Ukambani is perhaps not always hunger and hot sun

By Peter Thatiah

For decades Ukambani has been a favourite region to conduct studies on drought and famine.

It has been an area where the two have ravaged the land, wreaking untold misery.

In fact, the name ‘Ukambani’ is often a byword for a place of hardship, scorching sun and hunger.

But today, thanks to painstaking efforts, started a few years ago, some areas have been fighting back and winning the war against the vagaries of nature.

The scene to this unlikely story of victory against perennial drought and famine is a land long dismissed as desolate.

The residents were told to discard farming and embrace something else like stone mining, for instance.

But a few refused to be cowed and turned to the river flowing through their land for a solution.

Today, we are standing on the banks of Athi River on a canal that stretches for 7.5km, covering some 600 acres of irrigated land.

Using gravity to water the plains of Kabaa in Mwala District, villagers created this green belt in the middle of the brown and dusty countryside.

Beyond, another 200 acres are irrigated using water pumps.

No, this is not a Government project and there are no fancy NGOs involved either.

Scorching heat

Assistant chief David Mutuku has accompanied us on this sweltering afternoon. The temperatures are shooting right through the car roof and feel like they could melt us.

Ms Irene Syokau, 44, is waiting at the canal, overlooking 28 acres of irrigated land that she has been farming for the last 12 years.

It is her land and it has left her swimming in money and mountains of farm produce. The fruits of her labours literally stretch in every direction and her wide smile tells it all.

The villagers here think all this talk about drought and famine is a joke invented elsewhere.

What with blooming tomatoes, French beans, green maize, onions, water melons, kales, spinach and bananas fighting for space on their irrigated land.

And she doesn’t even have to take the produce to the market either. Needy Kenyans flock here in search of the produce.

Ms Syokau often politely turns them away even if they have stacks of money.

In the next farm we find Ms Isabella Mwikali weeding her crop of French beans. Mwikali points to the scores of people working the one-acre farm.

"The good thing with French beans is that the crop matures within 45 days after planting. This means there is always work to do in the farm. Whether it’s weeding, spraying, watering or harvesting, there is activity throughout the year," she says.

And with the prices of farm produce shooting up by the day, she is smiling all the way to the bank.

Rear family

She says: "A crate of French beans is going for Sh1,100 today. I struggle to get about four or five crates a day. When things are good I can even manage seven crates. This way I can sustain my family and pay my employees well."

Syokau, who is a widow, has educated all her seven children using money accrued from farm. The first two are in public universities. She deals in green maize, onions and watermelons.

"A company called Sacco Fresh comes for my produce here. Individual dealers also come daily," she says.

She has also leased five acres of her farm to her neighbours for Sh95,000 a year, thus providing extra income for the family as well as assisting the neighbours tap into her agricultural enterprise.

Despite realising a fair return from the sale of French beans in one acre alone, Syokau insists she won’t rest and says she intends to expand her farm.

Nothing goes to waste here. On the way we find men edging their way across the road with oxen pulling carts filled with green maize stalks.

The green waste from the farm is in high demand, and Syokau says a cartload goes for Sh1,000.

The community has the African Development Bank to thank for their fortunes. After advancing a grant to the Government to build the canal two years ago, it was left to the community to provide labour for maintenance.

Every farmer maintains the part passing through his or her farm, which includes removing any debris and other waste inside the canal.

Kenya Agricultural Research Institute also chipped in by providing the initial seedlings to the farmers.

Says Mutuku: "The Government would give you for instance eight kilos of maize seedlings free of charge, and then take their seedlings from your crop after harvesting. This encouraged everyone to start his or her own farming venture."

Today, more canals are being planned down the river.

The villagers can’t wait to get their hands soiled again.

And there goes the myth of a hungry, parched Ukambani.