This Massai project is more than two hours drive outside of
Arusha and offers one example of how severe water shortage
and desperate living conditions effect many Tanzanians.
More then one hundred men, women and children live in the
village we visited. It is located at the end of a dusty trail
that passes field upon field of maize (the staple food for
most Africans). To the naked eye the land appears dry and
thirsty, a condition that isn’t improving.
Here free-flowing drinking water is non-existent. There are
no water pipes, no wells, no rivers or streams. The Massai
don’t own cars, (they are not affordable) and carrying water
to the village is a monumental problem. In fact, these Massai
must travel three hours in one direction to access the public
waterhole. The trip must happen everyday, (sometimes twice
a day) and on foot. The only help the Massai receive is from
the donkeys provided by Heifer International.
To purchase a single donkey in Tanzania, Heifer must spend
two hundred and fifty dollars. This amount represents a lifetime
of savings for the Massai. Please understand, one donkey would
not be able to carry the amounts of water that are needed
for drinking, watering the crops and sustaining the livestock.
The Massai themselves consume very little water. Common rituals
like bathing and hand washing, (or washing anything) are luxuries.
Even reusing washing water is not unheard of. Because the
Massai don’t hunt and they eat very little meat, their traditional
diet consists of cow’s blood mixed with milk and assorted
grains. Planting and harvesting of crops represents a vital
source of steady food and income. For this tribe, water is
essential to making all this happen.
During our visit, the Massai invited us to enjoy tea and buttered
bread. We were seated in the ceremonial center of the village
surrounded by their mud huts. We were told that the offering
of food and drink is customary, and since both of these items
are precious to the Massai, the honor did not go unnoticed.
For entertainment the men and women danced for us, another
traditional message of thank you.
The better option for this village might be to move closer
to the waterhole. But here the Massai own the land and can
roam freely, maintaining their age-old cultures and traditions.
Without a doubt, more donkeys are needed. In fact, more of
everything is needed. Each day the conditions worsen. The
land will continue to look dryer, the fields of maize will
look dehydrated and inedible, and in the distance the donkeys
chew on their withered grass, preparing for yet another life-saving
journey, three miles to the nearest waterhole.
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