Hope as mining firm donates food to hungry Samburu residents

Njira Kombo Chengo from Kizingo B village in Samburu has every reason to smile after receiving relief food from the Australian mining firm Base Titanium.

She is among the more than 200, 000 Kwale residents who are facing hunger following a prolonged drought. 

Chengo is happy because she will take a break from the ravaging hunger for at least one to two weeks.

She has never had a good meal since rain failed, almost four years ago. 

Chengo is a farmer and has been depending on crop and livestock farming that stalled because of erratic rains.

The crops barely survive and each planting season the farmers get double losses.

Each time drought strikes, the number of livestock number is reduced as some succumb to effects of the dry weather.

Chengo only survives on plain ugali or porridge and sometimes sleeps hungry for lack of food, a situation that many of the Kwale residents in drought-hit areas have to endure with each day. 

The 66-year-old woman and thousands of other residents received eight kilogrammes of maize flour, beans, rice and one litre of cooking oil.

Chengo, who has five children and five grandchildren who all depend on her, said the food would keep her family going until the next help arrives.

"My husband is sick, my children are married but unemployed and this food will feed all of us," she said.

Nyiro Ruwa from Mwangaza village could also not hide his feelings of joy and relief. 

He said he could remember the last time he ate rice with beans for he has been eating 'wari' (Ugali).

"I am very grateful for whoever brought this food. I used to eat wari without vegetables," he said.

Ruwa said the only time they eat rice is during the festive seasons but because of drought and hard economic times, that has now become impossible. 

Until the price of Unga skyrocketed, people eating rice in the Coast region were normally perceived as wealthy.

Rice is a food commonly taken by Swahili people.

Ruwa said it is a great privilege to have rice as part of the donation packages.

"Today (Wednesday) is my greatest day, I have rice with me. I can't stop thinking about it," he said.

Ruwa said things have not been easy, adding that year he lost almost half of his livestock due to drought.

He said the hunger situation is destroying their lives, making them less productive.

Ruwa said they have always known farming but it is no more due to the prolonged dry season.

The 70-year-old man said many people of his age and children are forced to sleep hungry, and wake up to porridge or black tea.

He said, although the donated food is little, it will at least give them the energy to look for more to feed themselves.

Naomi Kidzao, a mother from Makamini, said she is unable to breastfeed well for missing appropriate food.

"The body produces a lot of milk if the mother eats well but in our case, we only have one meal, or no food at all," she said.

She said hunger wreaks havoc both day and night and majority cannot sleep because they are thinking of where the next meal will come from. 

Kidzao said the Base Titanium donation has put a smile on her family.

She said at least her kitchen is going to be active and her family would get to forget hunger for a couple of days, even as she hopes the rains are going to come soon.

According to Base Titanium general manager Simon Wall, they distributed 1,650 bags of food to the most vulnerable families in Samburu.

"We have been invited to donate food, we hope it will contribute and fill the bellies of your children," he said.

The food was donated to the residents from more than five villages within Samburu.

On Wednesday, Kwale county launched a dam in Kizingo for residents and livestock to get clean drinking water.

Makamini village administrator Mwero Chikpohe said they are going to use the dam for irrigation to increase food security and curb drought.

He said over dependency on unstable rains has caused great suffering to the residents. 

Chikophe said most families have forgotten the feeling of a having full belly as many times they struggle to get food.

He said the continued has hunger has affected learning activities because children lose interest in school for not getting food.

A resident, Bechimera Mazera, said the ongoing hunger is forcing residents to cut down the remaining trees for charcoal.

He said there is little to eat, hence they burn trees to make charcoal and sell them in towns to buy food.

Mazera said the deforestation is contributing to the increased drought, but they have no option but to continue burning charcoal to survive.

He urged both the county and national government to sink more water boreholes and dams to promote irrigation.

However, Kwale Governor Fatuma Achani said plans are underway to have the dams repaired and constructed for the residents to get water for domestic use and farming.

Meanwhile, the national government has disbursed 7,000 bags of food expected to be distributed to the affected residents, according to Achani.

(edited by Amol Awuor)