The farming project dubbed Kilimo Bora Kwa kina Mama Project (Food crop cultivation for Women) was designed to provide an alternative source of income for the widows in Homa-bay district far from the fish mongering business that is rampant in the area due to its proximity to the lake Victoria, which is largely responsible for the high HIV/AIDS prevalence rates amongst the women, most of whom are widows in the district. More at: www.cepacet.org

1. Kilimo Bora Kwa kina Mama Project:
Fostering Dignity & Hope for Women in Kenya
Learn more about the Center For Partnership And Civic Engagement (CEPACET)
http://www.cepacet.org

2. The story of my friend, Jared Akoma Ondieki and
the Kilimo Bora Kwa kina Mama Project
Introduction By Ellie Van Houtte
When women activists and advocates gather to create their battle plans for winning gender parity, they often forget to
engage one of their greatest weapons: the men who advocate on their behalf. In a world that continues to be
dominated by male voices at the table, it is essential for us to acknowledge and further support the work of male
advocates and leaders that share our belief that all human beings are created equal and that by empowering women, you
are also igniting increased growth of larger systems and influencing global economics. It is with this thought in mind that I
share with you the work of one young Kenyan father and community organizer, Jared Akoma Oniedki, who is walking
right beside his sisters as they march forward.
Although he is remarkably humble and small in stature, Jared Akoma Oniedki's sage wisdom and inspiring voice of
courage leaves a room of activists, artists, scientists, and some of brightest individuals in politics, business and academia in
sheer awe and breathlessness. As the founder of CEPACET (Center For Partnership And Civic Engagement) and a 29
year-old citizen leader from Kenya, Jared was selected as one of 30 young adult delegates to the 2010 International
Interdependence Day Summit in Berlin, Germany. Interdependence, a global movement to foster connection and
cooperation between all people(s), embodies the spirit through which I share one of the recent community projects that
Jared's organization recently launched.

3. Setting the Stage…
There exists much gender inequality in the Kenyan society, particularly for widowed women who are unable to
inherit the land owned by their deceased husbands. Even with a new Constitution in Kenya that establishes social
rights and land ownership rights for women, implementing and funding such initiatives will take time and is embraced
with skepticism by many who are most affected by the existing inequities
(http://www.globalissues.org/news/2010/09/09/6887).
Widowed women are often confronted with significant challenges in providing economic support to their families.
When their husbands pass away, property owned by widowed women is often immediately grabbed by male in-laws,
leaving women landless. Without being able to support herself off the land, she must resort to alternate means for
economic support, including fish mongering---or the selling of fish at markets and on the street. Although this livelihood
may seem fine, unfortunately women do not normally fish in the Kenyan society and must rely on male fisherman to
acquire fish to sell. With little money, women are often sexually exploited by male fisherman. Not only is this exchange
demoralizing to the women who are forced to resort to "sex for fish", but it is also one of the root causes for the 24%
prevalence of HIV/AIDS infection in the Homa-bay region
(http://www.newsfromafrica.org/newsfromafrica/articles/art_865.html).
To create a solution for the challenges that widowed women face, Jared and CEPECET created the Kilimo Bora Kwa
kina Mama Project to help the districts large number of widowed women gain self-sufficiency through food
cultivation. To better describe the project and how it works, I have included a recent project report below. As you will
see, the demand for project participation far exceeds the projects current capacity. If you are able to, please consider
making a donation to this critical women’s empowerment project at www.cepacet.org. I also encourage you to contact
Jared Akoma Oniedki at jared@cepacet.org with your words of support, ideas for funding, and any potential
opportunities for collaboration.

4. Women Preparing the Land for Bulb Onions

5. Bulb Onion Bed

6. Women Preparing the Land for Bulb Onion Bed

7. Women Planting

8. Women Planting

9. Watering Onions After Planting

10. Cabbage Farming

11. Women After A Long Day’s Work

12. More about the Kilimo Bora Kwa kina Mama Project….
The farming project dubbed Kilimo Bora Kwa kina Mama Project (Food crop cultivation for Women) was designed to provide an alternative
source of income for the widows in Homa-bay district far from the fish mongering business that is rampant in the area due to its proximity to
the lake Victoria, which is largely responsible for the high HIV/AIDS prevalence rates amongst the women, most of whom are widows in the
district.
The Kilimo Bora Kwa Kina Mama Project is to provide the women with technical know-how on and to popularize extensive food crop cultivation
as a means for income generation. It seeks to provide 100 widows, who initially were fish mongers, with an alternative means of income
generation away from the preying eyes of the fishermen who have taken advantage of their dependency syndrome. The women are trained in
the following topical areas:
* General understanding of Agriculture(Small scale and large scale)
* Agricultural trends around the country
* Food security and causes of food insecurity in Kenya narrowed down to insecurity in Homa-bay District.
* Types of soils and viable crops
* Food crop production as a means to income generation
* Climate change and environment conservation.
* Women economic empowerment (MDG3)
* Marketing
* Savings and access to agricultural loans.
On the registration day after mobilization, a total of 1,308 widows from one turned out for the exercise. A method agreed upon by the women,
provincial administration and CEPACET was employed to come up with the 100 widows who were to be beneficiaries of the project.
During the training, with advice from the facilitator from KARI (Kenya Agricultural Research institute) and after examining carefully the type of soil
in the project area, it was decided that bulb onions, tomatoes and cabbages would be cultivated in the demonstration plot for trials. However,
other crops like carrots, green paper, potatoes were also mentioned amongst the viable crops.
The project was well received and owned by the widows and the entire community. This is evidenced by the turn out during the registration and
other project activities. The activities were well attended by an average of 80 women per activity, provincial administration with a representative
of the area chief anytime the area chief missed, and other members of the community including community opinion leaders. CEPACET would
like to mention in this report that the kind of community involvement witnessed in this project is not a common occurrence in this project area,
not even in projects that provide money in terms of allowances and other provisions.
The women’s participation in the project activities has been a clear indication of the way they have owned the project and their determination to
improve their lives socio-economically. To get a turn-out of 1,308 widows for registration and an attendance rate of 80% in the activities is an
indication that perceptions are changing and slowly the society is waking up to the realization that it is better to learn how to catch your own fish
than wait to be given one at the owner’s time and will.

13. The project which was supposed to start in October 2009, due to unavoidable circumstances was begun on the 25th November 2010. As a
result, activities had to be pushed forward giving space for proper learning and maturation of crops. It is because of this that the field day has
been pushed o 8th May 2010, when all the crops shall have been harvested. The field day shall provide the platform for the women to showcase
the harvest and also to sensitize the community to prioritize the needs of women and children in the society.
The Kilimo Bora Kwa Kina Mama Project started with little optimism from us at CEPACET since such agriculture projects are rarely received and
owned by the communities living along the shores of Lake Victoria. This was the first time such a venture was being made by the non-
governmental organization and expectations were relatively low. However, the response thus impact has been overwhelming. To have an
average of 80 out of 100 widows consistent in their attendance of project activities and showing passion is just incredible. This show how much
there is need for an alternative for fish mongering and CEPACET has provided these women with an opportunity to turn their lives over.
It is our desire that this project receives funding for expansion in order to ensure sustainability and create a major impact by moving empowering
women and changing their predicament. In this way more children will be able to go to school, get good nutrition through feeding, and have
clothing and proper shelter. As a result, we shall have contributed significantly in reducing the high rates of infant mortality, HIV prevalence and
poverty and also end the circle of violence in the community.
There are other vulnerable groups including older widows who cannot practice farming any more and young teenage mother who do not have
land to farm but are in dire need of income generating activities in order to provide for their dependents. CEPACET hopes that in future we will
be able to train women on alternative methods such as poultry farming and dress making to provide them with the much needed opportunity to
earn a decent living away from the eyes of the mean fishermen who use them to satisfy their sexual desires.
We are now moving on to Phase 2 of the Project where we want each of the 100 widows who have undergone this training to be helped to
work on their individual gardens and farms.
Learn more about the Center For Partnership And Civic Engagement (CEPACET)
http://www.cepacet.org