The Maasai » Maasai Project » Visit in Kenya 2008 »
During a visit in Nairobi in November 2008, we improved the Maasai project; thanks to a friend we bought some solar panels and installed them on the dispensary roof in order to connect a small refrigerator which was given to us the year before. The refrigerator will contain vaccines, tetanus vaccines and anti-snake vaccines, sent by the Kajado hospital.
The solar panels have a capacity of 500 watt and the inverter can support an energetic Exchange of max. 3,5 kw per hour. In the future it will be possible to install more panels to increase the power, so that small autoclaves can be connected for sterilizing medical equipment. The solar panels and batteries cost as much as € 4500 but this cost in nothing compared to the number of persons who will have the possibility to get vaccines in this dispensary.
An improvement which will be most beneficial for lots of persons.
We also bought a pick-up that will serve as ambulance for patients who are unable to get to the nearest hospital or to the dispensary on their own.
The pickup cost us over 10.000 Euro plus other 2500 Euro to make it suitable for the bush. To drive in the bush you need special tyres and higher springs. This was well spent money, there were lots of people who just couldn’t reach the dispensary because they were seriously ill and now, thanks to the volunteers of the “Maasai Naretisho Organisation” who will drive the pick-up, even the most seriously ill natives will have the possibility to get to a hospital.
We also organized a mobile cinema that moves from village to village, bringing moments of joy with films and cartoons for children and provides information through documentaries, concerning various health problems, in order to make more persons aware of what exists beyond the hill, with the world that approaches and wants to take it all.
Thusrday 7th January 2009, a new dream came true: after having negotiated with the Italian Embassy in Nairobi, we received 25 boxes of medicines which were supplied by the Italian Cooperation managed by the Nairobi Embassy. These medicines covered our dispensary’s need for a whole year. A great joy for the entire community and personal pride for us. All of this combined with another great event – the first graduated young man of the community. The right occasion for a party with a number of Maasai that nobody remembers to have ever seen before at a celebration.
Meanwhile, scholarships proceed so that the dispensary project will be completed in about 4 years.
Before any intervention we always had meetings with the board of the elders (quite an important stage in all Maasai communities). For us it is fundamental to pay respect to the culture that has accompanied them for thousands of years and therefore we have no wish to change these habits since we do not feel that we are better than they are – we just avail of better technologies and have a better knowledge of some of the things that can be useful to improve their daily life – paying the best respect.
It is also necessary to create possibilities for them to develop and self-manage themselves, even if they make mistakes. They have to start growing and this is the only possible way for them to defeat some problems such as hunger, thirst, illegal immigration, etc. Yes, we might become a little less rich but what is the right thing: that everyone on this earth is respected or that we always are the ones who must be right and live best?
In these times we are experiencing the consequences of this kind of mentality and if we don’t use our skills to solve climatic and environmental problems, next crisis might be the last one for humankind.
In September 2009 a new scholarship was set up for another young man in the village (Emmanuel). In three years he will be a medical attendant who also will be able to take blood samples, which is quite important since we also are planning to make a small laboratory to analyze and timely cure a number of diseases, considering the distance to the larger hospitals of the area.
