©ICRC/F. Grimm
Mount Elgon, Kenya. Red Cross volunteers and Mount Elgon residents unload relief at a distribution site.
Mount Elgon is one of Kenya's most fertile regions, so it may come as a surprise that the Red Cross has had to distribute food there. But since 2006, violence has forced the people of this area to flee, leaving their farms behind.
With no farms and no money, they turned to relief organizations for sustenance. The ICRC stepped in; working with the Kenya Red Cross Society, the organization began supporting affected families.
For almost a year, the Red Cross distributed monthly rations consisting of cooking oil, salt, maize and beans to 12,000 families.
Relative calm has returned to the region and many people have gone home, but the majority are living with relatives or have bought land and settled elsewhere.
Elizabeth Chemutai is a widow with several children. Elizabeth fled from her home in Chebyuk settlement scheme, one of the areas hardest hit by the violence. She has been staying at her uncle’s house ever since.
”It has been a difficult period, especially for the widows,” says Chemutai. “To make things worse, many homesteads in Mount Elgon are now led by women because the men are missing. They were either abducted or had to flee for their lives.”
©ICRC/F. Grimm
Mount Elgon, Kenya. With the ICRC truck all closed up and ready to roll, residents start collecting the newly-delivered supplies.
Like many others, she has been relying on the Red Cross for food and other necessities. With no land to farm, feeding her five children was an uphill task. When the Red Cross distributed food for the last time, Chemutai arrived with her basket to wait as she had done many times before.
Some of those waiting bore the marks of violence. The anxiety showed, as they had grown accustomed to the trucks and Land Cruisers arriving with food for the month.
Martin Geiywa is on the local committee that vets the beneficiaries, making sure that only those who need them get rations. Martin left his home in Chebyuk in August 2006 when he saw a man being killed outside his farm.
©ICRC/F. Grimm
Mount Elgon, Kenya. Residents show their ICRC ration cards at a distribution site.
Martin has nine children to feed from the monthly Red Cross rations. He says the food has been regular since November 2007, when the Red Cross first brought relief to the people of Mount Elgon.
”It will be a loss for us when the Red Cross stops supporting us, but they have made a good plan to make sure that we grow our own food. Besides, our land is very productive and we will regain our pride when we sell our food again,” says Martin.
The last distributions took place in October, but the residents were prepared for the end of the programme well in advance.
“We wanted people to be able to provide for themselves. In April 2008 we distributed the first seed and tools, in addition to the food rations,” says ICRC delegate Philippe Mbonyingingo.
Each family received maize, bean and vegetable seed. Since the families had no implements, the Red Cross gave each of them two hoes, plus a supply of fertilizer.
©ICRC/F. Grimm
Mount Elgon, Kenya. A Red Cross volunteer checks ration cards.
Chemutai remembers sharing the seed with her relatives, as it was particularly good and everyone wanted a share. And those who had agreed to give her land to grow crops wanted something in return.
“Without land to farm, your hands are tied. Sometimes we are made to wait for the landowners to finish their harvest, and then we can plant our crops,” says her friend Jane.
The distributions take time, and getting to many of areas is a painstaking task because of the rough roads. A day later, the Red Cross volunteers were at Toiyendet, one of the most remote locations, high up on Mount Elgon.
The ICRC truck driver quickly offloaded the seed and fertilizer then moved on. “We must reach solid ground before the rains begin, otherwise we will get bogged in,” he explained.
So now the people of the region will be able to take up farming again, thanks to the support of the Red Cross.
