During 2020, large numbers of elephants became increasingly prevalent in Westgate Conservancy. This is a fantastic sign that they consider the area safe and plentiful. However, their presence also poses a risk to community members travelling on foot within the conservancy. Our Nkirreten women’s team – Santarua, Sintiwan, Naimutie and Maasia – are from two villages nearby our camp.
@Grevy’s Zebra Trust
They have in the past, always travelled on foot to camp to do their sewing in the Nkirreten workshop. However, given the risk of encountering elephants during their commute, we decided to adapt our model, by erecting canvas tents in their villages. The tents now serve as their new workshop, with the sewing machines and materials stored inside them.
@Grevy’s Zebra Trust – Maasia and Naimutie working in their tent
After setting them up, we saw some incredible and unexpected results! Women within the village were coming to visit their tent and ask questions. This presented an opportunity for our Nkirreten team to start talking to them about menstrual health. Inevitably, other women’s issues have arisen, and we feel that these interactions are incredibly valuable. The pride and confidence of the Nkirreten women has also increased, and they are happy to be able to work from home with their children around.
@Grevy’s Zebra Trust – women gathered around Sintiwan’s tent (wearing COVID-19 protective face masks made by the Nkirreten team)
We also realized that we were no longer restricted to villages close to our camp; that we now have an amazing opportunity to increase the number of women working in this program. We are therefore planning to add an additional eight women to the team, from four other villages, creating a safe space for women to come and discuss their issues.
Quality control will be more challenging with this new model, and it will be critical for Damaris, our Women’s Empowerment Officer, to be able to reach all the villages on a regular basis to check the products and provide follow-up training support, especially to the new team members.
@Grevy’s Zebra Trust – Sintiwan and her family
