Posted by Ikal Angelei | 23 June 2009

This week has been one of learning trial and wonder of the challenges involved in the fight for security, not from the normal raids in Turkana,not from disease but from hunger. As the droughts get worse and the animals we derive our pride from wither away with the drought. We have to put our heads together to discuss the way out of this state of food insecurity, when people lack sustainable physical or economic access to enough safe, nutritious, and socially acceptable food for a healthy and productive life.

Relief food is a form of slavery that does not do much to get any food security, The traditional pastoralists are looking at a new livelihood, we are now looking into the agricultural technologies using little water and especially vegetables that grow fast. The soils are good, some areas little salty but we are working towards some form of solution. Partners in development have tried agriculture with the technologies and have suceeded especially with the vegetables. We want to try that too, though the hard economic times need us to seek some support from all willing partners.

There is some hope to get some food security from traditional pastoralists who have the urge to get a way out of the struggle to feed their families through a means of wait and hope to a means of lets put our heads together, learn to farm and then wait and hope. This time we are not hoping that the relief agencies will remember us, we hope that we can get partners willing to come teach us, learn with us and try with us in this new way of life we want to try. Through support to set up the shallow wells, solar panels and purchase of farm equipments, we will be the agents against a form of slavery, agents against relief. Agents to emancipate us from this slavery that has been and will always be retrogressive.