red.uced rate 1.;as accepted ancl ',,l ie flour
transporteC. 'co l0lr i rol though -r ,he dz' i r rer refused to assist her in carrX' i1g i - t ,
f ron ihe boat to the shoreo The fol io i : ing aftenroon she refusei io help o. i ;her
merabers prrll the boat ashore for the night, arg:dLng tliai thj-s rras the rlriverrs
iob - hc had. left it to a young boy r'i lro r.ras forced- to call- for assistance frorn
the vill-age. The next d.ay the d,river again refused to help her r;nload. a
consignment of fl-our for the shopo Angered. by ihese incidentvs she r.;ent to the
chain':ornan an.1 c.emand-ed. that he be'suspendeil fron his d.uties. But the rest of
the comnit i ;ee refused, tel l ing her not i ;o be fool- ish. Fol1or: ing this she
quii her post on the conrlii iee and stonped- pl3"y!ng an aciive role in the gfoup,
to the e::tent tirat she C,-id- not make use of tjre boat age,in and transferred her
i rade to o ther vesse lso
The cr is is that r tas brer ing carne to a head nhen the boatrs eng-ine was stolen
after exact ly J rnonths of operat ion, on the night of ' / I , iay 1984" I .b ua= on.
of J engines to d.isappear frorn the area over a short period, probably the r+ork
of thieves from Tauzaniao !Iad. it been insured. by alr insurance comDaily rather
than a local medicine-rnan then much of the trouble vhich follol.red night have
been avoiclecl. As it tur.necl out the group couJd not afford another nel.' eni;ine
85
arrcl in the storn r.:hich follor.red. slippedr further into the clebt of men a.nc1
the clutches of t radi t ion"
FoLlor.;ing the theft the village chair:nan took it ui-ron himsel-f to
organise a search for the stolen engine" l l i th pol ice consent enquir ies were
made as far afielci as Diani and the north Ta:rza;rian. coasto llhen these met
t'i ith no success he turned. to the tasll of finclin.3 a" replacer:'r€nto To this cnd
he visited the sub-chief at Shirnoni and ri:r.ote to the d-irrisiorra:l officer in
Iisanbr,'enio It was tirere thai an engine r,ras found, being sold by a Digo man,
r.;hose orrn boat l ' ias no'longer seavorthy, for 12rl0Osh. It r.ias bougbi by the
group uj"th BrOOOsh fron its ba"iil: accoturi anc'|. a foan si A.tloosh fron the
village che.irrra.nr and r':ent iirto operation in Sep'i;ember 1984.
In his zesi to sectLre recont)ense for his senrices and paynreni for 'uhe
seccno-hairci engine ti:e chairr.' iat: scrutinised the grouprs acco'ulrtso I1 fact jre
ha'.rt been l:eeping his ornr recorci of these chuinr< L9B4t nnal<ing a copy of boa.t
receipts every afiernoono Accorcli:ig to this record j-ncorne ftor.r ihe boat
betr+een JanuarX' and llay anor:::' i;ed to just over 16r488shi 6tS6osh after expenses
had been subtracted.o Present ing thcse f igrres to t l :e treasl ' - rer and- secretary-
he asl.:ecl if i i iey agreecl riith his cil-crtations. Thelr s1i6o l.luch to his disrnal',
hot':ever, tltey had. no noneJr to shor; for ito Ass.uring that ihis had been lost
or stolen he contacted officials in I' isanbr.;eni anci Tototo in ],;onbasa" Su'itsec'.Le,nt
el1r-rtt.iries provec incoitclusiveo Tl:e chairr.ra:ll s arg',:,rent cioes not tal:e accor::ri of
Brl6Jsh r:hicl: the group had in the barrli and used to pai'. for the seconcl eng'ine,
morley tirich thc group apparently ciid not have r:hen tlie enterprise began. Sti11,
marly group menbers al-lege that large srrms of rTroney rrere taken by their treasurer
vho, nonetheless, , renains in off ice" The grouprs or.n accor:nts are not very
helpful in, resolving this issue. Tirey r , :erc lcept, most ly in ey-ercise books, by
the secreta:Xr and. the ,treasurer. Unforirurl.tely thel' are inconr:l ete and d-o not
B6
IASLE 2/l
].!0ilfil SCURCE IIiCOI,EF�TOII BOAT
DRf VEITI SPOIITIOi:
CTi]]IRE,,(PN;SES/ n r u ' - r u\ r1:ll.itulr tCOilDUCT0,l etc)
B/iL/u;CE
ocr. 83fron Bih
3 r O 3 4
3r1O4
r a n r O eL 9 Q z ) . 4 )
rro25.B5L t45O.frr r4n.n
557.65627.55
R
C
I t0v.83 41848
5 t52 / r
1 , g8o.90
1t739.&
I a ^ FL , o y > . : )d a d / \ ^
z 1 l z O c J U
1 r 1 7 1 . 6 o
1 r o 5 8 . 3 0
R
c
DEC.83 3t4796 r T j g . g o
O ?/4
2 rt87 "75
2 r 2 0 3
] - r4 l . 9
34.2
3 r 1 0 3 . 1 5
fi.
c
J.Aii. 84 A 'r (.e trnw t L v ) . r N '
7 1 1 2 3 . 3 9
4r9oz
2t732.fr
2 1337 "n
3 , 5 C 3 . 5 01 l ? qJ t L i J v
-70" i01 ,347. BO
R
rt
V
FB. 84 4 r 5 7 !
J ' V V J
4 1814..fr
I , U l - l f
1, B5O
n a O a r ^a 9 5 0 3 o J _ 9
2 ,608" l_0
37 3. 9C]-1206.9c
R
C
V
I'IAR. 84 R
1r
( 4, 3zo . 5,9;4r3zO,5P3r 33O.?o
( r r 4 z ? . 3 0 )
1 r427. 30
(tt_&t)
4()u
(2r433"2o)
2 r433"20
aPR. 84 l ; e o ^ \
\ J : )ou /
3, 5802 , 5 & . 5 O
/ - t / / r a \
\ ! l z + o o o ) u i- A / / - ^
J t i ; -OO. i )L /
! 7 O i a
1 r 6 1 , 2 . n
t!<)L o )J
L I I L
1 t
i . ^ 1 r O ,I.:JII (//+
to ?th( r r l z r )
! l i a L
oor
( igo)1an
( 6c)
6
( Bir)8tt
T)I L
v
J L , J - . /
37 , i47
1 1 , 7 7 1 . 0 5
!2- r424.30
r a r O r y 1 aI J g J u l o t I - '
i 1 O n r t I - ) l uUr i -o; i 'V
6 , 1 6 0 . 3 5
1 1 , 1 1 9TOT}IS
e7
TADLE 2z| ( cont)
I.ICillii SCUIICE IIiCoilD FnOi:SOAT
DJIIVIIRI SPONTIOJI
o'ItiE_1!X(PiB.ISES
S.qLNiCI'
1-0i{T;x,YAiTRAG]J
4t474. I4
5r335"28
tr6Bt.57
I r77 l i .9O
l r9]-2.5l
] -1972 .O5
8Bo.o5
!1588.42
SUS-TOTALJAl;-]'!AY
R
v
ft = a.s recor.ied- in group accor:nts; C = corf^ected frorn incepeudent adi.ition ofdaily eni;-ries; V = BS recor.ie'i b;ti tire l,L:r':iro village chairinan.
alua.trs balance: i : r par i a : :esuJ--b of the pract j -cer descz' ibeC abover of
drvidin.g i::cone in',;o pc'r'tions. l.ioreover, for some period.s ciifferent a::ci
conflictirrg recorcls are availabl-eo Tabl-e 2zi is recolrstz-acteci fron the accor:.iri;s
kep'u during ihe boatts f i rs i per iod- of opera-, , ion. 3oth recorr j -eci and corrected
figur.es are siror'n:f i;be lat-i;er bascd- urron 5-:rdeperrcient calculation fron dail-y
entz'ies, auci the viilage chairnefi'rs recort' ' rs ac'ded' for 1984'
r r l l r ^ - , ^i '1lese argunents over no'iey clainedr a seconcl- viciim: ih€ gfoupt s third
c1.ai:1.;onano Tai:ing e::celiion to 'rhe connltteets faiLi:re -i;o keep her inforned-
a,boutr, the state of tire gro!-Fts accoulrts sl:e te::Cered her resiSna-i;ion in
r,.r.it.irrc- Tt r,r2s sone r.ieel:s be-iore the g:roup co'irJ-C- fitrc]- a repla,cement for her"u . r ! u t r r S o
01e ulopposerl casd-idaie, c losely relateir io t i re g'roupts f i rst 2 chairr ' ;oment
lras stoppei. fron ial:ing up the post by her hr:.sbando It finally boiled d"or'nr to
a ciroice betr i ,een the vi l lage chairr"raqts sis icr (anottrer c iose reLat ive) and the
elder sis i ;er of the 6ryoupts co-ordina'bor, a comrnit tee rnember. The lat ter r ' lo lr
the vote. She tool: of f ice i1 micl-September 1!8{1 shorbi-y after resumption of
the gr.oupr s enterpr iseo Her eleci ion vras amother blor: for t i re progressive
fac-tion" The ner;, fou3th, cl:airrioman vas the tQrreetrt of I'!:r:irots chal:aclll
t9 r95B22 roog"U^ / , n O F ^
I { ) 1 { O O r { U
4 r o B 9 . 1 06 r i 2 9 . 9 o
6r36.J-
BB
( ,
a danoe enploying d-nrrns anc'i- trffnpets ir,rported. frorn l,lombasa ancl played at
_ $eddings anti otirer festivi'r,ieso Cbel:acha is danced. by a1L vi)-lage viomen,( -
uearing the white robes usually wonl btrr men and mirnicking tabooed. sexral
practices inclurling anal intercourseo As sucL it is a chal-l-enge to male
, ?oihoritye and l!:r.rirors rnen had moved. to stop i'b being da.nced outdoors,I
jealous ot l ihe possible consequences of this open d. isplay of se:nral l icence
by their r.;ives. It isl hovlever, a ci:allenge which is contained and
( neuiral-ised. by its restriciion to irnportant ritue,l occasiorFl a staged inversion
of gEnd.er relat ions character ist ical ly conf ined. to r i tes de passage. l
l ' iki.:irors resuned- enterprise sard; d.eeper ir:'uo the traciitional domain" Its
( accorurts becar,re conpleteli ' d.isorganised. a:rd. the recorcling of real enpenoitules
feII btr' the uajrsj.d.e. I{eanr*}ri}e the cornnit-bee accurulated a series of debts,
nrost of then to men. Tire fr:l-I er'r,ent of these ciid- not energe untiL a heated
Ir ' goup meeting in Jarruary 1986y r,rl:en marg'mernbers cl-airned. tha.t i;his was ihe
first the-y had hearrl of them. In fact no one individual- knevr the ful-I list t
vilrich is shovm in TabS-e 21"
(
TABLE 25
CLAII'rA].IT PUII?OSE 03 LOAiI OTNSTNIDII'IG CtAIl.I
1o a loca1 man used torrards sea: 'ching for ihestol-en encine. 100
2. the village bus fares to iior,rbasa anril else-chairr.ia,n trhere, searching for the stolen
305eilgr-ne
for purchase of the seconcl-hancleng'ine (4r5oostr loaned in a3.1) 900
purchase of a coil for the50oengine
to pay a mechanic in Shimoni 100
3. a looa1 rnan for bus fares to lisar.rblretr-i andother expenses in pu:'chasing thesecond-hand engine
'r 7r)
B9
TASLE 2q (cont)
cLAll.ruiT PLJ-IIP0SE 0F L0Ai] CUTSTA]]DIIIG CLAIi.J
4. a Local- na"n tor.rar',c1s purchase of the seconi--hand. engine 15c
, . a loca1 man tor.rar.ls purchase' of the second-hanL eng'ine tfr
5o a loca1 rnan to bq' petrol - n
7" a locaI man to buy petrol n
Bo the grouptstreasurer
to bi:y peirol 200
TO!AL 2e I ' l Jsh
Tire seconci-han.J. engine proved more ti 'oubl-e tSan it was r';ortho Ii kept on
breaking dor.m a.ncl needecl reoeated repairs. The boat ent,erprise was frequently
interrupted: records inclicate that before the engine fina13-y gave up the girosi
in nrid ;-g}112 the boat was only in operation for a total of B! dayso Little more
than a nonth after. the eng"ine ha.d been bought 1elOOsh ha.d. to be si:ent on its
repairo In lioven'Ber 1984 a Luo entrepreneir-r, ,d-ealing througii the village
chairrnane offered" to fix the eng'ine in retur:r for beirig given use of the boat
to fish at night" He took the boat for 11 days, each dayr s use reckonecl as
equivaS-ent to 2OOsh in hire chargesl the total (ZrZOOstr) covering the costs of
his repair vlorl:. In fact the repairs cosi much more - 3r460sh according to ihe
village chairrnan. Finding hiroseJ,f on a loser, the Lr:o man sued the village
ohairrran [or. 6rl25sh in a I'lornbasa court. 3ut tire chairman argued thal in fact
it was he who r.tas orred riloneJr, 2r06Osh nhich he had- spent on financing the
repair l rork, having raiseC. over half of ih is sun by sel l ing his r :atch. The
on
Lrrc abandoned. his claimo Througirout this fiasco the boat a^nd its eug:ine
were notiring more tiran par'nrs in ari econonic gaxner a gaJne rrhose m1 es were
set by men.
In August 1985 the (European) or.mer of a rece:rtIy built hotel in Shimonit
a member of Tototots goven: ing comnit teer offered to tak-e l . [<r ' : i rors ai l ing
engine auray for repair - provid.ing it r.ras r;orLh tlie expense. The group was
only too haprry to accept. The boat, meannhilee rras out of action rintil- mid-
January, ro'hen a local- man approached the group and. started. hiring it for 50s1:
a.dary'. Using an engine provicied by a Kiln:;m in Ukundar he resumed. the ferry
serri' ice uhich the r.;omenrs group had susnendeC..- E:ccuraged by the prosl-'ect of
a reguJar income - as nuch as they had- made rihen running the se:rrice thernselves
- g?roup menbers turned to d,iscussing nhat tirey corrlci d.o vrith it. True to for:n
a cij-vision into 2 portions tlas suggested: one to repalr their nel-fly enulrrerated
d.ebts amcl one to buil-d their nulti-p'orpose house or1 its ner'r-found pIot. fhe
hire arreJlgerrlent, hor.:ever, l-asted no more tliau a fortuight" TIte man hiring
the boat bro!:e an agreenent to share profits td.th his i(ik:3-* partner', and the
eng'ine was clained backo Still lraiti-ng for a verdict on the future of their
orrn eng'ine, the group uas bacl: at,square one"
Rescue cane frorn more distant shores. Unhapptr' r',d.th tlie nremature decline
of l , l :wirots enterpi ' i -se, Totoio had noi bee:r id leo Fol lor ' ing the theft of the
firsi engine, if,<r.iirrc r,;as inc1uded. in a furCing nroposal submit'r,ecl to a U. S.
d.bnorr, the Parish of Trinity O,rurch in the City of Neu Yorko 3OrOOOsh r,.'as
reguesteci to buy a n"i, engineo The monetr' ca.nre t\rrough in April 1986" A ner.r
engine r^ras bought in liombasa, deliverecl to the #oupr and on 22 Apr:J- I'Drtrirors
boat uas back in operationo On all- accouats the enterprise is being conduoted
much as before. The driverl nor'; the husband of ihe groupt s treasurer, is
st i l l being paia a f ixed. proport ion of the boatts income" Without further
inte:rrentions fron Toioio it is likely thai sorne of the problens uhiclr earl-ier
9L
dogged the enterprise tril-l recuro Or the face of it I 'krrirors enterprise
constitutes a bol-tl thrust into a.n othenrise maLe-domineted. aomain" In
practice it oonstantly r.urs the risl; of being app:ropriated. in turrto
Four ffroups in one
The influence of 'braditional forrns of organisation has not been an
entirely negative oneo The reo:rganisation of group subscriptioirs provides a
striking instance of this. h'hen the boat en'berprise was in operation the
gr.oup stopped. colleoiing subscrip'i;ions fronr its nenberso In liovember 1-!B{.,
lacking a^ny other so'drce of income, a ri"elcl-y subscription r.ras reinstitrrted- at
the neu rate of 2sh 5O cents per heado At ihe suggestion of one of tire members
its collection rvas cornpletel-y reorganised. The mod.eL for this reorganisaiion
r.ras i'i1;,ld-rots d.ivision into 4 v;ards - I'i1n-:ajurdr Pwairir l,luttani anci Bogoa -
rrhich intersect at the vi l lage nosoue. O: the basis of menbersr-.residence in
one or other of tjrese the group r.;as Crivid-ed- into { sectionsr 3 t"dth 1)
menbers and one r^;ith l-8" A literaie rnernber from eacir section tlas assigned. to
col lest i ts subscript ionse recorded. in sepaiate e>:cercise books before being
pooS-ed in the weeldy meetings of the r,rhol-e groupo [he raiionale behind this
innovatj-on uas to rnake collection basier ancl 1e raise the leve1 of contributions
by foster ing a sense of competi t ion betrveen the di f ferent sect ions/ward's ' As
such it has proveC" a resor:nciing success. By the eud of Jarruary fer+ members
r.;ere behind in their subscr-iptions and the ones i;hat r.rere !.:ere either av:ay
visitirrg relatives or about to pa5' up. Beyond providing rril lagers v.'j.th a sense
of resld.ential- identi.ty the uards ser\re no otirer organisational purpose in
vi11-age 1ife" 3y adapting thern to its orrll pltrposes I'[;wiro has succeeded, at
least in the short term, r'ihere other groups have faiLed: enforcine (in tHe
nicest possible r*ay) the reguJ-ar col lect ion of subscript ionso
o 2
WOI,IEI,I Al{D TI{E ISIAND E00l{01'ff
( lhc simc'ture anc-', practice of household. eoonorny in I'0:r.riro is sornetrhat
riifferent fron that found- in the other locations ciescribed. in this report.
Tire range of J:ousehold enterpr ises ref lects l , t : r r j - rots is land posit ione rhi le
I the relations of prod.uc'bion and. gend.er vhich gpverll these talce a form uhich
- is rnodif ied by Suahi l ! pract ice. One feature of this pract ice is a long-
stanciing aclhcrence to Islarn anci the existence of a strong indepencleirt
( trarlition marl:edIy d-iffereirt from the culi;u-re of the agricultural villages
of l,ionrbasat s h:inier1and.. To outsiders forej.grr to this tra.irition l,[:r'd.ro is a
conse:lrative backr';ater, repressive to r,roneilo The realit3t is rather
( different 1 ancl in sorne lrays the r:ornen of l,[ ',r:iro e:rjoy a meas'[re of freed.orn
denj-ecl tJreir na"inl-an:d counterparts. Nonetheless, tiris freed.om is
cj-rcixiscribed ani.r li l ie the islancl econor.qy itselfr is tl.reateneC by
I econonic intervent ions fron outside.
I'ienbers and'i;ircir ircuseliolds
I,l..rriro r,iorneuts group has 63 rnenbers, the najority of the villagers ad.u1t
fenale popuJ-atioll. Idost of these r'ioriiel1 r^lere borr:. in }&:r.jro of Shirazi
pareuts and nost are narriecr- to 1o6al- fishernen. The rnajority have received.
no fornral- ed.ucation: I,[:i ': irots primary schooll l 'rhicir has aboui 1?0 pupils,
r;as not built u-n-'cil- 1981, replacing an earlier school in the mid.cile of the
islanci r.,,hicl' i serwerl botb of its vi11a6cs" LoceJ child.relr also ai;tend. Islanic
classes b.t the rveel:end, and in Augu-st 1985 sinnil-ar classes l.:ere begun for
. arl-ul-t women. Idany group rnembers attend theser . hel-d. at 4 o t clocl: in the
afternoons, lear'.ring to write in Arabic. At present there is no nursery
sclrool anci no other adult education classes in the villageo Feu aCult ltornen
can recJ.:on tryr 'chc uestern calendar, ancl the d.ating of the logs kect. for
To'boi;o slior.rs a confused. nix rrith the Islaliic cycle.
9 3
A sa'npl-e of 16 group members sllol's a:r average age of 3?, similar to
that of Aguira;re menbers.
TASLE 25
ACJE IJI YNAJTS
1 20-24 2>29 30-34 3>39 4a-M 4>49 5tr'-54 5>59
2 1 5 2 3 1 1 1 -
Informai ion on the mari tal histor ies and offspr ing of ' , ,hese lJornen is given in
Table 2'f.
( I.iai:y nomen ma::ried fo:: the firsi tirne it:. their ri::j i.-teensr a practi ce
r.ihich is nor.: chaarging as-: a resrd-i of school atteui.anceo l,larriage palnnents are
nracie by br idegroons thenselvesl not lX, their fatherso These pairnenis are
I norrnally i1 the ranse of 3-!r3oOsh, and in some cases j-nc1uc1e fu-r'nj-ture. The
monsJ- is no1 g"iveri to tbe brider s fatber bui to other matrilineal and- patril ineal
kinl ancl- is used to pay for the uedd.ing ar:'J ec-uip the household of the nel'fly
| 6ar:,ied coupleo This p4.rirent rs not returrred after divorce and- subseo.uent
mar.r ' i p.ges are general l -y free of cefernony. Divorce is as cornon as in Diani.
ft is usually il j.tia'ted by uonen blr-t effecteci b5' nsrt. Ut'i ier Islarnic lari l ' iolTlen
I can clairn maintenance pements i f iheir .husl :anC-s can be pl 'oved neg' i i3ent: one
group mem5e:. r . ras plr .ni i ing to clo - l i r is foI loi : i : rg ' t )re prolon3e'J abseirce of her
husbald-, but r.:as nrol-lified uhen he xeauurtteclo ltt early 1986 only one group
| - - - a t , - - r i - - ^ - ^ ^ j ^ - . r . - - : ! 1 . ^mernber r';as fowrc to be currently cj-ivorced and l' i ithout a husba-rtclo
Over BOl" of rnarriages take place beti.;een Sirirazi bor:r in I'kr'i iro, 'usualIy
(classi f icaiory) cross-cousinsl t i re preferreci ca' i ;egorX' of spouse. There are(
no dist inct resj .deni ial wri ts inie: :meci iate in size betueen the vi l lagee ni th
i ts clear ly def i rred bou:tclar ies, conpact sett lene:rt anC- int l icate vreb of
interrral '.ela-uionshipsr and the i:.rdivid.ga1 houseirolcis r.dil:in it, Table 28(
TIu3LE 27
AGE St N O ^1 1 1 / qr r + t t J l t t t t Jh n f l n Iie
2 2
2 3
1
t 2
t 2L
5
L
2
2
Ii
.Itl
2
3
1
1
t_
a
3
Ll
!
32
4L
41
26 r,i
30 li
32 r,11 a i lJJ I '1
t tJ4 l.l
a ^ t tJL'r .t r
1 1
2 3 2 2d
1 a
3 51 1 4
l - 7
I
I
2
1
l-
l-
2 2
a
3636+L
.-t J
434 9
) l
},r
I1
H
f,i] i
j..!
l / lt , l
lil
2 , n , t rc T J a
)
o+l-+I
1+!
t]
6
->iu
11' l c
a
t+
I
I
2
l-
Z
I
I
1'l
b
t l
1.-l
I
3
L
.L
1 3
co-ordine:tor, col.I ectorfor l.[urrarri r.Iard
fiz'si cirairrroiran
com'.rittee rnenbel
cor,rnrittee member
e--vi ce-chairnoman ( quit, . r l r n r - . i ' l ' I \r r : J v : a * a r /
vt ce- cnaL liljonan
ex-co::r i t tee nenber
key as in Tab le ? : 0 = nuqber of co-'..jves; i,Ie = nunber of clr.ildren married andnot l iv ine in the houseirold"
mean nr:."0'j:er of mar.r.iages = 1r!! n'iean nir-nber of children = 6.1-; mean nr:.nrberstil-I alive = 4.5; no:.tal-ity rate = 2J.Jl': ':1 rnean nu.mber of dependent child-ren(bom by t i :e l ' :onarl herself)- 2. ! .
siio{.-s tite der,iogra;idc struci'ure of 16 irouseholcisr housing a total of 20 group
rnernl :erse soi i i€ i . ihose husbanis (not incl-uded- in the table) r ' rere more or less
perna:reirtlJ' absent fron the village or living uith other t'riveso
The lovr resid-ential nnobility of lromen is liri]<ed to their right to inherit
and or.,r1 property in th.e forrn of houseso Sone thrce-quarters of the houses in
l'I:r:iro were olmed- anc- their buil-ding parbly fina'nced b1- l ', 'onen. oll separation
it is the husbands r,,'ho must move outo Some l.'on:en idrerit the houses ot'med by
thei: 'mothers; other.s col t inue 1ivin6 in 'chem r:ni ; iL they are able to bui ld
TASLE 28
IIOO OFGRoUP l,IlX,BEitS
.ADULTSfemale
ciflLnP,gi TC/IALmale
11
'7I
q
4
4
6
o
10
7
7
a(J
3
I7
4
3
3
?
2
L
.7I
I
3
3
4.
3
I
l_
l_
I
I
t
1
1
2
1
1
l-
1
3
1
1
3
z
1
2
3
1
1
I
I
1
a
1
z
z
l_
1
a
1
1
z
l_
l_
I
L
1
1
I
2
1
1
zu LO2
their orm" Before the advent of lanc1 registrat ion there l las no restr ict ion
upon the or 'mership of Land in the vi l lage; r ights in a plot uere establ- ished.
simply \r clearing and building upon it, and lost just as e'asily if the p1-ot
l;as abandoned.. Rigilts in ag:'icultural Land were sir,rilarly established by
cleara.nce anrd rernained. in force as long as the 1and r.ras continuously /
cr8tivated" A t}:ir"i- of the fiel-ds r,;orked W group nenbers were ovmed t6r r,'ornen
I I 602 5
o A
(either themselves or their nothers), olrnersh.ip r leriving from their labour
in clearing the land and reoently sarlctioned by l-arrir reg:istrationo
Labour. j.ncorne' ancl expenditurg
Tabl-e 2! d.etails the agricultural enterlrises of 13 group members in 3-!B!"
Only one woman interuieued - the first chainn'oman - d.id not nornrally cul-tivatet
except ir occasiondJly helping her nother. { rrornen, Cr trr tr 'and I in the table,
did not cuf--r,ivate in 1985r uhile orCy one r'lorn?rr1 3r cultivated. d.uring the
shori as wel-l- as the 3.ong rains.
[A3Lg 2a
Me Fi O}JlIUt AREACIILT.IiiACRES
L43OUR CROPS HAN.VIST coi,[.IuiTS
A' 1 borrorred l-- l - r r r
m n * h a n
ctrl-tivated l..-ithnother (rnembersof the samehousehold)
eaten strai-girtf rom ihe f ie ld
2 boxes*
poor
houseiroldheavi3-y
d.ependeniupon foodbought frpnthe shoos
buJ.lrushni l let
sorghurn
2 molber (f*) not cr'otivated
3 3 husband rvith husband.
( in tiie sborb
4 sacks
2 saclcs
none
none
snal1
none
t uox
maj.ze
sorghurn
a ' l a : r c i n o, v 4 v 6 v + 4 . v
cassava
grourdnuts
tornaioes
cabbage
carrots
auberg:ines
onions
peppers
cir i l l ies
raansJ :
beanrs
col.l-Deas
grain har'restlasted- 6 months
eai,en by goats
eaten btr' goats
97
reLr+ (cont)
I'ie Fi OlE:trR AilliA LASOTIR CROPS }iANV-JST C0l.rl.IHiTS
C 4 b r o t h e r r s r : o & ociril-d.ren
not cultivated. I ives in thesame householdas Br herd.aughter
D 5 I:usband- FJ(o r 6 )
uith :',rother maize
sorghun
eI eusine
l1r 3o
4 sacks
poor eaten by bird.s
a ..bi o nusbano 11o 3 r not c',rl'uivated. illr pregnant
r'-itir a c/hil-dvrhicir d.ied. atbir ih
F J husband I lo ? r not cul-tivated. caring for srnaIlchild.r.enr allfood. bought frornshops
G B husband 2(o r 4 )
al-one sorg).nrn
eleusine
-!- sack
l- box
hanrest lasted-5 months
H t husband 1+( o i 5 )
ld.th fathe:r-in-larr maize
sorghum
eleusine
l- sacl:
I D 4 V l -
4 k e
maize a.::deleusinefinished,sorgirum still-being eaten 6nonths l-ater
I 10 elderbrother
culiiva*ed bYyo'rll lger sister(t i .v in6 i i r i i re.sane householr l )
sacli about half of. harvest
sacl :srenalnLl lg f r ' I !e I6 months
na ize
sorgirum
I
a
J Ll motirer rrj-th her eLC.est sonanci mother
2 sacl:s sti1l eatingafter 6 moirths
so:'gitum
r:ii;h i1s3 sJdest \
daughter andrnother r s s is te r
3 saoks d.:-d. not l-ast 5months
SNAI I
eaten siraight from the1 ael -o
maLze
sorghun
e leus ine
K 12 her om
9B
TABLE 2a (cont)
I.le Fi OlniER ciloPs IiATtVESTARNA LASOUR cor,x.tmiTS
L 13 husbancl 31,(of 2 l - )
cleared. hersc1fe.^nC paid. a localman lO0sh tocultivate
good. st i1l eat ingafter 5 monthsand able to sell_ha l f o f l the c ropfor l-)OOsh
2 sacks st i l l eat ingafter 5 nronihs
p1a:ried. recerrtS-yand not yetbearing fnrit
at Yrrngi (nearI{ajoreni) on theinainl aird
ma"ize
sorghr:ro
cassava
bamanas
oranges
mSngoes
1{. husband (2+) no'i cultiva'i;ed.
l,i 15 her oi..irr
16 husbanC.
alone
I Io &o not cr:J-iivated.
maize poor
sor.gh-rrn poor
.tt there are !6 boxes to the sack
For rnuch of the year mar6r housgirolds are dependent upcn food. staples
bought from shops on the mainland or in the vi l Iage. This der:endence is said
to have increased in recent years arnd. lror,ren r'rithdrain labour frorn agriculture
as the nr:rnber of retail outlets has gror,m and cash income become more rearlily
availablel although islanders have long exchanged. the prociucis of fishing
and coastal t raae for crops and other goods ( including iron tools) produced on
the mairrland. fhe island, lacking gror:nd r.rater and stretm with outcnops of
coral, does not offer a particularly favourable environment for cultivation.
I'iost l:ouseholcls cultivate only one field a,:nd fer.; meet their anrluaI subsistence
requirementso Only one household in the sample l ;as in a posit ion to seII
surplus grain: the only one r;hich enployecl casual labour. Labour is generally
99
d.rar.m froni l:ithin the household.. tlen
iu the late aftentoon after retuming
uhich sumound fields 'i;o keep off the
most agricultural labour is perforrnedr.
sornetimes assist ir:. crrl-tivationy often
frorir fishingl and build the fences
gpats which roarr the island" Othervrise
t6r vlomen.
Together uith other forms of ]rousehold labour this takes its to11 upon
wornenr s participation in group activitieso This v;as particuJ-ar1y eviient in
Jarruary-FebroarX' 1986, when manJr group members r.,'ere vrcrking on their fiE]d.s in
the rno:nings and. late afternoons, clearing wrdergz.or,;-th in prepaz,ation for the
onset of the long rains. Those uho carne were usually late for group meetings,
ancl. i;hree-ouarbers oi tttu menbership did. not turn up at a13-o Tabl-e 30 is based.
uFon a.ttendranrce records for the pcriod- l-982-85, and shows a marlced fal-I in 19e5
vihicir can be linked to the d-eclining fortr::res of the boat enterpriseo
Tl3Lg 30
T}]AR i i lGIESTATTillDN.;Ctr
LOI.}]STATTXr-rAllCE
AVNRAGEATTN]DAJICE
t982
1gB3
tg84
t985
36
4tr .
' l q
1 5
1 ?
1 q
2 3
2 g
28
oo
Or 2 oocasions the groupr s f i r 'st co-ordinai;or made e>:pl ic i t reference to the
dernands cf household l-abour upon her or.m time. .On the first of thesel in l,ia1'
l9g2t she vroterr i . lo a:1y taslc today because nqyself I did- not go to the meeting
I uas r'rashing n6r clotires a^nd after that I go to take firev.'ood at I'ilarngrrni a-nd
ccme ui th i t . ' r Oe the second occasion, g.rrr ing Tototo not ice of her d-ecision
to o,ui t in } tovernber 1!82, she ascr ibed her fai lu: 'e to attend a meeting in
I ' lombasa to her urrclets refusal to let her go, because of v;ork whicir had to be
l n n
done at home.
l'lhen free to do so 11'onen are also kept busy pursuing various sources of
incorne. Tr,lo of the most irnporta,nt of these in I'Ikr'r-iro derive from the
col lect ion and sale of rnar ine produce: ' octopuses and cor,r ie slr .eI Is. Soth
are col lected. f rom the local- shorel ine, only by women. Octopuses are
collected. fron the reef at Io'u: tide, often by l.'onen rtorl:ing in srnaIl groups,
using sharpened stichs as spears" This can on1-y be done in the morning uhile
ihc srur is st i11 1or. l ; the t ides perrni t col lect ion over a period. of 5 or ?
d.ays twice a month. Up to 2O can be gathered- by one r{onan in a morning. The
d.eadt octopusels are then hung on poles to d-ry in the swr, an& sold to visiting
traclers from the mainland for 3-6s!: each depenC.ing upon 'lheir sizeo A good-
catch miglt fetch 30Osh, though tJomen ofi;en corne al,JaJr with nuch less. Cor..,riesr
on the other hand, are sol-ci fs3 l lsh a t in (c.18 kg) to l ,&l .r i rots Saju:r i shop-
keeper lrho sells ther'.r in turn to an Inoian exporter in l,Iombasa. In February
1986 he coJlected. TO t ins anC. rnade a net prof i t of sorne 1r28osh, over l8sh per
t in. l lomen vl l ro gather cowries report being able to make 10O-35Osh everX't ime
they sel-1 them, though they do not do this every month. Trade in both
octopuses and covries ?rops d-uring the cr{tivatillg season, whil-e just over
hal-f of the group mernbers intervier';ed engageri in neither, some because they
founci the r:ork too onerouso
lJor,ren also make and seII a variety of ciifferent kinds of breai and
confectr,ioner?' r.rithin the _vi1-1age, some using ingred.ients bought on the
mainland.. Just unrler half of the uornen interrrievrei. d-id- this, mal;ing up to
LO0sh per rnontho A fer; vronen trade produce directly from the mairrla-ndo The
most enterprising of these - the l.romar1 viro had a saleable surplus of maize -
made l-{gOsh a month b;r selling coconuts brought by herself or her husband from
lr lajoreni. Othen; ise some r-romen. (and sone men) lceep s:rnal- i hercls of goats
(usually 3-5) for slaughter or s ab: a.n a.o-ult goat fetched. 2OOsh in l!g.:iro in
101
early L986. There was only one rotat ing creC.i t associat ion in the vi I lage,
operated by B l;omen and 2 men in l,lcr.rajwri ward r,rho cont::ibuted 2osh each
every Fridayo 4 of these r.rere group mcrnbersr 3 frbrn the same Bajrrrri fanrily_
(see Table 2l above). In Januarf , ' the group began a savings c_ub, introduced.
btrr Tototo, arld 9 t'rornen paid lsh each to join" Like oiher Tototo savings
clubs i t uas offered.5OOsh (f lorn FAO and Women in Progress Ltd., a l {airobi
NCO) to siar.t a snal1 enterprise: at the serTre meeting l,lcrtiro members d.ecicled.
to use this to import coconuts from Shimoni.
Invol-vement r:itl, Toioto has provid.ed. group members with another so-urce of
incorae: prod.uctio:r and. sal-e of lroven har:C.icrafts for Totoiors shopo Hor.r this
came about has already been d-escribed. The group used. this tra.de to repay its
1983 loan frorn Tototc; but nost benefit has gone d.irectly to inclivid'raL
nen' l :ers and their households. Table 3l-r baseC. upot l lecords kept by Tototol
suiitnarj-ses ret-anrs to individ.ual p:'od-ucef.s betr,;een l-981 anc- 19.35"
TlisLE 3l-
ItrO. 0FPRoDUCli.D-S
TOTALREC]fiVD
III65:EST IIIDI\rIDUAL AVERAGE PER. PRODUCERiotal per nonth total per nonth
1g81
tg82
1983
t9B4
t9B5
43
< A '
o1
63
1 r 5 0 3 s h
Ltt432
7 r o 6 9
1 9 , 0 7 1
, 6 -z I r4oL.>J
57
718
t ) l
l r 7 2 o
A '7tr,. + . I J
59" 83
29"4t
A 1 ^ P .
1 4 3 . 3 3
37.27
211 .7C
rzt.B7
307.r9
435.2t
3 .10
t 7 " 5 4
1 0 . 1 5
) t r . A 1
36" 35
The net profit to producers is sorner.;hat lgwer, because they have to purchase
the d.ried- strips of palm teat (utini-u) and dyes r,:ith rvhich their irand,icraits
-.a!e rnade. Ukinclu is boughi; on the mainland - there is none on the island. - in
sr;iall- bund.l-es cos'cing 2sh lO cents each. Dyes are brouglit in smal-L 2sh packets
l .o2
froiu i,lombasa: the od-y na-Lural d-ye on the island is henrra, occasional-Iy
used in bod.y clecor.ation. Table l2 sr:,'.r.narises inforrration on the purchased
inlruts ano prices of the main gpod.s uhich I'i l:r';iro members protluce for Tototo.
Labour ariti tra.ns;ort costs are no-r, incl-uded.: oval- tabl-e matsr for exe;npI et
fetch a higher pr ice for proaircers than square ones because they are more
difflcuIt to rnal:e.
TASLE 32
ITE.i COSI TO PRODUCEP. PiUCE PA]D I.IJ]JT TOTOTC ]IETTO PN.OFIT TO RETAIL P:IOIilIT TC
- - , - - . ^ i . . ^ - - ^ - + ^ + ^ 1Lu!-:rruu s.)' s- uu eG: Pl.oDUcEn PnoDUCgt Pitrc-q- Torofo
,- f l loor nat losh N 90 2>J 160 4n 2c0t -
5 oval 12.50 10- 22.fr- ]-]O2 69.F- - 2o0 98table nats - 20 32.9 79.fr
5 sqirare lZ.rJ l-o- 22"7J- 72 39.Y- 15O 78
i iabie nats 20 32.fr 49'n
fan 2"n 4 6 . f r 12 5" f r 2A B
ha i ; I . f , 5 13"5C V 1 .5O 25 10
1 large 25 20 !,5 3C -!5 n 20irandbag
nedi'.r..r Lz.n l-O 22.n 25 2"9 rP l-5handbag
, smal- I 7 "9 6 13" 50 15 1.5o 30 )"5ha,ni.bag
1!86 p:: ices shor ' l r
Although the average returrr to producers wi,s comparativeLlr sna111. even
in 1!8!, tra.de in octopuses a:rd cor.rries is said. to have dropoed as a resul-t
of ha:rclicr.aft produc',ion. Group rnembers were correspond.ingly distressed. l:hen
the mar.icet for therr hancij-crafts carne to a stanC-sti]I at the end of 1985. In
January 1-!85 tototo siaff retunreo ihe bulk of their last orcie: ' to the group,
telling group menbers that they had faileci io se1} the gCods at shovrs in
103
Nairobi and ldonbasa anrcl that tnere was no room for them in Tototors store.
Producers are paid. by Tototo r.,'herr their goods are sold: follorving the r.eturrr
of their baudicrafts I'romell complained. bitterly that their investment i ' ulcindu
anci tiyes hac been in vain. Jlrriiro members have no other narket for their
ha,.nd- icrafts: what l i t t Ie scope there is for selJ- ing them to tour ists on the
nearby mainl-and has been tafcen up by Shimoni llomenrs g?oup, whicl also produces
these gpods for Totoio. Irt co:rseouellce group mora\e fe1I sharpLyr ancl the
blarne for. this r'las tura.tlimous3-y pu-i; upon Tototo.
Wonen generally pool their income wiih tireir husbands. $lj-ves are not
obliged to surrend.er this incone, but usually spend it on the househol-d. Ore
member said'r,hat if sire earired loOsh from cowries she rnighi go out and buy
clothes for her i rusband.e anrd t :as d.escr ibed. as a t tgood vr i ferrby oiher wonren.
Another notea that if she goi 3COsh fron oc'copus sales it l;or.:fd- enabl-e her to
bt.u,* -a bag of cenent for her house. l{onen. are equally depenient upori incorne
provid.ed- by thei:. husbands: 3 l.romen inte:rriei.;ed were'who11y d_ependent in early
1986, having abarrdonedl for d.ifferent reasons, efforts to sec'ure an
ind.epend.ent inconeo 2 women reported getting no hel_p fron their husband_s and.
3 ha-d. husband.s liho r.iere absent for most of the year and. only gave flreir vrives
noney on home visi ts. These worTlen rely on both their ovn3 solrces of incone
and help fron other household members and. lcin: one lroma:re v;hose husband. was
absent for up t ,o 2 yean's at a t ime, 1{as given money by }rer motherts br-other,
the head. of the household. Ar iother, the groupt s co-ordinator, per iod. ical ly
vrent to stay in l,ialindi uith her husband. and co-uifel leaving group recorcls
ukept in her absenceo
Tabl-e 33 shol;s the occupat ion or othenrise of husbands in a sanple of 16
group members. 2 of the absent husband.s uere traders based. in l,,ioa on the
northerzi Tanzanian coast: there is consirierable traffic across the nearby
bor'ler betvteen Kenya and Ta:.rzairia, and a fair ar,roult of sr:ruggling. Brrt mosi
101
TA3,Ltr 33
NO IIiJSBAIIDwidor-red. absent
HUSBA]ID U{PLOYMfishernan:boat or.nrer
fisherman:no boat
shop-o\';ner
gr"oup menbersr husbands are local- fishernen. 6C men in l.l*uiro are registered.
members of the Souih Coast Fisheries co-operative in Shimorui, nhich began in
1966" Thq,' fish everXr day except Friday, the da1' of prayer, a.nd. brihg their
catches ashore i:i the earS-y aftenroons to be r^reighed by the 1oca"l- co-operative
secretarX'. The oo-operat ive pays the f isherrnen 10sh per ki lo of ( large) f ish,
Lsh of this set asid.e in a fi.:.:rd for l,1l:,;d-rors school and Islamic classeso Ou
an average d.aov in Febr-.rElry (19S6) it paid out 2lOCOsh to L6 tishermetl. Only
a third. of I'?',r+i-=ors fishernel orv]rr their or.nr boats: the rest rtor]: t ': i-tir close
kin o:: others for a porbion of incorne frorn the catcho The exanple just cited
gives local- fishermen an averagp income of 3Osh a dayr 9O0sh per month. Daily
co-operative payments vary over the year bettreen about 5C0 and )rOOOsh. A
good dayts ca'r,ch can bring in 60Osh and record.s in Shimoni shoti ind.ividual
f ishernen in the area earning up to 20r0oosh in a single r . ionth" These aret
hov;ever, exceptiona3- cases a^nd d,o not take account of the diwision of ihe
proceeds anong crel{so The trar i i t ional div is ion into pori ions indicates that
boat or.rers also d. ivert a good part of their incorne to capital reinvestnent
a^nd. mainten_anrce of their enterpri.ses" In l' l:vliro fishing is done vrith nets,
l ines and traps, only the lat ter made and sold loca1Iy" 3 wi l lagers.ran
moto:r-por. , 'et€d.-boats (oost ing l>n100Osh)r 3 or^med. outr igger canoes (15-
2OrOOOsh) und the rest dugouts with sai ls (16rOOOsh)"
While households are usually well supplied witir fish, a sigr:ificant
proport5-on of their inco:;oe has to be spent on purchases of food staples.
- 105
l later is part icular ly er:peYrsive: 2sir plus per 20 Li tre container from the
l-oca1 resevoirs arrd Jsh per container from the mainland r.,'hen this supply ru::rs
o[to During the d.ry season households may fin,i theraselves spending betr,reen
2BOsh and l6osh a month on r.rater, d.epend.ing upon their size. These erpenses
are usually borne by r.romen rdth the he3-p of tl:eir husba^nds1 and in marly cases
leave Littl-e to cover other ey-penseso Female-headed househol-d.s face the
greatest difficr-lty; and one group menberr a lridor.rr had to pay -for the
building of a neu house lrith 3 floor mats she had made. On the other hand,
some schoo3-boys pay for their or.m uniforns by fishing in the holidays; while
the fr:nd. established. from sales of fish to the co-operative covers marJr
primary school exPenses rnhj.ch r.roul-d normally be bor:re by parents. I,larried men
do not..as a :rrle br:y l-uxury goods for themselvesr though sone, like the
village ohairmanr can afford to invest ii: specr:-lative ven-tureso
Changes in the island. econo!",ly
The relatively stable economy r;hich has been d.escribed above is nor,r
threatened. by conrpJ-ete tramsforrnationl the direct consequence of exter:raI
interventionso The first nail in the coffin r.ras land registration, which
took place on the island in ltlp-Bb" Sefore thiis isl-anc1 land was held in
conmon; nou i.slanC.ers have been issued r:ith titl-e deeds for the p1ots and
fiel-ds vrhich they happened to be occupying at the tjrne. In narly cases land.
registratior: discrininated j-rr favour of men, nor,; holding tuo-thirds of the
tit' les for fields largeLy r.rorked by r,rornen" The d.ifficuJ-ty this oreated for
the groupr o building pro ject has already been describedr r.rhile its effects
upon patterns of ir*reritance remains to be se€rro Some island.ers, anticipating
what woul-d happen, cl-eared. mucb, larger a"reas than they nornral-Iy worked - hence
the 21 acre field shor.n: in Table 2) - and a sna1l nurnber also l-aid. cl-aims to
p1-ots on the rnainl-ando Disputes brpke out betvreen the Sltirazi and the Vumba,
who cl-aj-rned. J21ge areas of l_and close tc l,krriro - includ.ing the village
106
i
I
footbaLl fiel-d - and others at the r:ninhabited end of the is1and. furthest
frorn their o1'r1 viIlage. Some rril lag€rs were l-eft ldtli relatively srnal1 pJ-ots,
nol.J pen'ranently fixed- in size anrd. locationr and the prospect of l_a:rdlessness
resultj-ng f"o.* the sal-e anri raortgaging of land has arisen for the first tirne.
Ti : is process threatens to be accelerated by tor:r ist d.evelopment. For
mar\l' years there r.;as only one hotel on the mainlarrd near Shimoni and a single
tourist restaurant in lrlasini vi11age. In 1!8J a seconC hotel- was opened. in
Shimoni and. a ner: restaurant ie being constnrcted in Wasini, r;hile other
developments are in the offing" At first l,[:r.d-ro villagers were resistasrt to
sel l ing their land. to d.evel-oDers3 the f i rst outsider seelcing to br4y land \r
one of the locaI beachesr a Gernarr l was turned aniayo This resistance has
not'i crunbled wrri.er the influence of 2 faciors: need (and greed) for cash, airit
the prospect of infrastmctural and other benef i tso
The 1ocal age:rt oi this tra: :sfoni,ai ioryhas been the brother of l ,hr i i rots
firsi 2 chair',.;or:len, the recenily elected KAlilJ locational cira.irrnan, with his
sights non set on the posit ion of area cor:nci l lor (see Table 2l)" Like his
Bajuni parents in !'ncr.:iro he or..Trs a shop, and is buil-ding another, both at
Shimonj-" He also or.ars a r:rotor-pouered boat, used- to ferry fee-paying tourists
to llasini and the marine park to the south of the isl-ando He has also bedil
provici iug his elCer sister r . r i th occasional E\ropean visi tors rvi l l ing to rent a
roon in her house - the f i rst t ine accornod.at ion has been lei to tour ists in
I8';r;iro" In keeping with his courtshif of another r.rorld he d.rinks beer,
flouting Islar.ric prnhibitiorr" I' iore significant. for the f\rture of l.I}:1,'iro,
hor. lever, has been his role in arranging sales of lando Over the last '2 years
or so he has induceci a nunber of vill-agers to sell- their l-andr acting as the
ageut for an D:glish hotel- ol.mer from up-cor:ntry. Ttre prices paid, 4O-lOOlOOOsh
for plots scattered across t i re is3-and, contain suff ic ient incent ive. In early
1!86 sonne groul i nenbers expresseo an interest in fol- lor* ing sui t . These included
107
his or.n mother and. sister, v;iro connplained. that he was refusing to handle
the transact ionl presr:rnably because he knor*s, unl jke many of lds cl ients,
the va1ue of holding onto 1anC.o
He a:'gues that the constntction of tourist lod.ges on the isla^nd will bring
a t';ide rarig€ of benefitse not least a cheap arrd- reliabl-e supply of r.ratero
Tliis is li lrere mar:g' villagers place their hopes, believing that tourist
developnent aiIl be acconpanied. b.t a subnar.ine pipeline or construction of r,rateq
resevoirs large enougir to provid.e an all year round. supply" Earl.ier
d.evelopnents have brought d.ifferent forms of conmunity benefit. Constx'uction
of llasinirs first restaura.nt r.ras pernritted on condition that a fixed nerceniage
of its tatiings be put into a fr-rrrd fo:: vilJ-age d.evelopnentl orig:ir1aIly this f.ias
to }:.an'e been for botl: the islandts villa€psr but has been appropriated t6,'
I 'Jasiui a-oneo Tlr .e or:ner cf Sl i inouits ner;esi hotel- is cor.rni t ted- to pay half of
the costs of staff acconoC.at ioi : for a. health centre in the vi i1age.2 I ,kr. i ""ru
-uillagers are nor,i keen io get their or..:r sl-ice of the cake. It is al-so argued
that iroieLs neerr i&.rd.ro v;i13- provid-e en:ployr,rent opport'anities fo=.villagers and
create a l-ucrati-ve rnarhei for local- fisher':len a:rci hancl-i-craft producerso This
majr or may not be true" tsut r.rirat ls rnore cerbainl ancl not admitted, is -i;hat
the islanri uiII becone a Diani in rniniatureo
I, iotes
1o Se:,rral politi.cs in l.Xl'.tro d.o not take the form described. by Bujra in hersi;uriy of a Sajuni vilJ.ageo The Shirazi have not ernploye6- slaves i:r therecent pastl l;omen, not men, pla.J' the major role j-n cu-ltivati_on1 andthey d.o not engage in labour rnigration/prostituiion on a.r-$r large scale.
.I,lcr';irors oi.at Baj',r:ri are, ho',' lever, rather more mobilco See Janet Bujra,tProduct ion, Propertyr Prost i tut ion: ' rSe:cual Pol- i t ics 'r in Yurnbef , inHazel Joirnson ancl Henry Sernstein (ed.s), T):ird I' lorl-d Liv"u of St*gslu(Loncl-on: Heinenann, I}BZ). ft rnight teprodtrct ion preclucles any conf irrenent or restr ict ion upon their v is ibi l i tyin I'E:r:iroo
2o In Aug;usf l�985 Tototo organised r,renbers of l.f;r;irr, Si:irnoni and Alzua"nir . ;c,nenl s grouDs into a connit tee to press fo: ' t l :e j -nclusion of materui ty
1 r r QI.\.,LJ
faci l- i t ies in this centre. 3ut the possibi l i t l r 63 NOIi-AD (the l lonregianAgenq,r for Inte:rrational- Developnent) supporb for this project anoearsto have beerr o^uashed. by a report r.rrltten by a volu:rteez' after in'cervier.ringShinoni members" This report is strong1y crit ical of the woments abil i tyto nur the project and of Tototors relationship lr i th' i ;he group"
r :1OL v /
:ct'iAliI tiotlf,irs G;loL? : -A.GA:.Ii;I LOCA'ITOII
3omani :rc.rents .group is based. 1n tire ',i.l lage of 3onani t 20 k* north of
iialindi torrzrsi:ip and 14.0 krn norih of i"lonbasa. Bonani is a small. cenire lrith
7 shops , 2 gtirnu.rng machines, a Pentecostal- church, a rnos(fue and a primary
schooLl ancl has a populai ion of *out I rO0Or f tostIy Gir iana. I t is
acinini-stered. as pa.rt of Bonani sub-locarion (populat ion c. ! ,OCC), l . iaga: ' in i
locai ionr i ; l tbe l . larafa cl i r r isron of Ki l i f i c i istr ict . . lona: l i , , ras the f i rst
of a n'anber of ,',oour,is groups to be formed in the area. trhe ',ri1Iage also has
a menr s group, al though t j : is is now inact ive. Research in Bomani was
conCucied in l lovernber-Decenber 19S5.
FOzu,HTf'rfd -iEARS 1
Bona:l i is the oiclest cf ; i :e groups; ' l i ld ied in i ; : r is reeoz.t . Like Agi i raTe,
it has rts orrgins in a:r ar-iul-t eaucaiion class rnrriated. b77 t" nan and. atiended.
by l ' ;oneng a sel f- i : .e lp inlblat ive r .rhich received of i ic j -a1 1-.ac1:1-n5 i ' rom t i re
starto Untike Ag';iraye, hor,.;evel, it r.;as forned before the r.,onents group
prog?anne 'book fuJ-1 effect i:r the area. As such 3onani was sl,.ared.. :nany ot' the
dcma:rdS ghiClr sf ier:* :7r^r! :s in their ioz'na. i ; iZe sta.ge anC rr ,as lef i -r-ery nuCh io
l ts orr-n clerr iees"
Boma:tirs aduJ-t eci-ucaiion cl-ass -ir'c.s iou.ncled i:r -la:.cir i9?j afier a l-ocal nan
suggeste ' . l ihe id -ea io h j -s fa t i : .e r ts b ro iher an ' l ; . ne i ;hho: r r r . ' , re fc re appr .oac l r . ing
the sub-cir ief" Ai thi .s t ime the: 'e: . , ;as no fornal ei-ucai ion of any kind.
avai lable' , . i i th in the wi l lage: the l -ocal pr inary school- uas not bui l t ' ,urt iL
1981. The t iornan he asked. io gp rcu:rd and nersua.de other ' , :onen to join the -cIass
became the chain. jornan of i ts conrni t tee and. l -ater of the tronenrs group. Herself
i l l i terate (and. a poor speaker of Svrahi. l i ) she was wel l - sui ted. io ihe task
fol lo ' , i ing her lersis- lent and. ul t ina,uely : : r :ccessful ef for*s to secure an eCucat ion
l_lc
for one of her o',.n: clril lren" She r^ias living in ilakalar sorTre distance
inlanC. of 3onc.ni, i;hen ber husband d-ied-, leavi.ng her rrith 4 yo'rng ciaughters
ancl _tregria.nt i.;ith her cnly son. Fol-lor.;ing Giriana practi.ce she a,rld her
c:riidren uere inherj-ied. 'o-v her deceased. husbandr s el-,j.er brotirer. -iowever,
rrhen the boy came of age irer ner.r ir' ':-sband refused to send hiro to school. Angered
by i i r is she registered a secret conplaint with the loca1 chief, ui th i ;he
result i;irat her husband. ivas gaoLed. ior 1-2 dEys '.:-ntiL he capitulated.. But he
refused. ro pay irryr-ching ior'rart'.s the boyr s ed.ucation. Fincling things d.iffi 'ru.lt
mother:md. son noveci to Sonani, where one of her daughters had marl ieci . This
was in 1963, after the boy had. completed.4. years of scirool ing. I ie lped. by her
daughter ar,nd son-in-Iaw she started c',:ltivai;ing cottonl but her husba.nd-
',i isited. afi;er every har'rest to cla.in ihe incone ano any otl:.er saleable
r n < r e q < i n n < < l . a ' ' i - ' L + " ^ ^ ' - a T, ! r r . o : r ! : : 6 v s o r 1 1 T € s l o l i s e t o i h i s s h e ' r , - r r n e d - t o a s o u r c e o f
i i : .oone ' . :hic i : . ste could i t iore re3.Ci ly contrcl ui thout e:ce:na- inierference: ;he
lcrel..'r:tg and sa-l e of inaize bee:.. Iiel-ped. by ihe proceecls frcm 'i;his her son
cor:rp1 eteC. boih ;:.inari' c!n,1 seconclary eciuca,tion, continued on to teacirer-
iraini-ng e:ro is now ;he headnasier of a p:linary sclrool in a neighbouring
rr i ' l ' l qco- Tn ioJl i r is inother was st i l_ l strrr6gl ing to see him ihrou. l1 scirool e.ncl
the repu; :a t ion th is ear r red" her nade her : l obv ious cho ice to canv?ss fo r the
new a,if' 'ri-i etlucaiion classo
A 1rc ' ; - : :3 , receni ly narr ied, : . ;o : ' !a ,n ' j ias c i rosen io be i ;he c lassrs ieacher
e.nr i s i ; .b ;erruent l - ; r 'ccct :e ' ,he :ecre iarX' o j t i :e l ' �o :enrs g?oupo She : r .1 g9 lar : -3 i i t
'n : r - . . :or r n ' l r<q s; ; . r ted at the sane t ine. In the f i rs t j reaf She i . ;aS paid. 1: ; rv L a e v t
subscript ions brou,ght by i i re pupi ls once a rnont ir : 2sh per ehi ld. for ihe
nursery and. 4sh per uonan for the a.dnlt eclucation c1ass. In 1974 -the Social
Serv:ces de;artnent be;an paying irer 1!Osh a nont i t ior i rer ad-ul t ieaching:
nursery class ccniitrued vrithout external support '*ntil 1982, r.rhen a member
' Ioioiors 3ov' : : rr ing coirni t tee began iaying ihe tqacher 2l0sh cer nonth" I ' lore
ihe
n f
I11
ihan 20 r.tomen joinecl the adult ed.uca"tion class, incl'.:Cing ihe 2 r.rives of its
iorinder. Sone neasure of its success ca.n be gauged fron'uire fact that i,ihen
t .tne teacher/secretary lef t tson: ' rr i in f983the grouprs accor:rr ts r . iere kept by a
l.r'orria,rtl then vice-secretar;r' r,lho cordd. neither read nor wrir,ie at the classrs
incept:-on in 19?3.
The .c'rea-ter. 11s2',spre of success is that the cl-ass evol-vec1 into a l.roments
8:aoupo This pz'ocess'oegaJ3 j- : r - ihe col lect ive effor-b of ihe i rornen io constrr :ct
a. buiicling for iheir cLasses. Tirey cut a;rrd. canried. poles for the strrrcture and.
raised- 150sh for i;ire actual burld-ing and 'iOsir i;o roof it '.rlth rnakuti. In
Decenber L973 this br:il-ti ing fel1 domr and- tire class r.roveC to another rented for
2Jsh a rnonth. In Janua?;l l-97B'i;hey moved. to 3omanits recenily constructed
Fentecosial ci:u:'cir arrd. laier in 'bi:e Teat s-'i-iched to a iree beliiir,-l ihe groupt s
ner.r baicery. Final-ly, ai; i i:e enci cf l-961, iirey noved. io Lhe nee.;"oy burlCing
af ii ie Boriranj- ?:'o3:'essi-le ilenrs g?cupr r.;h:cn llad been iorrncled. in L)'l j.
Tn 1974 ihe : :onen re.ge"n a Zs'n l ;eek17 stbscrr l i ion r :ra a roiai ing c:ed. i t
associa'i:ion based. u!oi1 ccn-Lribuiions of 5::h per nenber per r^i€eko !l::is noney
uas cizviCed. at the end of eve::y nonihl benefactors receiving l-Oosh each r.;h.iIe
il:eir nunber '.raried according to i;he total sr:.n collected" Tn ]-976 the nomen
bega:r to offer i1: .err col lect i rre labo'ar serr ices to oiher far ' : rers in the atee,
r:hnrcin- pi . f .he rate oi lOOsh :rer acre. A;: ,onE ihe sen-ices t ie;4 pe: ' fo: ' : r - ,edv r : * : 5 ; 1 l t J
k v
rrere hoe cr-rJ-ti:ration a.rtcl cotton rarrwesiing. This i;as an ilre.3.-rJ-ar aczi-vity
enC- not al l of t i :e l ;onren'cook part . lhose r: i ro ci i r l hat i -chreir g: 'oup and
- ̂ +^+ i - - ^ -a r l ; r assoc i -a t ion ;ubscr ip t ions la id - i rom the l r roceeds, r ih i le the4 v s a L u I 1 1 6 v ! v e ! !
bale.nce vas divided. out a:ron3 thern for i:rrlirriclual useo In ihe salne jreart
1976, the r.ronen onened a ba^nlc accoiurt in idal-ind.i l.ritir noney saved from i;ireir
strbscri-ltions . rurder ihe na.:re of Jaribr:.ni ( "1"*,t s trir! tt) :.rornent s group. 'l l:e
f i rgi ; ' ; ; - i fe of the adult c lassts founder l . ras appoinied 6roup treasurer, a
posit ion she held. i ;htough to L979. In 19?? ' : : re group aas vis i ted. tpr and
LT2
regisiered" sith the l' l inistry- of Culiure end Social Services. Ask-ed. to choose
a project the riomen clecid.ed- upon a bekery: at this tir,re ihe nearest supply of
fresh bread, valued. as a breakfast food, r+as in i 'Ialindi. In keecing '.rii;h
-Ministry policy the wonen l{ere adrrised to coniinue accur.rulating funds through
their group subscrintj-onso More substaniial support c1id. not cone 'oirtil ihe
foLlor,ring [ear rrhen, thz'ough the local offices of ihe i'tlnistry, the group
was introduced to i ts inajor alLyz toioto I ione Industr ies.
COIIDITTO}IS. A}TD ACCIDII{TS. OF EITERPR.ISE DF'|-/ELOPI\EIT
Tototo a.nd. the bakery project: establishment and. expansion
Boroani l{as one of i;he first 6 groups taken on by Tototo at the start of its
rr:ral wonents lrogramne in 1978, Ir al-so pr'ovecl to be tlte nost successfuL1 and
for na:4r years ttas the shoi..,1riece of ihe par'iicipdtory ne-rhodologl arlopted by
fototo fron i ts U.S. sDonsor, l ior]-d Educai ion Inc. Bonnanits teacherf secte-taql
';as appointed- group co-o:d-ina't,or1 trained in nonfoi:raI techni'tues, a.nd. pu+,
these to impressive use in inobil-ising ihe grol:.p a:rd- soluing ihe pz'oblens which
faced. i t in establ ishing the baicery project.
Serious d. iscussion of this project began in Apri l 19782 by October the
l.IorTren r.rere alrear\r baking loa.ves in tireir first, nakeshift, bakery. A plot j-n
ihe centre of Bonani rvas clonaied c 'J ibe :ct i " ier of the groupr s only Slva} i l i
member ("nd, f ron 19?9, second treasuu'er) a:rd signed- over - lo t i re ga.oup in the
presence of the chief arrd sub-chief. Lecl lry thej.r co-onlinator anrl encou:.a6ed"
W the Tototo faci l i tator ( f ie la super"r isor), r . rho .r is i ted 3ornani 7-12 i ; inres
every nronth in ihe first year, the v;omen contr:bui;ed. their labour a.nd. raised
various subscrip ' t ions to assist in ihe bui lding of the bakery. The group tr ied
to enforce attend.ance through the inposit ion of a 2str f l cents f ine, upon
absenteesl aid. a ' i one stage threatened to seize srnal- l - stock i rom menbers r ihc
1 ' r 1
failed to pa,y a Jsh build.ing subscription. At 6=oup nreetings the secretaryf
co-o:xl-inator discussed. tt." i"porta:rce of irygiene and. latrine constnrction in.
preparaiion for the stringent official healili requirenents which the bakery
r*ould have to rneet. i ' leanwhiler a's the enternrise d-eveloped, different
problems in its orga.nisation were tackled. as they arose; ainon€. ihem rosters
for bakingr forr:s of ind.ividual renuneration, imprrcvement of the prod.uct,
and- hol to narket the 1o".r.=.2
The enterprise e>r'pand.ed- steadil-y over ihe nerb 5 yearso Group accor::rts
show that betr+een l-978 and. 1!81 alone 33r483sh was spent on build-ing, rebuil-d-ing
and. frtting the bakery. A significant proportion of the early fwrd.ing carne from
the group itself, dranm from the profiis of bakj.ng e^nd the groupfs necklace
enternrise (see below). Other..rise nost of the capltal was pro'rid.ed. by oritside
souxcesr both the govern-'nent and- rriGos. Tabl-e J4 sunmarises the major exter.rreJ
inputs between l-9?8 and 1983.
TA3LE 33
DATE DOtf0R i"Ozu{ OF ASSISTAIIICE COST(r.lhere loow:e)
Aus/Sepi;t978
parliarnentarycandr.late forl,Ial-ind.i i'Iorbh
cormgated. iron sheets forthe bakery zrcof
2 r0OO sh
r o " RL - / t v
*l.I. c. c. K.KananaiConferenceCentre
a used oven, the servicesof a bui lder to insicJL i tand. bakery training for ihegroup rnenbers
1978 Tototo HomeIndustries
a loan to buy equipment,includlng baking trays andtins, for the bakery3subsequently repaid by thegapup
700
Tototo lIomeIndustr ies
a cash grant toing:redients for
purchasebaking
1 A 7 0 1- rOO0+
t l l
TAA,E 34 (cont)
DATE DO]ION, FORI{ OI' ASSTSTAI{CE COST
Febn:ary ldinistry of a grarit for purchase of 4eOOOshf979 Grliu::e and ingz'edients and- e:roansion
SociaL of the enterprise" I'hese::rrir:es cheque was nade out to
Bornani r'loments group'- achangp of name encoura€€do5r Tototo - a-nd. d.egosited.in a second bark accornt.
( 19BO the Anerica^n a net{ ovenr to be used. in c.410OOWornenr s conjr.:ac-bion with the firstAssociat,i-on, (together capable of bakingNairobi 3OO loaves a d.aY)
_ July i,iinistry of a grant for rebuilding of 10r0OOt 1981" Gulr,,ur€ and. the bakery
Socia lSeruices
Decenber Lioness Clubr a water iank for the bakery( 19BL itrair.obi
' 1eB3 ;::J:lH*'*" ?.f,T:: =;ffi:l'?i:"il1n,u" ,
25'000Ad-visory - transportation arid- installationCorsniitee (ltlC) r of a new and. larget ovenItrairobi capable of baking 5OO Loaves a
d.ay. This was in operation byApril 1983 a^nd- was officia.llYopeneC. in Septer.rber t6r anAssistant i i in i-s ier forD:viron-nent a-nd- ilai;uraJ- R.esources.
Febrr:"ary a nenber of fire-proof bricks to surrpundlqB l To io io t s t he new ovenL ) V J
governing^ ^ . - q i * * a a
' J +the i I .C.C.K., l . iat ional Christ ien Council of Kergrar is Tototots parent organisa'r, ion
From the beginni.ng the enterprise was heavily dependent upon erternal
inputs a3d adrrice. The negotiations over the ATA0 garrtl ';rhich 'oegan.in i98f ,
r:nd.erline the extent to tvhich the enterprise was subject to decisions taken.
outsid.e of tlle groupo It was Tototo lrho contacted ATAC; 4rr liGO with its ovm
l l a
ind.ependent f ie ld of interest. In l ine with these ATAC pressed for the
instaf lation of a.n energf efficient si'-stern in Bomanirs bakery. In Jwre 1!82
they sent etl technical consulta^nt to Borna.rri to review tire possibilities. IIis
reporb recommended tb.at erpa:eded. oven capacity. (which is uhat. Tototo end tbe
.t'romen were asking for) be accompa.nied. t6r increased. wa,ter storage :::ed planting
of a tree nursery to provide a cheap a.nd. ecolog:icaUy hannless supply of fuel.
In pursuit of this ecological goal lototo were put i^n touch with another
orga.nisation in Nairobi, lh.erry Developnent Internationalr alrd the group set
about finding a suitable pl-oto In tb.e event none was fouadr the idea came to
nougbte and ATAC settled t'or a larger oven nhich also heated. water from ihe
bakeryrs exj.sting storage tafiko This rvas not, however, the Last of ATACTs
i-ntenrentions in Bornani."
Oiher enk'rlpriseg
When Tototo began riorking -"rith Bonani a:rother p:'oject was r:li.ei1.iay:
cul t ivat ion of a col lect ive f ie ld. . l t ro d.etai l -ed record of t i r is enterpr ise
surrrives. According to the first secretary 2 acres of l-and- in neart[r Kaenbeni
ltere borrorqed- from a SwahiLi landou-ner. In l-979 this field was a!-',,ivated tn/
tractor for 2OOsh a:rd planted. in maize, then cotton" Tb.e naize crcp l^tas
divided. alnong g:.oup mernbersr as was 4OOsh from the sale of coi;ton {3:cup
gccor:nts simply show a"n incorne of 30Osh f:'orn cultivai;ion and no expend.iture).
this field. uas subsequently reclained. 'oy its oueer and, as ihe bakery d-e.;elopedr
no attempt was mad.e to continue the enterpriseo
Idore lucrative r,,rhile it lasted rras the har.,ticraft tra.de inii::ated- blr Tototo.
This was based upon the production of trarU-tional Giria.nra nda"].e neckJaces for
the tourist market. The vromen bought l-engths of ndqle copper wire from
specialist producers and fashioned. these ini;o rriwele, heavy pendantsr aJrd
vira^ngi, with brase and colorued- beads edd.ed.. lf feet of viire, bou4bt for 1sh,
was enough to nnake 2 or 3 viwelel the cornnonest product, so1-d to Tototo for
u-6
10sh eachl r . ' ih i le virangi fetched.20sh. Wcnen report being able to make up
to 1OO or 15O viivele in a vreek a.nd at one point group rnembers engaging in this
trad.e are record.ed. as making betl+een 35sh a.:ad. 5OOsh each in a fortnight.
Tototo shop record.s shorv that in i978 L4r95tsh was paid. out to indiuiC.uals and
)2Os1n to ihe groupr r.ihich took the _oroceeds from one necklace in every baicb
an inC.ivid.ual ozrcd.uced.. This noney was pi-ougbed. back into the bakery along
riiti:. the rnoney raised. from group subscriptionso The ',+ornenl irollever, pr-cduced.
nore neckl-aces than ti:e Tototo shop could sel11 and- after 2 years the trad.e
came to a halt along lrith other forrns of handicraft produclion which Tototo had
aiternpied. to introduce" Looking back upon ihis enterprise group nembers blarne
Tototo for its faih:re, aJr er'rerience sini1ar to llkr.rirorso The Loca1,
l,laiindil narket for necklaces remains sraall - thef are bought by Kamba rnid.dLeriren
and. sold to tourists in ihe town - and nda.le prod.ucticn is not a significanrr.;
source of incone in Bona:ri; nu.ch tir.e losii;ion t"rhen ihe groupr s traCe with
Eototo started.
i.lhen the neckl-ace er:.terprise beganr it attracted a nurnber of new nernbers to
ihe groupo A contingent of about 20 wonren joined fram ltlad.zql,arlj and. Purn',.ranj.r
some mil-es west of Boman:i anr.d a^n hor:rt s walk fron iire bakeryo !hi-s proved. a
constraint upon ihei.r acti' le pariicipai;ion in i;he grollpo In early 19?9 it i*as
suggested. tirat they nrig'ht start a separate Droject in I' iad-zayani to nake nore
effective use of their iime err.d- labour" This problern car.re to a head. l-ater in
ihe ;rear',rhen tne itreAze:Sani and Farn',ra:ri uon:len failed to contribute their laborrr
to i;he construction of a tea kiosk in tsomarii arrd were asked to pay a cess to
nake up for the fasto Following ihis, in lt80r they J.eft the glpup to fo:rn
their own i.n l{ad.zayani" This ga"oup, "'rbich buiLt its orvn tea-shop, was
adopted. by Tototo in i ts or 'm r ignt in 1!82. Bona.ni ts kiosk projecb, meanvrhi le,
d.i€- not take off. But the group d.id- taf,<e on a nurnber of new members io nrake up
for the lost contingent. Th.is was ,loue after consr.:J-tation between the ci:ain.;onan
11?
and. ihe 1ooal chief, a^nd brcught Bomanit s ;lenrbership rrp to 53.
The crisis and iis aften':ath
Fol-Lowing the d.eraise of these enterprise s-and fts abar:.d.onment of regular
.grcup subscriptions, -a1l- aitention r'ras direc'i;ed. sposs tb.e bakery. Al-1 seened.
wel-l r:ntiL 19821 althougt3 Foitp nembers ?rere d.isappointed" wiih the snaI1
profits r.ihich the bakery appeared to be rnaki-ng. fn Janu"aaTlgBZ the groupts
secreta"rXr (siil l the co--ord.inaior, but no longer paid. t'y Toioto) left lonrani
for a yeart s nurse4y school iraining in ltatugar south of Mornbasa. Eer oLace
as local nursery i;eacher was taken by the yor:ng daugtrf,er of a group mernber,
the third trea,surer (f 98e-85) g whil-e the woment's adult education class
ienporarily joined- with one starteA W ihe nenls group a:rd taughi by their
secreiary: an experinent lvh:ich, hor';ever, d.id. not last: longu In the absence
oi -bheir secretany ihe gznup .i.id- '.;eLl; and ihisr paracloricalljfu bro'rght,
their problems out into th.e cpen. In Janru.ry bhe 6roup raised- leOOOsh, 8OOsir
of iiris providei, by the ner.r treasurer, to paX- off d-ebts wirich had accr:nmlated
with the locaL shcps for the purchase of aheat flou:rr reposiiion their ovens,
renew their licence and. bql a frarned photograpb of the Presid.ento In Febnrarlr
they raised anoiher 11OO0sh to rirake a buJ.k pu:rchase of wheat flIour. With the
prof i ts fronr baking with ihis the Eroup bought a bic;rcle (zrOOOslr+) io assist
in narketing, repaired the bakery- buildingl prrt noney- aside to be clivid.ed.
e.norlg the rnenrbers, and. had. l-rOOCsh left over. At the end- of the year this r,ras
tak-en by the g:lupts secretary io be d-erosited. in i;l:.e banlr, along rriih the
profit fronn a d.isco r.rhich ha.d been he1d on the balcery ploto The vrorner were botb.
pleased. a^nd. surprised at the yearf s achievementsr and bega.n uondering why
simiLar prrcfits hacl not sholm in earlier Jreaxso At first suspicion turrred. upon
the ohainioman a.nd. the nelr treasure?, before attention srritched. to the grouprs
secretary, rvho ha.d. always kept the accor:n*s eJrd taken their monenr to the bank.-
1 1 8
Serious encluiry begen in 1983. The chief was caLIed- in a.nd asked. to look
over the groupr s books. He begen in ApriJ- a^nd gave up in Ju:ee, r.lnable to
reach anXr d.efinite conclusion. In Jrrne the groupl s secretary, who had been
taken into fi:.Il-iirne employment by Tototo ast a:r assistant fieLd. suoe:rrisor,
moved with her family to a. neart[r village where they bad. a L2 acre fa:rrlo In
JuJ.y ATACTs Project llanager uisited. Bornani to checic up on their 2JrOOOsb gra.nt.
Rlnding tb.at noi all-.was in order, she returned ]-ater in the month '.rith a
Director of Eechrrosenre, a financia,l a^nd accowrting' se:rrice based. in Nair.obi.
In lugust a Technoserve aud.itor was sent to Boma.ni and chased up the ex-
secretary, who had retained. margr of the groupf s accor:nts a^nd- receipts. Asked_
bow rnuch money the group haC in tbeir berk erccount sbe ga.ve a d.iffereat figure
to that which she had earLier given'the chief. These sums were in the range of
?-BrOOOsh" On checJring, horvever, the 3onanj- accor:nt showed a-lalance of or4y
llBOOsh. The money roust, she said., be irr the Jaribur:i accou:et; but she
could not rennember hon rnuch because it had not been used. for sorne tirqeo On
being asked. to produce the releva^nt receipts she said that she irad. taken them
to Tototors Dir,ector in llonbasao As it turned. out the J^a.ribuni account he1d. a
mere 53tstr {! cents. The combined. d.eposiis clearly ie1l short of the amount
which the secretary had. been given to bazrk at the end. of 1982), ruogether lrith
3r3o0sh from the -{TAC grant whj-ch she had. been given via Totoio to acccunt to
the groupo Meanwhi3-e the group accow.ts for January-jrure 1983 showed. a pei;ty
cash balance of l i i ; t Ie more than zt8lsh.
Faoed. with these facts and evid.ence of other imegularities Technose:rre ald
the group members pressed. for astion to recover the rnissing fi:nds. llotl::ing was
achleved. r:ntil Janr.:ary 1984r when the forrner secretarXr was j.nduced. to sign a
formal statement admitting the loss of 2lr'f2!sh 30 cents plus various ba^nk
receipte and acceoting her accowrtability for this losg. Thls statenent was
also signed by 11 witnesses including her husba.nd., the Technoserrre aud-itor
119
grcup officergl the chairman of the menrs group, the chief and the sub-chj.ef.
Table ll shows the list of missing fr:ncls as reconst:rrcted. by the [eob.nose:lret .
auditor.
TAsLg 35
t cLATMANT NASIJRE OF CT,AIM Al,lOUNI
the found-er of the bal-ance of a g:ift rnade to the. i-1!35.7Otbe ad'*Lt group in 198O. Disappointed. t6reduca,tion class the poor shordng o'f the bakerly he
bad. purchased L;2BOsh wortb. of:wheat flor:n from a wholesale,supplier in Sngoni a^nd. sold- it togroup members bit btr bit over amonth or so before presenting themwj.tb the pr.ofit: 3r??5sh plus.After putting some of this asialeas the d.eposit on a, biqrcle and.using it for other purposee the'balance was g'iven to the secretanryto tiake to the bank.
a Bomarri shop- d.ebt for the purchase of wbeat 281.95owner flour by tire group.
a Boma^ni shot d-ebt for the purcha,se' of wheat 482.&( owner flor:r and lard by the group.
( .
the groupr s 3rd d.ebt for the purchase of r-heattreasurer flour by the grorrpo
500
a local ta;ilor rernaining d.ebt for the ser^ring of Lrl-96.flbak-ery un:ifonns for the g:pup( totaf cost 2r1!6sh p lus: on ly11OOOsh paid. t6r the secretary).
the womenrs gr.oup prrcfite frrorn a d.lsco given to the 1rl-02secretary to ba;rk
I the womenrs group prcfits from baking in 1!82 given 1rlOOto the secretary to bank
TA3LU 3q (cont)
CLAI}IANT I'IA.TURE OF CLAIM
120
ATiOUNI
the woment s group firnds shorring in group recordsbrrt rnissing and rlraccor:ntedfor .
t4ro42
ATAC money frorn gra^nt given to thesecretany via Tototo to accountto the g?oup.
3,3OO
TOTIT 2 3 t 9 & . 5 5
The toi;aI sr.rm missing according to this reconstnrction is sligbtly different
from that given in ihe signed- staternent and it is d.Lffictrlt io'reconciLe the
trio. Examinaiion of surrrivj-ng goup accou:rts froro the early perroC. and- the
Technose:sre audrtorts calculatj-ons rrriiten into these showl moreovere that
be nra.d.e a. number of errors. i{hile there seems liitle d-oubt tha,t the secretarT-
d"id- m:isappro-.,'.'riate group funds, -it is impossible to verify the e=aqb arnouJtt.
Given ihe inconpleteness of avail-able records - some group mlnnbers cl-aim tha,t
the separate bread accounts were b'ar:rt by the secretarXr when she left Somanj. -
ihe aud-itor had. to resort to the recollections, claiims and counter.-claims of
g:roup rnembers. This enquiry took place in a very charged' atnroslrhere and 'uhe
bj-tter:ress this affair generated has yet to subside. Looking backr group
nenbers say that they now recognize r,rhat they d.id. not at the tiine. tsefore the
crisis they had ccnplete i;nrst in their secretary a^nd. teacirer. 'r{hen she
sr:rnmarised. their- accou.nts in Thursd.atrr meetings they had no reason to di sbelieve
her a.nd- no one else was sufficiently literate or felt cornpetent enough to cr.oss-
checlc the accounts she kept. l.lhen she toLd group roembets that thel€ was no
reason for others to accompany her to the bark they never suspected. that she
might have different plans for their fundso Now the6r thiDk otherw'ise alrcl
( _
121
believe that over the years she was pocketing nonelr ent:rrsted- to her bit by
bit. Vlewed. in retrospect particralar inoidents sta^nd out. Some of these
have aLrea.d.,,v been touched upon. The thirrC. treasurer reca1ls, for exam.ple,
that when she weat to colLect 1r600sh owed. to the group and. individ.ual members
by a, Congoni custoner in 1!82 she arrived. to find that lrOOOsh bad 6,f1.saay
beea taken by the seoretanXre tb.e porbion oned to the gtoup as opposed. io
indi'ridualso When investiga.tions ilere r:ndemay in L983 these 2 woreen argued.
bitterly over sirnil-ar'incidentsr d.isputing su:ns whicb had. been tritb.d.rarrn and
purchases they had nade together.
fhis affair has had a, d.ra.n,atic effesb upon tbe groug a^nd its eaterprise.
In this respect ritcbcraft belief has played. a^n iinportaat rcle. The background.
io this is as folLows. l'{bea ihe bakery ivas :-j-rst buj.lt the secretary arranged-
for a ned.icine-nnan from another village to come a.nd. install protective
medicine inthe building. fhis was to proieci the enterorise from the
nacirj.nations of jealous husband.s and otherso fhe ned-icine was instaLl-ed in ibe
presence of 2-3 other group members. l{hen the secretary 1ef-t Bomani in r:rid
1983 they d.i-scovered. that it had been removedo I'hen, in October, alarming
ihings--started. happening. F.rma.n faeces, stranrgely odor:rless, were found one
inorning outside the bekery door after. one of the women had beea beking through
ihe rright and had. neither seen nor heard. anJrolre apprrcach. On another
occasion bread. doUdr rose excessivelyl burst open, a^nd srnalL biting ants
swar:'ned out from it. A consignnent of fresh loaves taken to be sold in !,Ia]-indi
was for:nd. to be stale upon arrirra.l and- had. to be thrpwn d\!{/t In-December 5
boxee (fq4 kS) of wheat flor:r failed and had to be written off. tr'ina1Iy1 in
March lr914, the glass frames hold.ing the groupte licence, registration
nurnber, and picture_ of the Presid.ent wero found one morning smashed, on the
bakery f1oorl whlle tbe registration nunnber ha.d. been d.eliberateLy scratched.
r22
out. Frigbtened W these events all but a handfiil of women stopped. coning
to the bakery. The inplication was that the former secretaey had rernoved tbe
bakeryts protective medioine and $a-s in some way resDonsible for vbat nas
'h.appenlng. This had a more potent effest upo,.* the women wbo were not
edb.erents. of a. world. relig'ion but followerg of- tradiiional Giria.na practice.
llhile a large.nunber retrrrned. to bakiag in 1t84r over half of ihe group
members d-ropped. out in the course of the yearl sorl€ at tbe insisbence of their
husba^ndso Tlris, as Table 16'shorvs, included nos+ of the traditionali'sts.
T.AgtE 36
RB,IGTOSi Tot.al,sLmt I1{ 1983-84 RE'IABrED ACTilTE/snu-tc$rvn
Christia^n 14
MusLin 3
TraCit ionalist 13
30
1 ' l
1 5
z
4
TOT.AL$ >z-22JU
* exol-r:rles the er-secretary, a Rornan CathoLic
fhe womerr .*ho left at this time have sti1l not returr:ed. to active participation
in tb.e group and are eupbenristically said to be rrrestind'. Active mernbers hope
that most of them r^rill return to the grcup and think that it is only a roatter
. of time before they do. The Locfl sub-chief thinks that they should. not be
allowed. back in but the group d.isag:reesl althougb. they have enterlained. the
tbought that those frorn the 1t8O intake wbo left should. be penalised. t6r having
to pay sonethlng in reoognition of the labour and rnoney wbich 19?3 nembers
_ earlier invested. in the group. Roughly equa.L numbers of 19?3 and 1!8O members
lefb in 1!83-84: arnong the former were the r,rives of the adult ed.ucatfon classrs
1 2 1
fotnder. Religious affil iation provides the only significant correlation,
a fact recognised. b'y the lromen themselves. T'leis affaj.r has left the group
dominated. by Christia,ns in a, way r,rhich it was not before the crisis. The
effective weeding-out of women who nigiit be considered. more firmly rpoted in
an' ethos which is characteristically ininrica"l to the d.evelopnent of capitalist
enterprise can be ini;er-oreted. as a neat result in terns of the logic of this
enterprisers developmentr atrr accid,ent pronooting its -further rationalisation.
Another conseqllence of this affair was a real!.gnnent ia relations between
the group and. the NGOs supporting it. Tototol placed. in a somewhat awlnrard.
position by their emp3-otrnoent of the groupr s forrner secreta.:qr, d.id not inteq/ene
d.irectly cluring the crisi.s; a task takea olr b;r {IAC and- Bechnosetsreo Tb.e, ex-
secretary, no.w an assistant field. supe::visor, renained Tototor's main contact,
t.ltb the group a^nd g-iven the accusations whj-ch were d.j-rected toward.s her ii is
hardly surprising that thls contast was suspend.ed. -i;hr.or:gh 1984. triollordng h.er
signed' adoission of gtilt no arangeneent ha.d. been na.d.e for repatrrment of the
m-issing ftrnd.s and none was forthcoming. ATAC a"nd. fechnosexve continued. t.o press
for action a.nd- in November 1984 arra^nged a neeting ri th Tctotors Director,
Bomanits new secretarye arrd her accussed. predecessor at Karr.amai. It was agreed.
that fototo wor:]-d. d-ed-uct the 313OOsh nissing from tne -A.TAC grerlt from the
latterts sa1ary and 3lOOOsb. of ihis was given to the group the following montho
Tototo maintained, then as now, that theft of the nrissing fi:nd.s could. not be
prcven: the loss couLd equa13-y be ascribed to rnistakes in book-keepingl while
i.t was clear that roost of the grouprs prcfits over the period. irr question had
been reinvested- in build.ing a.nd equippin€ tb.e bakery. In any event when tbe
a[eg€d. misappropriation took place the secretazy qas not a Tototo employee:
Tototo could. not therefore be heId. accor:ntable for the nrissing ffrnd"s, a problem
lvhose, solution lay rrith the 1ocal authorities.
( -
L24
Aga,inr more interesting than tbe elusive tnrth are the effeots whicb
these d.ifferent stances bave UaA. llhe problem remains in- ttre hand.s of tbe
local" adninistrati.on a.ad to d-ate no action has beqr taken. As a. result the
g?coup has become progressively estra:rged. frorn the local agents of the state.
Despite repeated. requests to do sonethiag about sectrring repa6rnent of the
ndssing f\mds tb.e-chlef a.nd. sub-chief have not d.one arrythiag', whiLe.the group
has tri-ed.r ur3.s11ccessfti-LJ-yi appealing over their heads to higher autborities.
Some nemberg suggest tbat they are acting (or rather not actlag') in collusion-:
vrith tb.e. ex-secretarXrr who nor trol-ds posts in KAI.IU up to district 1evel and.
has a^ number of influential corurestions. In any case the wonen generalS-y bo1d.
their chief ancl sub-chief in Iow regard. and. ha,ve as fiJitle to clo with then ae
possible. Cne way this is manifested is in their relusta^nce to participate
fuI1y in 1ocal fi:nd--raising drives. In December 1!B! the third treasr:rer,
whose earlier eathusiasm for s:uch events had earned. her the aiclgrane I'Mana
Hararnbeerrr refused. to the sub-chiefrs request that she attend. a- fr:nd.-raising,
telling irin that she had enough '*crk to d.o at home a.nd. in the bakery and. noiing,
laterr that he coul-d. not force her to parbicipate. This is a position which
und.evelopecL groups a^nd. -their members oa.rl generally not afford to takeo
l'leanwhile the group hadl for obviou-s reasonsr become estranged. from
Tototo. Technosexve, on tbe oib.er hand.r took an j-ncreasing interest ia
Boma.n:i. At the beg:inning of 1!84 their auditor introd.uced. a new system of
book-kee.Ding a.yrd. advised. the ne?r secretary (and. adt0t/nursery teacher) in its
us€r 3 wieldy leCgers were purchased. by the grcup: one for imprest cash, one
for cash sal-es a.nd one for ba.nk tra.nsactions. Thereafter the aud.itor visited.
Boma^ni every 3 or { months, penrsed. the accor:nts a^nct added. copious notes for
the instruction and benefit of ttre secretary. fhe hoped. for effeot of these
a^nd subsequent interwentions was further rationallsation of tb,e bakery
enter-orlse along capitalist- linee. Technoserve renained in contact with Tototo:
L25
after their ar:ditor had visited. the group in July L985. they rrrote obsenri.ng
tbe nebd. for bakery rosters, a code of nrJ.es, and. prrcfit-sharing upon a
pre-d.etermined. base. Tototo, however, whj.le accept5.ng tb.e need for
ratioaalisationl wer€ uatr.appy with the technocratic a.nd. forrnal- style of
Technoservers interventionso Eb11or+ing iheir renewed engag€ment rrith Bonrani
and. the opening of its tea-shop in Ll8l (see below) 1 Tototo thanked. Techno-
setlt/e for their assistance and 1et then h:ow that they wordd continue the
job -i;hemselves. Ir llf,arch )_986 [ototo folIor*ed f,b:is up tryr sending one of their
ol.m staffr a, volr.utteex second.ed. frorc Lutbera^n Horld Re1J.ef, - to rvork rrith the
wonen over a 3 non*b period.'and. review tbeir businbss a.nd accounting practice
in a style more apgropriata to Tototors nonfo:ma.l'ethos. At tbe sarne ti.rne the
er-secretar?- swapped. places with another assistant field. super-,risor aJrd. ,..ras
thds removed. from <iirect contact irith the groulro
Status a;rd d.evelopnnent of goun enterp:'ises
Ietailed r'ecord.s of bakery sales ar:.d. costs are not available for the period-
before the crisis in 1983. fn 1!81 sales of bread a^re record-ed. as totalling
2lrooosh (a.n average of !r?5osh per nnonth) tut the frrll list of expenditure on
ingred.ients and. rnarketing' is nissing. The ATAC consr:.ltarrt Jent to Bomani in
1!82 estimated i;hat tbe bakeqi was making sorne llJOOsb. every nonth. Ifowever,
the reccrds kept after Technoserr/ets intenrention show the enterprise in a
rather less coinfortable situation, stnrggling to break €V€nr fhis inforrnation
is sumnarised. in lable lJr show'ing bread saLes anrl direct prod.uction and.
mar*ceting costs between Ja.nua,ry 1984 a^na August 1985. This d"oes not show total
bakerXr gutnutl but. only the portion orgenised. collectively by the groupr Since
the starb of the enterprise ind.ividual members had also baked. a.nd. sold. brea.d. for
individ-ua.l prcfit, th.eir main source of renurneratj-on frorn the bakery. No
recolrls are kept of this individual ira.de, tlror:gti the levels of productlon are
fixed by the group. From 19Bo througlr to 1985 indivldual prod.uction was set at
(
( ___
L26
hal-f the volume of pr"od.uction for the group.
TtstE 3?
Dro$fivYEAR INCOI.IE ffiPBIDIITUNEIdONMILYB.OLA}{gE
NO. OFBAKERS
t -_-
Jaau.a4r r-9B4
Febn:ary rr
i'tarcb it
April rl
May rl
.Itrae rt
Ju-1y rr
August rr
Septernber 'r
October rr
llovelirber rl
Decembe:e' rl
Jarrua:qr L9B5
Febnrary tl
lilarch rl
April rr
Ma.y rl
June rl
July rr
August rl
41 62o sl
air6n
12rrg5
14r0?o
9 1235
6r4@.
9 t865
4r827
5fi84
4 r 2 8 3
2r376
8r694
3ro9O
3,3OO
3,120
4 1 o I !
3 ,L20
417 j .2
21167
1? rOO5
]-.4r446
1 3 , 6 8 5
8r433
7 r3tZ
groBG
5to4o
o t oo\J
5ro18
2 1 2 2 6
g ,o4B
3r 513
21268
41829
5r 3BB
3r141*
31984
2t453
-3r355
-2r25L
385
Bo2'
-852
773
_1 I J
-676
-735
150
-35+
-Q3
1 r 0 3 2
-].t7o9
-577
_21
728
19
30
22
20
1 5
17
T2
10
9
1 3
7
8
10
10
9
12
suB4oTtS 1gB4
SUBJTOTIL 1985
TOTAL
96t259
22 rL53
118 r 412
loo ,126
2 3 t t z 3
t231249
-3, 86?
-970
_4, B3T
* incompLete
1 2 1- - I
The price of the roain ing:red.ient (wheat fior:r) a,nd the wholesale a.nd.
retail pritces of the prod.uct (loaves of bread.) are fixed tvy the goverrunent.
fb.is pricing stnrotnre d.oesr howe!€r, leave.sone room for profit: in theorXr
baking profits should. represent between one fifth anrd one ttdd of total sa^les.
Table 38 is based. upon December 1985 prices for the prod.uction and sale of Q
loaves.
TAsLE ]B
SAT.6 COST$ (locat- retai l pnicee)
( -
42 Loaves at wholesale 12 kg l (6 tagF) of wheat f lour . .o . . . .?8.90p r i c e o f 3 ' 5 o p e r l o a f " " " 1 4 ? s h . * u o , . o f y e a s t . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 .
{ 2 l o a v e s a t r e t a i l * k ' S o f } a r d . . . o . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 . 3 5p r i c e o f 3 ' ? 0 p e r 1 o a f " " " L i i o Q o
* r c g o f s u g a r . . . . , . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 . 8 5
) � 2 * S o f s a 1 f , . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 5
2 0 l i t r e s o f w a t e r . . . . . . . . . . ' . . . . . . . 3
b u n d l e o f f i r e u o o d . . . . . r . o . . . . . . . . . . . 2
4 2 p l a s t i c w r a p p e r s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B . 4 O
t r a n s p o r * t o n a r k e t . . . . . . . . . . . b e t w e e n C -1)sh
between 147-155.4Osh between 104.15-119.15
profit ott P loaves = 27.85 - 5].,-25 sh
Group mernbers confirned that ihey regularly nade profits of this orCer from
their indiuidr::.l beking. Given the groupt s failure to achieve comparable
results it is clear tb.at ba^king is not as efficient as it night be a^nd. that
the group absorbs nost of the wastage which occurs in the course of prod.uction
t6r women who are also baking for indiviclual profit. The fact that no records
are kept of inclivid.ual- baking nrakes this d.ifficult to check a.nd control.
Bomani shares thie problem rrith a^nother Tototo-sponsored group and. bakery
{
I 28
nhere ind.ivid.uals have similarly favoured their own over groud baki.ng.3 This
is part and parcel of a more general phenomenoa: the inefficiency of collective
as opposed" to household oroduction.
Frora late 1984 on the group eryerienced. consid-erable d.ifficuJ-ty ia
obtainj.ng a.d.equate sarpplies of wheat flor:r, a.u,cL this in turrr had an ad.verse
effect upon the bakezyrs maz*ets. The flour has frequently been poor in qrrality
and loaves have spoiLed: on other occasionsr as in ilarch aad july 1985r the
supply of flour d.ried. up altogetbero Sub-sta.nd.ard. flor:-r ca.n only be reeognised.
after rnixingl a.:rd it is d.ifficult to seclt:pe arr3r conpensation from retailers a.nd.
wholesal-e supplierso In August 1985 4 boxes (g5 *e) of flIour fai-led and. the
group only got their money baolc on orr.. the state-o'wTred supoliers, ASfAt
claim that poor quality resul-ts frorn the rvheat croo being ha:rresierL too ear1y.
Bui ii is aLso a consequence of poor storageo Elor:r in bores (targ€ packets
containin€ LZ 2 kg bagE) is pariicuS-ar1y prone i;o deterioratioa. Or:.e way round-
these prcblems is for the group to brly flIour by the sack (J boxes rvorih). Bni,
the nearest place sacks can be obtained is direct fron, ATTA in Mornbasa and. the
ertra transport costs this wor:J-d. involve are generally considered. too high.
Instead a 1ot of the g?ouprs flour comes in boxes fron 1ocal retailers in Bomani,
more expensively than if it lrere obtained. from wholesal-e outlets in i,laLindi.
Following its d.ifficr:l-ty in maintaj-ning the level and. sta^nd-ards of
prod.uction, the bakeryl although stil1 the only' one in the area, has lost
most of its rnarkets to competitors from further afieLd" Table 39 ind.icates the
past and. present status of these markets. As a result of their d.ecline
prod.uction has been halved. Between L!8O and. rdd-1985 individua-L bakers baked.
1 box of flour for the group arrA + a box for themselves. In October 1985 this
was cut to 3 a box for the group and + of a box for indivldrlal profit. At the
same time, following advioe from Tototor individual sales were restri.cted. to
the markets outsid.e Boma.nl where bread can only be sold at the wh,olesale prlce
'l 20
TABLE 3q
PL.[CE tstrrER
INTTIALSIZE OFORD&?.
STASU$DEC. 85 COirfi.miTS
( -__
Marafa.
Ma.urbnri
Lanru
Itrgoner::i
Mjanaheri
Congoni
Gongoni
2 Giriarnahotel*oll-rrers
SwahiLihotelowner
Svrahilihotelowner
IIo 6o
Giria-nahotelowner
Girianahotelowner
Giriarnashopowner
Swahilihotelowner
5O loavesevery 3iLays
60 loavesevery d.ay
2OO loaves(period. notstated.)
Ilr €!o
5O loavesevery otherd-ay
4O loavesevery- d.ay
20 loavesevery day
10 l-oavesevery day
stooped.in mid-\gB5
50 loaveseveryother d-ay
stopped.pre-1t81
stopped.pre-I!B{
stoppe{in mid-I9B5
stopoedin mid-L9B5
stopped.in nid-r..9B5
stopped.in mid-1985
this order, originallysecured. 'oy the chai::woman,was fi11ed- by the group( rather tha.le ind-ivid.r.ra.1bakers) a"nri transported. iqybus for LJsh. Ore of theol'rners is the ch-ief ofMarafa loca.tion. lta,rafa hasa woments g?oup which is nowbuilding its oror blkery.
this ord.er lras-initiated. bylbhe owner lr-irnseIf. I,lhen itwas not net in mid-1985 andh.e was not inforrned. wbg'- hebegan taking loaves from abakery in Kilifi. Tbe Bomaaiorder was restored. in Novemberbut halved-. The order isdiuided. between the group and.indivi-duals and- the gzoupr scg-clist is paid 12sb. toiranspori the loavee.
the same bqrer as tbeManbruui order. fhe loaveswere taken to Larnu t[r brrs"
bicycle transpor* cost 1Jsb.
order for group loavessecured. W the 3rd treasurer.Bicycle transport cost 10sh.
order fil led- by the groupa^nd secirred, along withother Gongoni ordersl by thelrd- treas.,rrer. Biqlcletransoort cost 10sh.
order fi1led by individualbakers.
order filLed. by individualbakers.
Gongoni
130
TA3LE 39 (cont)
FT,ACE tsI�TER ORDM. STATUS coru'lEllTSl
| -.-
Gongoui
ldalind.i
Marike'or::ri
Soraar:r:i
-Kensalt
n. aa
Giriamakioskowner
individualcustomers
irregularorder for1OO-150loaves
Ilr &.
20 loavesevery ld.ays
stopped.in nid-rg85
stopped.in 1983
began inI'Iovember1gB5
constanttradesubject toavailabilityof wireatf]-our
or.ders brought W groupmembers working casrrallyat the salt works.
loaves transpor-ted. t6r bus.
order secured. by the 3rdtreasurer and initiallyfi11ed. by ind-ivid.ual bakers.
loaves sold from the bakeryand, beginning in October1985, from the grouptg ofirhoteL.
' Restrisbecl at the.
same tfune to tbe group and.so1d. at retail prices.
* a hotel is a tea-shop/place senring cooked_ food.
of 3sh 5o cents per loaf. iienceforih only group brea.d nas
itseLf at the nore profi table retai l price of 3sh ?O cents.
ind-ivid.ua1 baking was stopped. altogeiher.
io be soLd. in Bomani
fn ear3-y 1986
In late 1985 the group was responding to its marketing problems tryr seeking
to establish its orrn retail, outlets. In llarafa ihe wome!:. planned to open
a storel to be rr:n by a paid assista.nt alrd. selling Bornani brea.d. as weLl_ a,6
fresh vegetablee. A suitable build.i-ng was located. but permission to go ahead-
vdth the ente{orise was blocked W the 1oca1 chief, a former qr:.stomer and. hotel
owner hirnself. More pronising were plans to buil-A a. sma1l kiosk in Gongoni from
which to selI bread and hot and. cold. d.rinks, again using a paid. assi.stalt.
fhrougb the efforts of the 3r4 treasurer a plot was gre.rrted. to the group free of
cbarge and. pbrmission to buiLd. was g?arted. in December b,y the chief of tr\:nd.i.sha
location. MeanwhiS.e, the group had opened its ou.n hotel- 1n the bakery building,
realising an ar:nbition d.ating from 1!J!. fhig was achieved. with the help of
I -_-
131
Tototol which bad renewed its active invoLvement r,rith SonEJri follorring a
plea made W the chain+oman and 3rd. treasurer in ea,rly 198j. flrd hotel was
officialLy opened btrr lototors Director in Octoher, a^nd the group presented.
rrith utensil-s a.nd. ingred.ients -for the irritiation of the enterprisei Taking
it in turr:s F'core of active nembers bega^n selling tea, sometimes scones
and. other kinds of sweCt breadr. and. loaves from the bakery. Ingredients for
the tea were bought as need. arose from the local sh.ope whiLe other produets
were provid-ed. by both group members alrd others. Tbe erbra 2o cents gpined
$r seLling loaves at retail prices was to be retauined in hotel accor:nts, kept
sepa.rately fron those for the bakery, but th-is has not bappened.. scones
baked. in the bakery are being so1d. for individuaJ- rather than group profit,
thus negating the pronrised. benefit from orodusb diveisificaiion into ar.eas
free frorn governnent price reglrlation. Fo11ow'ing the inter,rention of Tototors
Lutheraa volutteer the wolneo bega.n purchasing manJr b.ote1 ingred.ients wholesa.Le
in Malindi. Eotel profiis, bowever, remain small: in April 1986 it maj-e
just r:nd"er 4O?sh, subsequenily invested. in the pu:.chase of more utensils.
There are 2 other hotels in Borna.ni and tf,e cLientele,is smaI1, a ihizd. to a
ha.1f being group rnembers themselves. Members worktng in the hotel have not
been renumerated. for their labour, r*hiLe a lot of purchases ale mad.e on cred.it
and debts of llsh or mo(e are accr:r,n:J.ated. everynuek.4
Ihe group has also returned to anothen early enterprise: cultivation of
a collective fie1d.. In 1984 group members started cultivating a Z acre field
in nearbtrr Marikebwril renteC. from a Swahili owner for l5Osh a year. The
resulting sesa&e crop was sold. for 5OOst and cotton for 1r2OOsh. 5OOstr of this
wa's spent on polythene wrappers and. flor:r for the bakery, all of which
spoiled. Hla.:ns were afoot to d.iviile the remaining 112O0sh between the women
wbo had worked the field accordlng to their d.j.ffereat labour lnputs: but by.
the end. of L9B5 this had stil-l not been done. In 1985 the group failed to
132
obtain secarne seed. and instead greil a. crop of maj.ze, most of which was
stoLen from the stalks before it could be ha,rrrested. Ehe cotton crop was
sti1l being picked. and sorbed at the encl of the year. fn 1985 the group
also &iscussed. the possibility of grolring pio.*pifes at !{akal-a1 narqr rniles
inland of Bomarui and near the home of one of the members. rrlhil-e a processing
antl canrring factoqy i.s curently being pfanned- for the area, the wonen
erpressed. resenrations about the diffiorlty of inarkeiing tbe cropl whicti is
br11ry a^nd otherrrise wouLd havs to be traasported. quicicly to l{alind.i.
IIOUSEiOLN; ECOIIOIfT
Members a.nd tbeir bouseholds
Tables dP-42 surmoai.ise inforoation (a6e, nan-talfchil-d-bearing ieistory,
and esbended. houseb.old composition) on l-2 active a.nd. inastive members and- the
household.s to wh:ich tbey belongo llost merobers are Giriarna from i;he hini;erl-axrd.
of Malindi" 0ne, the 2nd. treasurer (now inactive) I is SwahiLil while the
4th treasurer was borrr in Somani to a Dununa father and. Giria^na mother (also a
group nenrbe:r). tr'ew have ha.d. anqr scbool educa,tion and a nurnber were first
married. in their early teensr some yeats before they bore childreno Bridewealth,
paynients ralrge between 4rOOOsh for ant r:ned.ucated.-d.aughter and. BrOOOstr for a
sc&rool leaver, and may be parbly paicl in cattle. Polygrrly i.s practised.
regardl-ess of relig'ious affiliationl a^nd 11 members (fOO were co-r.v'ives. In
1985 26V wete either widowed. (l5f) or divorcea (ff%) I anC. the interviewed-
sa^mple had an'avera€€ age of 36. Resid-en?ial anangements are sirnilar to those
in Dla.ni a.nd. Jiba.nal al-ttrough members househoLd.s are rather more d.lspersed and.
only hal-f of tb.e wone! live itr Bom:ni itself"
| _,_-
fasrE 40
t>tg 2a-24A@ IN IEARS
30-34 35-39 &-44
133
fr..54 5>rg 60-642>29 4>49
2_
TABTE 4,1
acE, @u6t. st lI 0 cl F * # n 3 # s 5c,
L9
2l std..?
22
30
3L std.z
32
35 sta.3
A 1
, 1+L
46
47
54-
M
D
u
i{
.r{
lt
D
11
1,1
l{
ld
II
1
1
z
z
I
I
2
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
A
3
7I
B
11
3
1
z inacrtive
secretargr
corunittee
active
inaotive
active
active /
inactive
inactive'
3r.d treasllrer
lst treasurecinactive
chai::,1'iomanr
1____
1
1
1+6
5
3
1+O+5
B
10
L 5
,
>+0
1
1
5
2
1
1 2
z
l_
1 2
t_
1
1
1
I
!
1
a
1
n 2
2 ' l
1 1
2 3I
I
key as in Tables 7 and 27.
mearl nurnber of narriages = 1o 3istiLl aLiv.e = 5i mortalitlr rateW the woman herself) = 9.2.
nearr nr:rnber of children = 5.5i= 9fr; me'Yr nurnber of depend.ent
mean numbert -
c.fl]-lclten l\ oorn
l_34
rAsrg 42
Rg,agrol{BEN}IffiNE(Tn{Du)IIOUSE{qT,NS
r\O.0FGROUPMEMBERS]
ADULT$
male female
CIiILNRBI TOT.AL
headed bry ana.n with 2rrives inseparatehouseho].ds
I
1
3
( r )4
1
2L
3
2B
4
( '
i-;
3-:;i
iacluding a.son lrith 2wives inseparatehouseb.oLd.s
7
1
1
( r )
2
1
10
?
t2
headed- by anan wii;b 5nives in Zseparatehouseholds
L
(: .)
2 1L
2
6
11
L2 1B
1 2 2 1 0 1 4
- _ -
t 5
221 AI +
3
5
2g1 B
[oTtL$ T+ 20 36 1L0 166
( _ _
1 3 5
Gultivation
. Boroa.ni lies r.ritbin the lO-crile strip forurerly he1d. by the sr.rltans of
Zaaz;,rba,r r:nder British administration. Inland of tbe strip are 3 ertensive
settlernent schemes: t1a€ariai, Strauri liloyo and. Ra^ura.cla, the first of which
was initiated. in 19?B ir:.th assista4lce- from the -lustralian governmeni. Land.
on these'schenes ls being consolidatetl into 3O acre plots for r*hioh title
ca.n eventua,lLy be secr:red W palrmeni of 6rCOOsh. Most of the Land. rrithj-n the
lO-miLe strip is still- owned. by people the 1oca1 Giriarna, refer to as SwabiLi
or Arabs, while some patches are d.esignated. as Crowr (governmeat) fana. As
a conseqlience tnost resid.ents of Boma^n:i a.led the sui^round.ing villages live a.nC.'
cultivate on l_end which they d.o not. have title to. soma bav.e, reached
agreenient liith the Swa.hiLi landovrners a.nd. orl-tivate ihe la"nd. for free; others
paf a yearl-y rentr-often nominalr for i ts use" Ttre najority of landoiqners
are absentee, living and. n:nning businesses in lfalindi, Mombasa and. other
tor^nrsl and. nary Giria.na cultivate as souatters without reference to the
oi,rnerst This bas resulted. in a secondary tier of 1a^nd rights and rowrershipl
operating among the Giriama themselvesa land. anrd trees are bougtrt qnd. solcl
regard-less of fu11 legal ownership. Large areasr of land remain uncleared. and.
some loca1s have obtained. ertensive holdings ihrouglt clearing busb, nore'
ertensive than those available in other coastal d-istr icts. There is, however,
considerable insqcurity over'1and holding. tr'rom ti.nne to time Swahili l-and.owners
press their clainns: to repossess land they only have to compensate squatters
for the trees they have planted. Loca.l resistance manifests itself in the form
of ritchcrafts on€.Swahili family in Boma^nl rithdrew tbei"r claincs after their
father su.ddenly fe11 111 a^ncl d.iecl in the course -of
an attennpt to repossees his
l-and.. fnsecurity is greatest over-resid.ential plots- ar:,d. this has fostered. a
higil rate of resid.ential rnobility in the area. Even tbougb the woments group
has title to the bakery plot tbe former owner6, luoluding the inactive 2nd.
( '
136
treasurerr continue to bold d.iscos on it from r.rhich they alone reap the
profits.
ftrltiva'bion and related. activities are conducted alnost continr:ously
thrrcugh the year. ldai-ne, the rnain subsistence crop, is often interpJ.a.ntecl
il:ith sesane and. its haruest in August ca^n be folloffd'oy the plaaiing of a-
second cash-cropr cotton. tr'o11owing the cotton hanrest the cashewmrt
season beginsr lasting througti to the long rains and the start of the nert
yea"trs agriarltural cyclo. l{ost agricrrltural labour is performed. tryr women,
assisted. by their childrea ia the school hoLidays. Table 4j surrnarises the
agric'ultura^I enterprises of L2 group members. in, l!Bj, a.rrd. shows a consid.era.ble
variatiou, related. in pazt to differential Erccess to pr.rrobased. a.d. othertinputso
TAsLt 43
Me Fi PLA0E OMIER.SEP
A8E]Lclll,$.lllACNES, LASOIIR CROPS, EAR\TEST COi,ff'IN.{TS
A,B ,C .
1 Ka^nagoni husband. IO( to teincorporateil
- in settlemeatscheme)
z Ranada
co-w'ives andchild.ren,weeded. once
as above
as above,weed.ed. twice
maJ'ze 20 sacks( B a c r e s )
no fert i l lzerused., randompla.nting
for homeconsumption
crop d.=-ied up
3 Bomani
husband.; 7borrowed( to 'oe
incorporatedin scheme)
husband.; 4bor:ght from (ofSnahili 62)owner riith2 other men
COrlFpeag
(6 aores)
n4ize:
beanrs
naize
cassava
cashewe
f sacks
2{ sacks
none
poor plantsdiseased-, cropeaten straight
- from field..Only enoughrnaize grewn onal-l fiel-ds tol-ast 6 months.
[.[3LE 43 (cont)
Me Fi PL&A0E O}NiER,sEP AREA LA30iri.
137
T
Cn0PSj HARVEST COIII.IE{TS
A t 4B,c .
Kaerobeni husband 10bought frqro -a Giria:na;gover::ment1a^ld
as abover, with cashewshelp frornbusbancl
whole l9B4-85cashew cropsoLd. for4r500sh forhusba^nd.
(
5 Marikebuni husbandoays Svrhi 1i
' or"rrlel 2Jsb. ayear
6 Boma.:ri
1+ with sonrewife andcb.ildren;belped. by afemalecasuallabourerpaid. bgr iier
poor
pesticidebought bybusba^ncl; notso1d. tryrDecember
l- saclc a good. crop,so1d. for 2@sh;monq; tohusband.
33 sacks enough maizei;o last mostof the year
rg84*85cashew cropsold. for2 r 6 O 0 s h ' f c rhusband
najze'
cotton($ acre)
.1,.-**
sesame
ma].ze
cashews
cashews
casnewg
I'laja-ba,zitj'
husba.nd.r 2bought f:'om (ofSriairili o'*.-lt€r 62\r.;ith 2 others( sane plot as3r above)
husba.nd., I2zbought froma Giriarna;on governmentland
cul-tivated. byiracior,plarrted-
i;hemselvesand- lreed.ed.once b3r casuall-abourers; allpaid. by husbanid.
B l,tisufini husba^nd., 15bought froma Giriarna;Svrahili 1and"
E 9 Mapimo cleared. t6r 1+husbancl a.nd.his 2 brothers;Swahill 1and.
with husba.ndt sbrothers I
wives
maize
ges€une
poor
none
no fert i l izer
not weeded orha::rrested.because all 3wonenpregnant
cleared. t5r 1ber; Swallil lowner
10 Mapimo as above maize poor
tagrE 43 (cont)
lds Fi PLACE OI{NER,SHIP ARE& L.ASOUR
I38
CROPS{ HARVEST C0lrll{BITS
E 11 l{apino cleared- t6r I ashusbandr sbrother;Swabili Iand.
maize poor-
cottou DOOr
eni: ire'naizecrop eatea tyDecember
no pesticid.e;crop soJ-d. forlOOsh forbusba^ndt sbrother
above
tF. 12 - Marjjrebuni ctrltivated 2 with
uith (of 3) chi-Ldrenpe:missioor of andSwahi Ii, owner' husba.:rd.
worked alone
naize
cotton
cashews
cashe$s
1 sack no fertilizer;poor'harrresta.:cd depeaderrtupolr. shops
poor no pestioide;' sold. fo:r lOoshb5r husband.
1984-85 cropsold. for 4OOsh.by husbard
t
13 tlarikeb'rni sb.e bought Ifrora a,
Giriama;Swahili 1and.
G 14 ltlarjlebuni borrowed-fron Swahiliowner
b cultivated. by maize,'i;ractor forl2Oshr paid byher. .llso pa;id.l80sh to 3Giriama wonenand 1 rnarr. top lant ar td weed; - - - - -^further belped.
sesarlle
by mother (E)and sisters
10 sacks cor*-d.ungspread oa f ield:
' harvest pooledwith her rnother(n), r i .ving inthe samehousehold.
crop sold tolocal- shopsfor 2 j lsh; hermoney
8 15' Sosoni oleared withhusba^nd-;Swahili land.
4 cultivatedr as naiae JB sacks(of o ther f ie lds,LZ) r. i . th' the help of'a permanent rna.Le
tork"r, pai& o. cow-P€as none
lOosh a week t6rher husbandl margo€s nonesometi-mes her.lieed.ed" tr+ice,
co@nut Parm8
harrrested with oashewschildren" Treesplanted t6r husband.
all fleld.sspreed withcow-dr::lg
eaten 'o6r
catt le
low rainfall
pla^nted. ln 1983
TABTE 43 (cont)
Me El PLACIIE AREA LABOI]R
139
CROP$ SARVEST COMMHIITSOI.INEB,SHIP
H 16 Maoiroo
l7 ltlapirno
LB Bomani
bormwed Zfrom Swbhili.owller
she boggbt 3from a (.orGiriaroa; T*)Swahili owned
borrowed 4fron hermother whohad. earlierobtained.perrnission tocultivatefrorn theSwatrili oilner
she bougbtfrom aGiriana;Swahili or,nrecl
cleared bgrherl SwahiLiLand
cultivated. bytractor for4BOsh; 12Giria^oar ] merr.a^nd 5 woaenpaicl 3OO.sh, toweed.. Eusbandalso beLped.
"otti,ttted b'Ytractor forl?Oshi sarnecasu,allator:rers paicl3OOsh to weed..Other wor{<;especial1y onithe sesamecrop, Cone t6rhousehoLdmembers.
crrltivated- Whousebol4members
51 saclcs
llt saclcs
35 saclcs
eatiresesa$e cropso1d. for116oosn;mon€[r tohusba"nd.
for homeconsumptiom
a lot of thecrop eatenstrai-ght fromtb.e field..The totaI,household.rnaiae crop of2{} sacks issufficientfor homeconsumption.In 1984 40?sacks wereharrrested- a.rrd.th.e surplusgiven to herhusbaJd.r'sbrother.
mai-ze
sesalne
maize
sesa&e-
ca-ssalra
cashews
rnaize
19 Mapino oashews
pla^nied the cashewstreas herself
20 l'lapirno
*
I&
TABLE +3 (oont)
Me Et PLACE OHMERSIII? A3'EA LISOUR CROPS EARVES{I COIrtsIBllt$
E 2l Mapimo
22 illapimo
23 Mapimo
husband.cleared;Swa.hi1i1and
husband.cleared.;SwahiliLaad
husbandcIeared.lSt"rahiLi1a&d-
pl.anted byhusbarcl
plarried bryhusband
planted byb.usband.
cashews
oa,sneltg
ca.shews
L)BQ-$5cashew cropso1d. for3eJOOsh for.her hu.sbaltd.(a gpod yea.rbringe in?-Brooosn)
t 6
L
( - I 24 Bomani sbe 1+borrorvedfrom theSirahiLioliner
25, Kaembe:ri she bouglit', ltfrom a (or 5)Giriana;Slrrhil i Land
w-rth: ber maiae' J saclcschildren cassava
'rritb childres maiae 3 sa,cks
casherrg Door
Giriama rnan maizepaid. 35osh.tryr her toclear thefielil
{ saclcs26 ShauriMoyo
bomored l+from herfstberr sbr"other; onthe settlementsoheme
o1d trees;1984-85 oropso1d. og1 herfor c"2B?Eh
ha:rrest pooleclrritb herfathert s;sufficient tolast all year
J ,K
27 Kaembeni - husband.borrowed'from Strahil!oHner
cuJ-tivatecl\r tractorfor 48oshaad 5oerrnanentworkers (3SanyecoupLes)paiil c.{Oosh,each per nonthby tbeirhusband' co-wlves a,lgoworlced.
2_( o fB)
maize
sesane
good
TA8LE 43 (cont)
Me, El PLASlts OWNM,SHIP ANEA LASOTIB
141
CROPS H.mj/EsT co!0,IENTS
J ,K
28 Ntsanga,- husba^nd.; on .Imall sett lement (ol
scbeme 30)
co-flf-vesalone
co-ll'ivesand.perxnasegtlabourers
salze 3 sacks harvest kept:with another'co-rife atb.ousehold. inNtsa.nganali�
toial cropsuffi.cient\olast all Yeac;stiI1 ea"ti-ngthe 1984 crop
entire cropsoLd. t6rhushand. forc.1 r B:iQsh'
q a q t m F
naize gooA29 MtsoLo husband.bougbtoutrigbt
3(o f6)
(I
sesejtre good
{ -- ' '
L 3O Marikebuni sbe PaYsSwahiLiowner 120sha year
31 Shauri.T.oyo
32,, Sosoni
,, Sosonl
she oleared;on g0vernneJltLand. on thesettLenentschene
she bought 16fr.om aGiriana;Swahili lard'
she bought. 4frvm aGiriamalSwahil-i land
she paid aGiriana naaa.rrd woma.rlLOOsb tocultiqalie'and. weed.;also workedherselfwith sontsllife
3 Giriana.men pa^id. atotal of1110Osh toclear and.lreed
naize 10 sadcs(t acre)
sesaJne(* acre)
cottos' good(t acre)
rnaize, 6 sackg
ca,ssava
cashews
Oor+_rh:agspread onfield
crop sofd. bYher for 20oshi
crop sold bxrher for c"55osh
poor
1984-85 cropsoId. t6r herfor o.574er'.
cashe*ls
r42
Income
As Table 43 indicatee income frrom casb crop sales is usualLy taken W the
heed of the householdr regardless of land ormership or labour inputo Most
household hea.d.s are nen (aff tut one in Tab1e {2) a^nd- for mantrr of thero this is
their urajor sou.rce of income. Catile oldnership is geaerall-y resi;ricted- to nen
wbo a.1so have some forn of employment. fabLe 44 shows the occupation or
othenrise,of group rnenberst husbands. It should be noted. that rna,rSr women
rrith.out, busba.nds, especiai-J.y divorcees, live in e-tlend.ed. hoLsehold.s hea.ded. b3r
otb.er male kino
( - *
fasrrE 44
NO IIIJSB.AII-'
widowed. divorced.
iiLrsS.gJ{D El'iPT,orm
own seLf:business enpl-oyed
IiUSBAIID UNB'trT,0fm
other
r96B
L >16L+
no.of husba.nd-s = 49t nooof group mernbers (past and. oresent) = 55
Susbandst controL of inconre is not confined. to the proceeds from crop sales
alone, but ertend.s to all pr"oducts of theil r.ri.vest labour. In l-ocal Giriama
practice their control of incone is absoluter- thoug! bow they choose to
exercise tbis control and what portion of her income a rife may be allowed to
retain are subj6ct to v.ariation. Tbj.s is the most- important factor in
d.eterrnining what effect group *"*iu""t income has; most of thern are first and
foremost members of bouseholds which they d.o not head. [he group itself doee
not trave the power to d.eterrnine what happens to the incorne it prnvid.ee for its
memb.ers. Ind.eecl tbeir very rnenbership cf the group is typically conditional
upon the agreement a.nd support of their husband.s a.nd household heads. Thue the
( - -
143
formd.er of Somanirs adult ed.ucation clasa, who. ba.d. bis 2 wives join in L9?3.
When the bakery glas in operation he paid. for a.nothgi' householcl memberr his
recentl3r wid.owed motb.erts sister, to joia the group a^nd. when she d.ropped. out:
througb illness bis yor:agr thirdr wife took her pIace" the:rl in the wake
of tb.e 1!83 crisis, he pul1ed a3-1 3 wives out of active participation in the
gloupo
Ironically it r{as the sanre pattenr of househoLd. control w}r-iob. contributetl
to tbe denrise of Sonan:i Progressive Hents group. fhis was found.ed in 19?9 aad.
later adopted t6r Eototo lritb a fishj-ng project. whioh proved. soroewhat inappropriate.
to. local. coaditionso Very few members were experienoed. fisbe:xr_en a,r:d tbe rest
were- r:n1rilling to r:nd.ertake the ctifficult work of -fishing at nigbt far a,+ray
from horne on -i;he Tana river. Dissatisfied. ,iih ihis state of affairs members
bega^n taking group fr.:nds io invest ia indiv:d"ual noney-naicing gchemes. Among
then 'nras the adult classts formderr wb'r,ook mone6r to trade it rnaize" A.long
with others he end-ed. up in d.ebt to i;he grnup. tJnabLe to reach coll-eotive
d.ecisions a^nd. rmbappy with the smal-1 income lshich tbeir collective enterprise,
produced. the grbup, d^issolved into inactivity in 1!83. In effect. the rnen we1g
wrable to adapt their roles a.ncl (rnonetary) e:qpectations as indirridual household
bead.s to the ver:f aifferent conditions of a groupr a"nd. a^e a. result it failed.
l{omen are rather nore accustomed. to co-operation ( a,ad. being toLd w}lat to do), and
a,S second.ary earners of househoLcl income ar€ llpre readil-y sat'i.sfied. by the flriit-s
of collective enterprise, hovrever smal1 they may be.
UnLike the othel g?oups studied. in this report Soma^ni ltas a long history of
prrcvidin€ lts memberg witb incorne tb.rougb its enterprS.see. Tbe chairwonait
eqrripped. by h.er personal. stnrggle to 3ecure an& control an ind.ividuatr income
( see above) 1 played a.n importa.nt role in encoura4'ing her fellow rnembers to
follow suito Hlren the neclclace enterprise was r:nd.ertiay she pressed. produoore to
sav6 sone of their income by investlng lt in gpatgr arrd in some oaces she kept
( -
tM
mone5r d-ue to individuals r:ntil they had acottu'.t1ated. enougb to do so. fbis
policy met witb some successr a^nd. some rnembers began to invest in stoclc (see
Table 46 below) , af i;hough there ltas no guarantee that the,y would be allowed.
control of the incoure from iheir herds rather tha^n being o-o1iged. to speud. i-li
on household need.s whi.ch their husbancls oitgnt otherirj.se be exaes?ed. to provideo
Sigrlificantlyl wh.en money frpm necklace sales was brought by [ototol the
r.romen were encouraged to show it to iheir busba.ad.s before bring'ing it back to
tb.e chairvioura,nr a,n act of obeisaace to tb.e real stnrqbure of oontrol designetl
to forestall a.qy objections. One woman recalls that her husbaad. freely
slarrghtered. her goatsl kept together rrith bj.s orae herd., for household
consumption, although she salr notbi:eg wroag rit_h this.
Since 1!8O nost income provid.ed. by the group has eome from the bakerXr,
both from baking for individual profit and froin d.ivision of coilective group
profits, The relation between individ-ual a.:rd group baking a^nd. the effect this
has had upon the efficiency of the latter bas alrea$r been discussed.. Saking
rosters are not enoloyed. and there ,i.s consid.erable variation in the frequency
of baking from one member to another: one constrai:rt upon membersr participationr
is tbeir ability to buy the ingredients for individua.] baking and so make ihe
effort r+orthwhileo Tabl-e {J showe ind.ividual contributions to gqoup sales
between Ja.nuary 1984 a.nd August 1985. Gi,ren the fixed. ratio of group to
ind.ividua,l baking (Z:1), individ.ual. profi-ts are estirnated. at oae-sixth-of group
sa les (see Tab le 38 above) .
rABrE 45
1984Me tIB G$
1985}[B G$
TOTALIIB ffi.
6t.PROFIT
PER OVERI'IONTH -ALL
1 4
L4
1 . 92 . 9
6t jz
5oo6
2:f,,o
3000
8652
Boo6
TW
1334.335
5
I03 72.\Q conmittee
95.30 66.71 commlttee
TA3LE 4q (cont)
1984I{B GS
1985I'(B 6
TOT!LMB GS
ESf.PROFIT
PERi,IOt{fE
I
t45
OVffi,-.ATLMe
3, 12
4" 11
5 " 96 . 4
7. 10
8 0 7
9 " 810. 7lL. 10
12. g
1 3 . 7
14" 6
L ) . )
1 6 . 6q . B
1 B . 6
! 9 . 6
20. 32 ! . 2
2 2 . 423. 524" 525. 5
26. 427" 428. 529. 3
30. 3
31. 2
)2 . 2
3 3 . 3
34. 2
6228
5876,
4/ f ,o.
3198
!47652fr4336
418'
346'l
3972
3362,.
334022gB
29402A22
tg25
2310
t466-
1232
7go20r.]-789"&1832t245l-4?oLTl .2
9841050
1050
1050
820
530
gt2
4Bor7542Bg"
r393.go
720B5L
852
180
n+
996
492
840
9721J44
24D
3go
24o120
7].40.,oJ)o
&rq6w5869.n52frfr56.5o3? ,4319
4t52
3866i,
3340
29402022
2nB23ro2n622o4
2t34
2050
2o2g.4D
1832
1635
1470
L352
1104
1050
1050
1050
820
530
r.19'o,1059.33
to2r.66.101_5
9?8.31875
842.66
839.50
7 1 9 . 8 369z
644.33- - a a /) ro . oo
54949o487403385384.33367.33355.6634t.66338. z3
305.332 7 2 . p245225.33
184j . 7 5
t75]-75l-36"66
105
7 9 " 3 3EB.z7
?8. BgI12.77
69"87
t2584.26
93.2755.3769.2o8o.54
92.7778"42O r a ? 'O I o O Q
&.87
fr.3764"t6
64.0,
6]-.22
50,BO5 8 . 3 3
56.37
50. BB
45.415r.25
37.55
46
59.3387.50B7.F
45.15
52.F
i 9 .n52.96
5t;28
n .7548.91
43.75'42.13
4r.9735.9934.60
32.3127.83
27.45
24.9
24.35
20.r5.
t�9.25
rg.2l
1 8 . 3 B
u,7Bu.08t6.gt
r5"26L3.62
l .2 .25
IL.26
9"2Q8 . 7 5
8 . 7 5
8 " 7 5
6. B3
) " a )
3rd treas.
€3-COlEDo
eX-COmm.
ex-vice-cb.a;i:31o.
conmittee
4th treas.
committee'
\ i :Lce-sec.
committee
3
I
4
4
L
2
3
1
1
3.̂+
3
I
1
1 t '
1 ? .
9L+
710
1 3
10
B
6n{
6oo
6
o
6
6
7
56
6
5
46
+
32
2
32
t ---
t -
TasLE 45 (cont)
1984It[e Irts GS
TOT.[LI'{B G$
1985m GY-,
EST.PROFTT
t46
PER OVM.I,IONIE -!I,L
3 5 .36.37 .38.39.40.
41.
5754n420
420
z]-.o
24D
24D
31
1
1
1
1
1
575&oPO
PO240
2N
z].:o
9 5 .831 Al v
l u
7oNp
3,
3
1
1'tI
3t .94 4 .79
7O J .5O
? o 3 . 9
?o 3 .50
N 2
N 2
3 5 L . 7 5
secretarXr
chairvom=n
I
t -
MruI{ 23M.79 540.33 2BBB"12 481"35 74.20 24.0.6 sb
key: Me = memberl lrlS = nurnber of months j-n which. baked; GS = contribuiioa togroup salesi SI.PROEII = estinated individual orofit over the whole periocli
PF.R :iONfIi = estirnated. indivi.dual profit per month baked-; OIJERILL = estinated.individua.l prefit ove:r tbe whole period. (2O months).
Hhile the returns upon actual labor:r are reasonabler these figures indtcate
that over tj.me income gs:ined. from individt:aI baking is quite sma11 compared with
the sources of income arrailable to some wonen (sg,Ie of 2 boitl-es of rnilk per d.ag;
wouldr for exarnple, bring in l8osh a rnonth). From tiris point of view it is
significant that some group members have continued. rrorking fron time to time as
casua.l labor:rers at the sal-t works nea,r Congoni, where they ca.n earn 4O-8Osb ia.
a datr a.nd. up to 5OOsh j.n a fortnight. Among iU""u wonen a're members 6, Z.Z, Z7
and.- 35 in Table {l; 3 of thera divorcees. a.rrd. one whose husband is r:neropl-oyed'.
In general-1 however, woments opportr:nities for earning casb in Somanj. are
linited. and some are consid-ered. be6rond the pa.1e by the active core of Cbristian
(and lftrsllm) members: pa-id agricultural labour carries a hear4y stigma and meuize'
beer brewing ls proscribed. for them (the ohairwoman gave up beer brering a^nd
converted to Chr{.etianity a,fber od.ucating her son). Saking catt prcvid.e roucbi
need.ed. oash, for-the housebolcl. In this respect bousehoLd. heads stand. to benefit
r47
as smch as the women themselves. One woma.:l was pr:l]-ed. out of the group by
her uaemployed. husba^rrd. because she refused. to give ldn the proceed.s fron her'
baking. As-i* cond-ition for her possible return he d.emarid.ed. that group officials
come to discr:.ss the matter wi',h him; an offer which they rejected. ldale
contrrcl of womenr s income ca;n aqt as a {isincenij.ve io individr:a,1 baking. Ote
active member only bakes for the group because her husba^nd, an eatreprenellr
r,ritb a shop and- 2 grinding mach-ines, takes nost of tbe money which sb,€ eams.
Her youngei co-w'ife, rather more adept at- persuading hin to let b.er retain a
sbare of her income, continues to bake botb. for herself and the Soupc
Bakery profits _have
been diwided 3 times. Iur 1!BO members received l0Osh
eacho In 1982-83 they received varying sun6 accord.ing to th.e nrmber of times
they lwi baked.o in Mal i '198d-lOrOOOsh'tras divided oa the sane pr inciple r ,r i ih the
help of the fechnoseffe auditor. liembers were g'iven llsh- 50 cents for their
first baking anct'lLsi: 5O cents for each subsequeat one. The incornplete recorriti
which sunrives shows ibat: they received d.iffe:r'ing arnounts up to 3l6sh 40 cents -
tlris for the equivalent of 29 days' l-abour. TabLe 46 outlines tb.e uses to- which
interviewed. nembers put the money- fron ttris a.:rd earlier d.ivisio11.sd.
TA3LE 46
*Me YEAR AI.'IOUNT
RECEf,\TgDUSE
t -
1g80 1OO-sh spent on buying a yolmg cogt1985 sh.e hpd 4 cows a.nd wasa da6r for a tota"l of 6sh.husba^ndt s herl"
from her husba^nd; Wselling 2 bottLes of mi11c
The cows were kept in her'
H add.ed. to 4o0sh from her individua.l baking and boqlhta cow. By 1985 had. bred. J others a.nd was seI1ing. 3-4bottLes of milk a datr for Jsh each. Cowe kept i:r herhusband.t s herd; a herrisboy paid 220sh a nronth b3rherself, her husba;ndr a^nd her daugbterl e.
lgSo lOOsh
148
(
TABLE 45 (cont)
Me YeAn AUOUNf USE
B 1982-83 2fish. spent on llood at-home.
g 1982-83 250ph bought 2 goats. 3y 1985 'nat 6, kept for slaughter.
( - .J 1982-83 SOsh bougbt a yo,.rng goatr r+nich died-.
A l-9B4 350sh spent orr her sonrs second.ar5r school fees.
ID. L984 ?Osh spent on daily bouseholcl needso
n' L9B4 3OOsb bor:gbt 1 acre of cashews fron a Giriama for 2OOsh;th,e oroceed.s from the crop are taken b;r her h.usband.
( --- Renrain:ine l-OOsh soent on food.
H l_9B4 3OO+sh h.elped. husband. pay second.ary school fees for theirSOIIo
1 1984 lrrcr bought 3 gpats which she t..ate:r so1d"
J 1984 rl or. bougbt clothes for herself a.nd. her chil-dren'o
x l&ters refer back to Table 43
Wornenr s income tend.s to be invested. in ibe househol-dr either voiwttarily
oi in accordance with the rishes of the househoLd head. When it is not
transferred. directly to the householcl but invested. ln indlvid.ual enterprises
then it is 15Jce1y that the profiis from these rs"iLL be used. to the genera"l
benefit of the householcl - in some cases to the particulac benefit of the
household. head.: the net effect being mucb the sarne. l{onent s acocss to incone
does not necessarily cha^nge their status or increase their bargainingbpowor
within the houeehold: these tend. to be subject to other, eristlngy
considera.tions. Tiris ca.n be seen in the case of the }d treasurert
( - ' .
r49
E ln Tables 43 a.nd {6, one of the nost active a,nd. enterprising o.f group
nembele. Apart from those given a;bove hel sourcee of income iaclude the
sale of water (lringing in sone ?Osh a dry) brought from another village
to her household. by her soas ( stil-l at primary school) using'2 d.onkenrs
ouaed iry b.er husband.. In 19?8, with tbe consent of trer husband., she bought
2 fieLd.s of cashewnut trees for a, total of Lr206-sh. Eer busbaad. contlnued. to
tad<e the proceeds from the sale of cashews from these field.s a^nd one other
wb.icb she had. cleared herself some years before. fn I9B5r horrever, he
d.ecidecl that she coulA benceforth keep tJre rnoney herseLf. Els reason for
d.oing this was to make his.Fanagement of this and anotb,er wifers householat
easier: instead of taking tb.e noe€fir a^nd tben harring to give nost of it baclc
'bo his ',iife for various household etrDensesr it nade sense to let her'd.o 'Lb.e
bud.geting berself. Enployed on and off as a nasonr owning a herd of cattle
and. rnanaging aJ1 agricultural eaterprise sustaj:red. by bousehold membersr
-incone and labou= tbatr met all of their basio subsistence reqrrirements;
sufficient income was l-eft for hiin to be able to oorafortabl-y reLinquish some
oi ttis e,ontrolo Bhis was not a consequence of his wifers income or group
membershS.pl but tbe outoome of a more genera"l: understanding bettireen tbem ini
a situation in which there was compar:'ativeLy little pressure upon the
househoLcl.
One of the factors underlyins this uld.erstaltding aJId their entrepreneuriail
enthusiasm was shared membership of one of the Local Pentecostal churches:
Ptr'A, Pentecostal EVa.ng€lica1 FeLlowship-in Afrj.oa. They were both lea'ding
'members of the looal congregatioal sta.nda;rd. bea,rers of rigbteousness in the
commr:nityo The attitude tbls fosters ie illustrated. in the folloning inoiilento-
Ore d.ay in 1985 the ex-treasurert s yowrger br.other anrnor:nced tb her that he
had made 3lOOOsh fr.orn his work a,a a, builder a.nd sbe offered. to take 2rOOOsh bf '
this and buy cattLe for hln ae a sensible ievestment. lhrch to her 'llsgust,
| - " *
150-
bowever, he spen',, all of i;he money in 3 dayg in bt5flng beer and. aistributing'
g-rfts to his friend.s; anr actior, consisteat ldth the redistributional: ethoe of
bouseboLd economilr and sharply at odds r,ritb her protestant ethlo. flie loca1
firndamen'i;alist churches (fm't, PAG - tbe Pentecostal Assemblies of Cod,
Saptist and Seventh, Dary Ad.ventist) encoura€e nembers to pay i;heir social dueg
througb the church, and. to this end ask then to surrender lO$ of aL1 iheir
income. Tbus ncost of the active members of the womenr's group give portions of
their ipdi-1ridual incone to the churches tbey belong tor tb.ough bow strictlg
they a.dhere to the nrLe is d.ifficult to sayo Cburch merobership alone is not
sufficieat to foster the restrtrcturiag of gender reLations and. household-
obligationel an& nost ghristi.ans remain closely tied- to traditional- praotice.
Thr-rs the situation of the other member shot':r in TabLe 45' (f) wiro bad no control
of her casheg incone: hgc husbard, othe*rj-se 'unenpiotrred., rras the PAG pador
in Mapiroo
Tbe sonenr s group itseLf bas cone increa,sing!-y under the control of women
whose furnestio circumstances permj.t tbem a degree of freed-om nc'ti enjoyed- by
the nrajority. Againl thls is not so nuch a conseguence of group membership
as the reve?se! although menbershi:p does prcvide such'women lrith opportunities
for lea.dership a^nd entrepreneujrial- acti\rittr nore ertensive t?ra.rt those available
to theu at home. The new rr,r:€ESr:a€r, no; one of the rnost' active of group
members, is the r,ri'fe of a Irhrslim oonvertr a shop and grinding-machine owner
in Boma^ni. the secretarlt ie the daughter of her predecessor a.nd a young
divorcee with a re$rlar sourc€ of j.ncone from her nurserXr a:ld adult education
teachj.ng-in tbe villageo the ohairrroo?ur; :nea.nwhile, is now the hea.cl of her
own houglbold a^nd. enjo,ys the supporb of .her working son: the suoceseful
o.Jtcorne of a long battle aga;inst the repressive controls of .household econorl$o
151
Notee
' L. No rritten accounts su.rv-ive fron tlr-is period. and.1 while agreein€ upoa
1 the general. outliae, group members interrriered. in 1985 gave wiclelyd-iffering accorrnts of parbicular activitiesr their chronologr and. the'-sluls of none6r involved. l{here such disa4reemeats arise th.e accor.urtgiven by the groupf s first secretary a,nd adr:-lt ed.ucation teacber isfo11owed."
I 2. See. lforeen Clark, Ed.ucation for development a.nd the nr41 womg13r YoI.II (New Torkr Worf fetra;ining a.nd its inmedia-,,e effects.
3. fiiis is-Panga^ni wornenrs gToup, nea.r Kaloleni. Personal communica.tion: 1'rorn Candace Nelsoa (fgg:) o .
(4. Info::nation on the recent d.evelopmeat of tb.e botel wa^s provided by Peter
Eckart (lgg5).
( ' - -
153
INCOIM GN'IERATION AI{D ITS; EflT'ECTS
HOW TO GS{ERATE INCOI'IE
In order to establish major j-ncome-generating enterprises vromenr s gloups
rely heavily upon funding and other forms of assistam,ce d.ispensed t6r erternal
agencies and. they invest considerable resources in sectrring suoh support"
lfithout it they calrnot hope to free themseLves from the various constraints
vrbicb opera,te upon themo These constra;ints stem from both the- character of
Iooa"L household eoolo;qf (subject to various forms a.nc[ degrees of capital'
penetration) a.ncl the constitution of wonoenrs groups aB registered agents of,
the state. The state plays an arnbivalent role in this process: on, the one
ha.nd it places a nxnber of d.ema.nd.s upon g?oups and the households to whioh their
members beJ-ong; on the other j-t offers thern a. cha.nce to escape these d.emancls by'
distributing ftrncLs to groups and W provid.ing conlacts rritb NGOJ a.nd so access
to the largpr resources at these agencieJ d'isposaI.
Woment s groups thernsefves have acoess to the Laborrr of iheir memberg- a,ncl
cash provid.ed. by them or their 66ussh6!d.s. fthe amount of income which tbege
householcls (a;1it women as household. membem) are prepared. to invest in groups is
conditiongd W the sun of 'demand.s rrpon them, their ability to meet theser - aJIA
the retu:ra thqp ca^n expect from this as opposecl to other investmentso Investment
in a group typically prcmises no more than a long-term returnr espeoiall'y when
subscriptione are spent of fund-raising events a^nd on enterbaining visitors" As
a resl1t group subsoriptions are usua^LIy srnalJ" - smalLer tha,n the sr:ms invested
in different kincls of individual. savlng orgsised bf groups - artd' often difficult
for members to susta|no Labour investments a,re subjeot to a similar set of
constralnts, as is the time which membere are prepared- to d.evote to group
meetlngon Groups d.o not possess tho power'to sepapate members frprn thelr
L54
househ.oLds or enforce partloipation. Untlsr these oircumstances it is not
easSr for glroups lroiklng alone to establlsh rriable enterprisee.
NonetheJ-esse encouraged. b'y the government to help themseLveg befo:ee
soliciting he1-p from outsi-de, young g?oupe tlo experiment r,rith a wicle range
of enterlprises. The comrnoneet of these is colleotive cultivation Th:is form
of enterprise receives explicit etate support in the form of advioe a.nrlr in
the Jase of sorne favoured. cash oropsr free seed.l both d.ispensed. t6r governroent
agric.rrltural ertension officerso As such it is an irnportant aspecft of womeatg
groupFr appropriation as locaL agents of the sta,te, d.isseminating agricultlra{l-
techniqueg a.nd. policies in parts of the cornmunity where other agentsr except
the prinrar-jr school-s1 rareLy r-eacho Howeve:er the support given is genera3-Iy'
insufficient to turn tb.ese enterprises int-o lucra,tive money-spinnerso l{arqr
groups canno.t afforcl tbe purchased. inputs which they are advisecl to use a:rd
cultivation remarins a. rislcy businesso. Labou.r inputs are restrictetL W the
constraints aLready outlinede a:rd cultivation of colleotive fields suffers
from competition with membergr household- a€nic'tt1tural, enterprises being'unden-
taken at tb.e same time. Perhaps more importarrt I the acreages und.er coLlective
cultivation,axe typically smaL11 often l-ess th.an the area worked. by individual.
households. The government d-oes not nrLe intet:vene to make plots availablet
and. groups have to borrpw or rent fields. Such land is not always easln to
obtain or hold on too The net effect of these constraints.is tbat groupg reap
Little reward from their collective fields. From this point of vlew it is
interesting to compare Amkenita agrj.cuLtural- enterprise before a^nd after
receiving tlorld Vision-supporto Even after this intervention the grouprg a^nrutal
inoome frpn cultivation remained smalL oompared. with the fruits of ertensive'
investment in palmsr ol1 a scale nore appropriate to the r'equlrements of
capitalist enterprlseo
L55
Tlle groups stud.ied. in this reporb also erperimented. rrith other forms of
enterprtse. Bomani meurbers sold'their collective agrlc'ultura1 Ltabor:r to
looal household.sr a temporary e:rped-ient, which reproduced. existing relations
of production and gendero Mkw'iro memberg producecl corrie necklaces and.
failed- to find. a market which d.id. not oven-erploit their labour. Amkeni
members triecl selling chapatL in en area- where there waa scant d.ema^nd.
Agrriraye members tur':led. to the prod.uction a^nd roarketing of ma^tsuti" In rnanXr
wa8rs this was the rnost .pronrising of theeqenterprises, b'ecause the group
a.d.optecL the role of a niclcllernan in selLitrg a. protlucrlt, for which there was (afi.d.
i") oonsid-erable dema^:rdo However, furtber d.evel-opment of this enterprise.
wouJ.d. have required possession of transporb and. storagt facilities, enabling
the group to br4y makuti when and where the prioe rva,s low and. sell thern when
a&d. where it rvas hi&. This in tr-rrn wouLd require a"rr outlay of capital l*rich
the group d-oes not posseets. Like the other enterprises mentioned here it was
cliscontinued. in favour of other prcjects.
llone of these smal-I enterprises, except aguirayers, was lilcely to
attrac;b govenrnent supporto Each grorrp ha,cL, however, attractecl official
attention through their self-help and fund-ra^ising efforts" In the case of
the 3 older groups this was not difficuLtr each was the first group to be
formetl in. its respeotive area, wtrile onel Amkeni, wa,s forrned. d.irectLy at
offioia.l instigationo The same 3 have. slnce recelved goverlaent grantsi
Amkeni for a; welfare proiest, Bomani for a.n income-generatlng pr.ojec# a:rd.
Mklriro for a conbinatlon qf bothb Amkeni a.nd Bomani received. these gllalrtrt
after they had- obtainetl the support of N@s3 while Boma.nil ltke Aewtlayer
wa's flret intrccluoecl to lts N@-al1yr Tototoz through,offLola]. contastso
ldost gra^ntg made by the government a^nd. tbe Mlni'stqy of 6\.rlture a^nd. Soclal
Servlceg ln particular ar6 compara.tlvelp snallt the orr:rent no:m ls lOrOOOah,
r56
although 'there are some notabl-e exoeptions of whicli. Ankerd i's one.' Groups
can raise similar s1trnE, sometimes morer bry hosting hararnbees w'lth official
support: at suoh eventB the larger contributions tencl to be nade b5r other
womenr s grcups ancl N@s. [']rese sufiIs are often i:rsufficient to estabLis]t the
prrcjeote lrhicb. groupo have in rnind; anct this !s where, the N@s come into
their omwn" I
The NGgs have mucL more to offer-than the capitaL which larger enterprises
requireo In the case of N@s operating r+ithin Kergra, they play a^n aqtlve roLe
in pLa.nning and advising or a,ssisting woment s groups ln the opera'tion of their
enteqprises. Sucb internrentions are necessarTr because the d.evelopment of these
enterprises frequentl-y represents a- radica.l departure from the prevailing
conditions of housebold.eoonomy, althougb tbe inte:rrentions which are made'
are not always apprrcpriate to these oonditions" Collective womenrs onterprises
bave no for:3&atio3 in th-e historical economy of the Kenyan coastr and woments
gsoups themselves have been'formed'.ancl organised on the model provid'ed' W the
ggvernnentrs womenls group prog?amme. I{ornenf's. primary experience is in- ntnning;
or provicling the Labour for enterprises und.ertaken t6r or for the housshold"
Even rqhere these enterprises a,re their or+rl they general-Iy have littJ-e' control
over what happens to the products of their labor.m: if the product is not takenr
from thesl, then almost certair0y they wilL be obliged to invest it in the
houseboltlo Th-ls experlenoe togethe:r witl! its coroll4ryr the genenally Iow
leveI of womenrs educatione Leavee the majorLty of wonenls group members
i3-3--prepareil to :rur what: a"re in, effeot smalI-soaLe capitalist enterprlges. llbe
managprial a^nd technical requirements of theee enterprises preeent repeated
diffislrlties. As a consequenoe groups often com6-r:nder the aontlrql of members
who arg better equipped. for the task: thig is a posltlve outcome in terms of
the logio of enterpr-Ise developmeyrt, but one whlch sltg uneasiJ-y with
oolleotive an6 partlolpatory ideologr. Even so1 oircumsartbed. by householcl
t57
economy and. threatened. t6r other capitalist interestsr enterprd.see n:n tho
continua.L risk of failrrre; a situation from wbich they ca.tc-onlXr' bope to be
resoued t6r NGOs.
fhe IIGOs concerned diffbr r.rid-e3-y= in their approaches a,rrat in some cases
tb-is resuLts j-n friction between then, though this is rarely expressed operrly.
Those ba,sed- in llair.obi tend. to remain at some dista.nce.from the groups wtr-ich
they heLp. In the case of Amkeni this alLowed t?re gnoup to'appropriate the
set:\rj-ce6 of Worlcl Visionts sta^ff a^nd. d.ivert the fr:.nds they managecl towar"cle.
group enterlpr.ises. Thid has been much. to the benefit of these enterprisest
though not exactly what l{or}d Vision b.ad in mintl. In Boma^ni Te6]inosertre'
introd.ucecl a corirplex set of accounts and pressed. for other reforms in tb.e
the bakery enterprise. A rather'different approach is offered-
l,Iombasa-based. l{@ lrith its ovrn 5-ntegrated. womenr s group
progranune in Coast. Province" Fron Tototots point of view both of these
intenrentions have been inappropriatei Arnken! was spoifitd W t{orlcl Vision
fund.inge Leaving d-ecision-rnaking-concentrated. in the hands of the cha-iruoma.:rr
And while Tototo agreed. on the need- for reform in Somanir it ttisagreed. with
technocratio natr:re of Technose::vets input and laten sent- out its olwr
rroh.:nteer to work more olosely r.rith the group. ThesF judgements are rootetl in
Tototots participatory methodolory artd long erperience of'wor{<ing with
womenrs groups on the coastl the frults of ertenbecl co-opera,tion with a U.So
orga^nisationl Wor1c[ Eduoation Inc. Study of Eototo-afflliated groups
indicates, however, that, the suooess of its methotl is attrd.butable not so
muoh to nonformal eclucation itseLf as to the close ard. repeated contast
between its staff a.nc[ the groups. ftre groups themselves tenaL to be prlmarlJ-y
interestect in the capitaL whlch fototo ca:rr secure for thern from intenxational
NGOs, though they also weloome Tototors advlce and. support. fhe case-studles
ma^rragement
by fototoe
o f
a,
158
sbow that tluis eupprt doee not tra,nslate automatioall.y into entrepreneurial
succesn. Tototor's resoupceE antl smal] sta^ff ars now stretchetl over more ttralr.
@ groups, while tbe staff themselvee have not been trainecl in.the kincl of
skills which enterprd.ses require. Tototo and. similar agenclee arer- howev.er;
in a muoh better position tha,n othen organisationE to take.effeotive.action;
and Tototo llas al-rea.fur respond-ed. to this and. other recent evah:e.tion6 W
restl:ucturing its progrsrrme' of work with groups a.nct btrr accepting the' services
of, a business advisor employed. t6r l{orlcl ftluca,tion. ta train and. clisc.:ss possib!.e,
action with lts fielcl staffo
fltre case-str:dies indicate that enterlpr5.ses are mor6 likely to be successful'
if they az'e chosen with respeot to loca1 economic conditions. In shorb',
enterprises r+hich reproduce existing processes of indigenous capital accumulation
prornise better resultso llarrdicraft productionl vrid.ely pronotecl as an appropriate
r:nd.er*'aking for womenng groupsr d.oes not.faLl into this categoqf. .Two
of the
groups studiect, Mkw'iro ancl tsoroa,nil have prcduced- ha^nd.icrafts for [ototors shop,,
in Momlie,sauo In both cases this pr.ovid.ecl women with a,n important short-term
source of incomel sometimes more thalr they cterived. fron other errterprises blrh
rmrch less over tine tha^n a f.iving montifly wage. Producers in Mkr'riro po'cketed.
(and spent on theiil householcls) most of the income which thie brought tb.em. In,
Bomanl a. portion of the income tras transferred. to ths greup and constitutecl a.:r
iraportarrt lnput toward.s oonstnrstion of tb,e firsb bakerXr buiLcting"; Ini botb'
ldkwiro and. 3orna.nl, the ltand.icrafbs prod.uced. were based. upon eristing: forme of,
ha^nd.iora.fb. procluotion unalertaken by tndlvicluatrs. Neither was a major Looal
industry. [buee when tbeir ord.ers w@e o'urbalIed t4r Tototol botb ra.n into
probLems. One rea,son Tototo stopped. these ordere was becausa the women- were
prod.ucing mloh mor€ tha.n they ooultl seLl: 6 yeara later BomanJ. necklaoeo are
sti$ gtoolcpLLed ln Tototot's storer waiting for a buyero In the a.bsenoe of
L59
alternatLus narksts that aouLd a,bsorb the noLune of produotlorr thenr litt was
inevitable.'tha.t th.ese enterprises sboulcl griDit to: a halt.. feither was
orga,nlsed a,E a, colleotive enterprise (in nhfch, for erarnpXe; the group
wouLcl purchaae bosio naterials)l they: f\:nctionod. ingUead. as ertensions of
honoe pr.otluotione puttiag pr.oducers at the merosr of a.rr unreU:able ma,r{certo
I{asdicraft production ditt not get off the grouncl at all for Agwiraye
because the form of production which iototo tried. to introduce had no basis
in loca1 econorny. Elterprises which are new to a cornmunityr particrrlarly
tbose which are ca,pitqfL intensivel are difficu.lt for groups to operate
suocessfully. First, because they lie.far outsiale the experience of group
mernbers, who tbus require, conti:rued inputs of advice from erterrra,l a,gencioso
Th-is problem is magnifiecl in the case of enterprises employing compler
technical processes incLu.ding. machiner?:r r.hioh may also be diffioult for
groups to maintain or expantl without further injections of oapital frorn tb'e
outside. Third, such entefprisee are characteristicalltrr bor:nd.ed W officiaL
oontrels (inclu.ding: state-reguJ-ated. pricing of their raw material-s a^nd. produots)
and, especially wbere they employ coLiestive Labour, it nay be clifficrrLt fon
them to compete with rivals in the private sesto:ri Ag a result it is not eaq;''
for them to remain eoonomica-lly viable. Bomanits bakery has been afflicted try
al-L of these pr$b1ems. suen though it was the first to opera,te in the !'lalindf
a*.a, it subsequently losb, rnarsr of its markets to competltors from Kilifl ard
f\:rther afielcl ancl now has 1itt1e hope of rnatchi'ng the performa,nce of a bakerXr
recently esta,bllshed ln Mallndt town ltseLfi Somanirs nlra.l l-ocatiorad'oes not
belp in thls reepeoto Mknfu"ors ferrXr serrioe is rather better pLaced a^ncl in
mar{r wa{rs very appropriate to looaL cond.itions; It hast houever, be9:r
diffiouLt for the group to rr.rn d.thout the intenrentiong of men (ae well ae
NGO') and has yet to be ertrloatecl fron tb,e close embraoe of traditional
Lfi'
relations of'prod.uotionr and- gendero '
It fs inter€stLng t9 note that the groutrl
ma.de as mroh l.f not more from the enterprisa when they rented it out to sorneong:
elss. This. prcvicled.e oor€ev€f,1 a fixed ancl reguS-ac'incomer stra:ightforward.
to record alcL not so easil3r misapprroprlated. G,ven the various @nstraints
v&ich operate. upon coLleotive enterpriseg sucb m:inima"l involvement in their
d.ay to ctay rurrning: p?eseats a solutiou, to nran3r of their problemso [lte
replacement of (unpaid) colLeotive Labour t6r forma3- wage labour is a,nothe:e
means by which grea.ter effioiercgr rnisht be achiered.l 48 BomaJd cliscovered'
wben they enployeel a schoolboy in their botelo
Ttre simpl'est way to avoid seare of these constraints is to choo8e the right
enterprise, in the first p3-a,ce. flie easiest enterprises for groups to ]run and.
mainta i : t 'a , rearguabl l r thosewhiobreproduceer is t ingprocess€sofcapi ta l
accunqlation in the 1ocatr commr:nittrf. As such their viabjl-ity, ts prtve:rr the
knowleclge, needed. to nrn therro i's rea.dily arra^iLab1e1 a,nd theg requi,re less
support fron erberrral agenof;eq .Ankerriits specru-acular acq:rmllatiom of assets in
pa1i1s atd i:ts exparsion irrto other enterprises at the expense of inctivid-tral
entrepreneunn, outsmarting lforLd Vision i3l the processr, provides a striJcing
illustratior1 of the ad.va.ntages of this stratagem. The conditfous of capitatr
aoo1;sru1ation: varSr from pltace to plaee: investmeat ir. palms would not; for
exanpXel be. as appropria,te_ in Lianj..l wbere this forrn of capita.l accunulation
has now beenrdisplaced. lgri"ayets recent d.ecision to bu-il-ct a bouse with rooms
to Let is muoh rror€, in tr.r:m wlth Local- devel-opmentsr which have brcught large
nr:mbers of migrant worlters ltrto the areao RentaL houses are not difficult to
bulld, reqrrire re1atlv€ly 11ttLe rna*tntenancer do r:ot utilize coLleotlve
labour a4d. provid.e a regt1.lar inoome. B3r eetabLlshiug sucb enterprises woments
groups are rnuoh mor€ likely tha,n othe::wlse'to fr:LfiL1 their promise as
corproate entrePrensultsc
161
ECONOMIC MFECTS
In so fa.:r a"s tbey are able to escape the oonstraints of houireb.olcl
( economy groups antl thei.r enterprises become mrbject to the logLg of
' capitalist d.evelopment a.nd acbl in effec# t &a agents of economic
differentiation. They do this in a number of .ways. Rlrst; by shedcting' or
t -' exol:ding members whose domestio circumstances a,r€ s:troh that they find it.
difficult to sustain group roeNrobersbip and tb.e tlena.ntLs upon cash-, ancL lal]ou:r
whiab it entaiLso fhis particu3-arly: affects divorcaes with yodng 'chilclren.
(' In the urainla.:ecl comuritieg where viriLocal marr{'age' is the rrr}e the
residential- mobility of women trporr, divorce or remarriage adcls a furtb.er
oonstrariut upon their abili:ty to sustain membership. Initiaa recn:titment(
tend-s to cover a broad spectnurl to -the exclusion of young r:ama:ried. womenl
the ofd and infirml those who are sceptical of group success or whose
husba,nd.s ane resista.nt to them joiningr ancl foreigners to the commu:dtyrI
As a resglt marry womeg in the Least; fortr:nate categories rema:ir outsicle of,
gsoups;
Seconcl1y, groups whj.cl! are lrodcing: free of householcl econonsf tend to
come increasingly under the'contr.ol of rnembers wbose backgrround ,rri ao*""tio
ciro-unstanceg rnake them better equippect to n:rr their enterpr5'sesi- rrn o-ther'
words their d-evelopment favours women vrllo already occutrXli a rel-ativeltrr fortunate
positioa in their tlousehoLds ancl/or the conror:nity. This inolu'des women who a,re
eduoated and. thue able to keep group reoords. It aLso lnolrrdes women who inr
one vrada or another have suooeeded in: eecaplng: some of the restrlotlve
oonditlons nornalllr affeotlng thei'r gender.' The chair:trornen of Agrriraye,
Ankenl a3d Boma^nl' - aLl $rithr grown ctril.dren to supporb then and. free fron tbe
control,of thelr (fn .Z oases fo:mer) hugbands" Group membership prorrid-es such
uomen gdth a.n opportuntty to €xerolse ard further d.eveLop thelr entrepreneurlal"
L62
talentsl ancl theSr' "t".1JJce136 to beaeflt from.thel-r positi'on much more
than thelr oolleaguee" I:r some case6 they magr do so i3.J-fclt1trr; tlr
rnisappropr:iatiJrg f\rads; a^nd. while d.aruag:irxg to group enterprJises ltu tlls.
short-term thie erpeqlenoe may eventrral-Iy ha.ve a positive effecfi lr{)onr_ thei;n,
orga.nisatior; as tlle history of, Bomani showsl
Thirdlyr where enterprises a^re succesgful they sril-l inerritablg pJ-ay a
Partr however sma111 in transforming the structuree of housebolcl economg:
whioh tb,re:lten to appropriate them in tur:u The d-evelopment of Amkerrire
enterpriseer promoting a p_roc€ss of differentiation which f,avor:rs only some
women and their householdsr points olearly to thls possibility.i- .trlthougth
the benefits of tbis process are not equally feltr it raigJit be noted. that
certain types of capitalist- d.evelopnent do not necessartly result in a
wofiiening of wornenrs status: in ma4r waysthey ma6; be considered. better off.
when householcL ecorrcny f;s destroyecl, if not wh€rr, ft is prese:rred. in
emascuLatecl form as a, reserve of cheap labou:r'i; l,leanrihile tlte role of womep!,s
groups as agents of capital-ist d.evelopment, givee sone lromeu: a ohance. to
partioipate, in thf;s proc€46 on.: favourable ter"msl a chance whtch tbey rai4{r
otherrri'se not llavdo'
In generale thoughr groups and. thelr enterp:ri'ses remain severeJ-y
constrained by housebola eoononqr. Eew succeed. in generatiag substa.ntia.l
profits a^nd. few provicle thelr member$ lr'ltb lncono on: a reguTa"r basfs. I{hen.
they cto the amounts are ustrally so snal,l- as to comprJ.se only a fraqH.on of a
livtng lra€er al.though: thls should not be taken aa a, measun€ of their valua
to the women oonoer.ned. l{llat'happens to thl's lncome ancL what effeot it ha^a
are agaJ.n d.etermined W tlte stnrotur€ of,'household. eoonongro Woment.s inooroe
Ls usua,l1y treated. as income for the household., whether or not it le
approprlated W the householtl head or ilhetherl irrdeed., the woma.:rr heads hea3
163
oror househol-d. As suoh lts \raLue is not negllgible but ltt foms alx
important supplened to. otber sounoes of inoone available to womear in
some instaloes clisplaclng tbm. In some cases it magq di'splaoe, the income
pltovicted' bf a'husband.g orr to put it. a.notb.er wagr., rouxd, mailr red.uc6 the
husbarxdts obligation to contribut€ flom big orcr pockote thue lea1ring him
oilh more inoome at his tlisposat. -'Wlter:r
income iB hand.ed. over or otherr,rise
fincls its way back to husband-s t]iere is no gua,ra,ntee th.at wornen lri1l play a
roLe. iq tletemining how it is iavested., or whether it wiLX be invqsted. ln:
the househoLcl at allo Contrargr-to the naive assr:mptions-of inoome
generation theory (it it can be spoken of as such), womentis- poss€ssibrt of
income d-oee not arrtomatical-3-1r improv.e thei:r status or barga.irdngtpo.fler.
r'rithin tlre tlousehold; This is more 1iJcely to o-ccu:c' if at aI1' where
overaLL bousehoLcl inooroe is aJ-readtrr higb and sufficient to cover basio need.s.
The' smalil arnou4ts of incorne provid.ed b'y l.romen- from their grcuF errberprises
are r:nlilrely to tip the bataace. Againl this fav6.to* those who are a^lreaftr
more fortr:nate *nT average. In other respecbe the income which tniclcles
dol.m through woment's groups helps to insulate householct econorny frorn the'
pressurss aoting upon it frtm the outsid.eo; h"onical\r the women most in,
need. o.f thi* inoome, those w:ith young children and w'ithout husba.ledls, a.re
the ones whor partly because they have littJ.e monetrr in: the first pla.ce,
find lt difficult to remain in wonent's groupsd
SOCIIL ffiFECT$
'lfhis reporb has not examined. welfare projects in d.eta.ilr tb.e oonditiong
of -their establishnent are similar to i.ncome-generatlng pr.o jeots a.nd. their
immed.late effects ar€ generally obvious and not iliffiqrlt to evaluate. Eopes
hale also been ra^ised.r howevory - that womentrc group membership aJd income-
genera'ting efforte nay foster moro general. soolaJ. a^ncl welfa,:re benefLts. O:rc
L64
najor intereet in this regard. has their possible effest upolt attttudeB aud.:
beh.avlour. relating: to fertiliffr lnoludireg receptivltfg to famtly pla^nnLng.
This topLo is treated. at some lengtb here both beoaugo it formed. a.:rr importanlt
corntrrcnent of ear.Lier phases of this stud5r and because the resultirrg'fildings
have an eoonomic erplanation; relatilrg tlirectly'to the characts:s'oE hor:seholtl
e@nomsro
Population: gowth: and the,need for fani-l-y pla.nning are. subf,esU-s of'major
canoern i:r KerSya" In L986 Keqra has an estinated. poprrlabibn of over' 21
uril-I.iorc peopl-e and a,n, estiroated a.nrruiil grorrth rato of 3.8S.1 Variorrs measrunes
are in hand. to limlt population grorth: in August, 19gI the Presid.stdi
d.eclared. that" parents shorrld Limit themseLves to 4 children.- wometh bearingr 5
or more children were hencefortb. to be d.enied. materrritSt Ieave.z The 1p8{
Kerqra Contraceptive Prevalence Su:rre5r showed that whil-e b$ of women lrere
.aware_of contraceptive user only 29/" han' ever uEgA thero: fig:r:ree whicb" wett€
?.fou:rd. to be lower arnon'g th.e Mijikend.a peoples of Kerqrats.coast.J Inr response
to this situation the' gover?merdi has annorlrroed that it lr:iIl spend BOOi miLLiorr,
sh orr faniLlf planning progtarnmes ovel the nert' 4 yeare.4 Womenf's gtoupg
have been iclentified. as one possible, vehic].e for gettiag tbis nessag€ €lorroEoe
To thig encl theSr arle occasiona,lly visited by govemnent ertension offlcers
andr in exceptionaL .casesn have.beoome the focus for -f*ify
planning cl-iniceo
One Tototo-spon€orecL group, Idakiwoe holcLs monthJ-tr1 cl-irrics supported. b6p GI$PA
(tne Centne for Development and. Poprrl.ation Activities, based. in;llashS-ngton
D.C.) end the, Minlstry of Eealth: in L985 6 group memberer atl of then aged
between 2l and, Jg, were reported. to bs u.sing famlLy pLannirg-(ttrere were. 38
iottve. members ln the grorrp).5 In generall bowever; reoeptivlty to farntLy
planning ie lowo A su:rrey of 13 Tototo-affillatecl woments groups conducted. W
l{orLd Ed.ucatioir in 1983 showed. that contracept!.ve uste t6r thelr members was tnuolh
Lower than the national'. avera€sr whLle olose +o 9ofr knen about; some form of
L65
birtb controll Legs thaa i-llt{rc iIlrai. ever r:sed contraception a.nd. lesg tha;n 6fi
w9!6: Crrment userg.
Ilr interpreting this result various factors ha've to be taken into a,ccou:rte
anong them the fact that ovsr a third of the gToup members surnreyed. were over
QJ yeata of agel r+hile' 2L/, were widowetl, separa,ted. or divorced. This does.
not explainl however, the low receptiviff to family p1a^nning given the higb
lpve1 of awag:enessi a^rr alra^reness stimul'ated. t6r gov_ernrnent progra&m€s ald.
disserdnated throrrgh organised neetings a.ni[ the med.i3. Ehe 1984 Kirq;:a.
Contraceptive PrevaLence.su:rrqr showed. that on averag€ l{ijiJcend.a women-wanted.
famillee of ? ohiLd.ren; one more than the nationa,X anrer rg".6 tfhile the
Sunre,lr recogrrisog the'influenoe of ed.u.cation a.nd residence upon attitud.es to
family planning - ed.ucated. urba^n dwellers are 1ike1y to be more receptive - in
g€neral- there is little r:nderstarrding of the structural' d.eterminaats of this,
nsitu.ation.r It isl in f,act1 not bery cl-ifficuLt to explain. Irr the context
of housebold econorqy ohildren are'treated. as an investmentt rrot only cto they
provid.e art inporba.nt labor:r regdr:rce for the houseliolcl but they al.so hol-d the
pronis€'of rfgture, teturns providing parents with oasb, a.:rd' socia.L security
rrhen tbey are, oldera One Agrdraye rnember mad.e this abuncta.ntly clealt
complaining that her seoondarXr school-ed.ucated. son had provideA no retunr at
aIl to b.er since,he had. Left school antl become,a beach-boyo "Given a cha.ncetrl
she said., rrl woul-d open a ba^lrk acoounts but now my childrefu are'the balkrr.
Rather tbarr chang:ing attitudeE in the nrral- area,E ed.ucation has been sucked-
into the pr.oce6s. While it ls trtre that chlld.rsnts ed.ucatlon lrithclraws
Iaboun.fron the householcl thie is oompensated.-for'in othor wailrsc Sriclewealth
pa6rments cLema.ncted. for clarrghters refleo-b the costs of their ed-uoation, whiJ.e
the more educated. chiLclren are the greater the cha^nce that they will seslrre
good. mplotrrment ancl prowld.a thelr parents ltlth lnoome'in the years to @me.
Tb,e lmportanoe.of thls has alrea.dgr been touohecL upon in tb'e,oaa€-studl€s'
t66
thus the reLation betweeu the chairrronen of Agrlraye ard Sona.rlt aad. their'
chj.ldreno Parents ar:e unb.apg;. shouJ-d. gror.m-up ohlltlren fai-l- to meet these
expectationsl ancl in, som€D cases the tend.eno6r for educated claughtem to
marqy a3d leave home before rrepayingr their parents fo:r their eduoa.tf.on Ls
given a,s a; reason fo:r not sencling tlaughtere oc. to: second-argr school.
- Ihder these circunstances it is not surprising ttrat family planning
progta^mnee have a l-irnitecl inpact in the nual "tL"" and- among womenrs groul'
menbereg the more chiLclren they have then the greater tbe returts. [']r!s
e@nomi,o Logio is supported W a. rangg of belief6 and attitudee. Parente
with Large faniliee enjoy ldglL etatusr infer-tility aroong: ltomeh 6axrfes a
hearry stigrna (intertitity arnong men is diffisult to substaatia#e).. In Diani
women mairrtain that pr^oLonged. sexua,L abstinence can result in l$ness and
oau.se the body to seize up. Sinilar feare surround the use of contraception.
Women believe, with some justificationl that coa,traceptive pial-s can resuJ.t:
in higb bLood pressure or multiple birbhs when their use is stopped., arl.ct that'
injections of Depro-Provera, can produce infertiLity. Sorne resentr quite
rightlyl the fact -that they and not nerri at€ the maSn objeats of oontra,ception.
0ther beliefs have lese foqndationo Imported. yellow ma.ize' fron Norbh Am'erica
is widely believed to contailr contraceptive ,tnrgs and cause'infertility. A
sirnilar-.a^nd r,riclely publicisetL scare br.oke outi in Kergra,ls Central Provj.nce 1n
ea,rly 1986 when it was rumoured that the gpvernlnent wae laoing the miLlc ,supplied
to scbools with contraceptives. The vcidesprea,aL ourenoy of such fears are some
measur€ of the resistance to famiLy pLa^nning ln rura;I €lr€Bsr 41tr the indioations
are tha.t Euch Teslstanoe.r,r!]-l petsist untl1 householtl €oorlomy undergoes majon
tra.nsformationo In theory womenls groups are inL a position to oontribute
towarrd.g suoh a, tra,nsformatlon: in praotic€ the majority l€main'tleeply enneshed
in tb.e resistant stnrotuTeg of householcl eoonoqi. Thlg ls not to say that
t67
family pJ-anning prograrnmel b..t nq sffecUo I:r the short-teru tU"y oau hope
to effect seleativc irE e of' contraception Sr womeni (a.nd rnen), wherL theg
recogrrise tha,t clrcu:nstantces aftt appropriatal s5'gntfica^nt Li:nltatioa of
fanrily sizer howeverT remarias a c[lsta:# pa\ospecftb
It is clear that r.roment s groups a.nd. their enterprisee ca$not. be expestetl
to effeot socia:L a^nd ee,onornio change ovenaight. This shoulcl notl however,
be the only criterion upon r.thich they a're evalua'ted. For'women themselves
they provide: a. r€mgc of opportr:nitieg which thqf- are sustonprily-d.eniect. Not
least of these is arc' opporbunity to participata j.:r cormunisa affairs and
dwelcpnent" Womern take considerable pride in their graups ancl the recognitiorr
whicb, thls bringethen. As long as'they continr:e to recelve supgort fnon the
goverr:ment a.nd other agencies r,romenl s groups r+iLl continue to serve as a:r
importa.nt tool. iu Kenya.lr ?IomenSE stnrggLe for sel-f-d.eterraina.tion.
Notes
1 . These figr:res are proJections from tbe 19?9 censuso sorrrcer office ofthe Ministry of Finance and. Pla.nning; I'tombasa.
rFour'child.reD'1inlit1 nrlee l&itr lea.d artiols (bf, Ne1son'Qsienn) in TtieStand.a.rtl (Uairobi) I Saturdagr 3 August 1985. the nr}ing on rnaternity
f f i . r ! .yaf feo isemp1oyedtovrr r - ldweJ. Iere1arrear t1rmofepreC[ isposed.toward.g family planning tha.rr n:ral women and their farnil-tes"
rContraoeptive.use disappointLy lowt, article-by Job Glthinji in the.Daily Nation (t'tairott), !{ed-nesd"y Z3 April 1986, po21.
rsln 8OO rnill-ion slated. fon farnily planningf , a:rtlole bry Job Githinjl ln
the DaiLy Nation (Uairotf) r Thursd-ay 16 Jarruary 1986r p.lo
Luoy Langstaff, personal oomnunlcatign (f985). Se_e also-tindse6r E[].sum,in"LoUinE out io yotng wonent.in the Interrrational. P1a&rred. Parenthood
For:nclatiJn'" &:L9 EIr 2- (L985) o -
Feferenoe oitecl ln note 3 aboveo
r,,peopLe ln Kenya favorrr large. famillesrtt eays N.AoKeyonzol the researohdireotor of Kenyals famil-y welfare centrel 'rflre reasons are baffllng to
us'rr, quoted. btr June Kronhol-2, rAnguish Ln MrLoal Kergrata future dims
as population "ir"g"" and eoonoqn falierat r ' lrhe Wa"l1 Stnest Journal (New
York), i londay 11 ApniJ- L983r p.In
2 o
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4.
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6.
7 .
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