Project Briefing

Loitoktok Sub County, Kajiado

County, Kenya
SECTION 1: COUNTRY AND PROJECT OVERVIEW
Introduction to country

Kenya has a population of around 42 million people, with a majority of the population being youth,
between the ages of 18-35 years of age. There are over 42 different tribes each enriched in their
own unique social and cultural aspects, making the cultural content of Kenya to be deep and
diverse.
English is the official language and almost every Kenyan who has graduated from high school
speaks and understands it and Swahili is the national language spoken amongst all nationals. There
are also other numerous indigenous languages. Majority of the Kenyan population is Christian and
belong to either the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglican Church or other Protestant churches.
There is also a significant proportion of Muslims and to a lesser extent Hindus.
Kenya is a democratic republic with an elected President, who serves both as the head of state and
head of government. The country is currently implementing the devolved system of governance
whereby, apart
Introduction from the president being the overall national leader, we have county governors
to community
who are responsible for governing the various counties. Governance at the county level includes
County assemblies and the county executive committees

Loitokitok is in the southern part of Kajiado County, around 255 KMs from Nairobi the capital city of
Kenya. It is majorly a pastoralist community mostly inhabited by the Masaai community, one of the
ethnic tribes in Kenya. You will find Kenyans with different ethnic tribes but majority of them the
from the Kikuyu and Kamba communities, there are also some Tanzania nationals in large number as
well in Kajiado County. Swahili is widely spoken in addition to the popular indigenous languages.
Kajiado County has a population growth rate of 5.5 percent; total population was estimated at
807,070 with 401,785 being females and 405,245 males as at 2012.The population is projected to
What
growisto
the1 project
millionand
by why
2017.VSO is working
The here activities in Loitokitok include livestock keeping and
key economic
tourism. The district is within the Amboseli Plains that encompasses the Amboseli National Park,
and also lies adjacent to the famous Mt. Kilimanjaro.
Limited access to education, food insecurity, environmental degradation, youth unemployment and
gender inequalities are main problems facing the people of Loitokitok. VSO Jitolee continues to work
with existing partners who have been engaging long term professional volunteers in the same
thematic areas. Currently, VSO Jitolee is running programmes in secure livelihoods aimed at
increasing access to enterprise development services as well as employment. ICS project will
contribute to the Secure Livelihoods outcomes as well as supporting responsible citizenship. ICS
partners will include local organisations implementing projects focusing on secure livelihoods, active
citizenship, agribusiness and inclusive education especially for people/youths with disabilities. ICS
will contribute to the programme in Loitoktok by increasing awareness on the livelihoods
opportunities available and natural resources management, building peoples capacities to tap onto
the opportunities and resources available through trainings on vocational skills, enterprise
development and market linkages.

Partner organisation
Amboseli Pastoralist Community Development Initiative Illaramatak le Mpusel- envisions itself
as a credible and professional Non-Governmental Organisation which is active in the promotion of
a better life for the pastoralist and vulnerable communities of Loitokitok District, (Kajiado South
Sub County), Kenya. It strives to achieve a society where empowerment and progress are tangible
and visible realities in every-day life. Illaramatak believes it is necessary to prioritize projects that
will enable local communities to adapt and mitigate the effects of climate change and subsequent
Examples
droughtofepisodes
what youand
will do
strive towards sustainable livelihood leading to increased incomes, food
security and improved livelihood assets. At the same time, a strong action on the side of Education
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is also perceived as important, given the high rate of school drop-out and illiteracy experienced in
the area.
 Livelihoods Programme: ICS activities will contribute to the programme in Loitoktok by increasing
awareness amongst youth, women and People with Disabilities (PWDs) on the livelihoods
opportunities available and natural resource management, building their capacities to tap onto
the opportunities and resources available through trainings in areas such as addressing
community issues, vocational skills, enterprise development, market linkages, resource
management etc. It will also contribute to Inclusive education for girls and PWDs by increasing
employability/employment creation skills and opportunities for women and youth as well as other
community members in order for them to have sustainable source of income to educate their
children.
Volunteers will be involved in the following activities but not limited:
Livelihood Activities
Working with Women and Youth Groups (Livelihoods)
Entrepreneurship/Womens Empowerment Program: conducting needs assessment and
researching solutions to empower women to create sustainable incomes. Capacity Building
with Identified Groups: training groups on financial savings, supply management and
marketing to overcome market challenges.
The women groups also require business development support which would involve
product development and marketing. As a volunteer, you may work with some groups like
women beading groups, farmers and other groups that need to expand their products or
improve the quality of their products. You will also be involved in market research for their
products. As a volunteer you will also help in coming up with ideas on how to value add the
products and the best market for the products.
Information and Communication Technology basic training and awareness: As a volunteer
you will work with different groups such as farmers, business people, vocational students
among other people to help them improve their ICT skills on social media, marketing,
record keeping and web site development to enable them have sustainable business and
expand their other sources of their livelihood using ICT.
Natural resources managements e.g. surveys, trainings, tree planting, farm
demonstrations: As volunteers you might work with an organization dealing with wildlife
and natural conservation issues. You will also be involved in clean ups as well as training
the community, both adults and school going children on the importance of keeping the
environment clean and protecting wildlife. Agri-Business: training farmers on resource
management techniques, such as drip irrigation to conserve water supplies and manage
wetlands

Education Activities
Working in Schools (Education)
Peer to Peer Education (Life Skills and Mentorship Session in Schools) - Supporting local
schools with teaching vital life skills and classes on child rights, sexual health and
leadership. Life Skills Workshops for girls and boy are done to reduce the dropout rate of
children form school especially girls. While attributable to many social, cultural, and
economic factors, girls drop out of school primarily because of early marriage, teenage
pregnancies and female circumcision also contributes to girls dropping out of school. Both
girl and boys learn life skills that can prevent teen pregnancy, reduce early marriages and
reduce the spread of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases. Through the peer
education sessions they also learn children rights and the value of education in improving
their lives and their community.
Infrastructure and Resource Development- You might also be involved in school
refurbishment & Construction such as, painting classrooms and refurbishing classrooms or
developing learning resources for the students to improve their learning e.g creating
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educational charts.
 Inclusive Neighbourhood Spaces
As volunteers, you will be needed to do a research and realise a gap in the community to address
other cross cutting issues that might be affecting community members livelihood, emphasising on
the importance of education by addressing cultural and social barriers that have prevent girls from
completing their education. Assisting community members in addressing cross cutting issues will
that affect their lives and the development of the community, will be done through Inclusive
Neighbourhood Spaces (INS), the INS model enable s community members to establish forums
where they discuss community challenges and also find solutions to those challenges by taking
steps to address the challenges. INS assists community members to identify problems in their
community, as ICS volunteers you will be required to support in creating INS spaces that would
create forums for community members to take initiative and steps address challenges that they
are facing in the community, some of these steps include:
Community forums and Dialogues
Advocacy campaigns
Engaging the county government
Door to Door campaigns/ signing up youths to join the space
This will also require you to partner with other organizations other than your placement
organization, and engage with community members to organize for events to sensitize the
community through awareness raising events and trainings on best approaches to deal with issues
affecting their community.

Tips for Working in Placements from Previous Volunteers

Everyone should come with an open mind to gain the most from this experience
Volunteers should remember that community development is a process and they cannot
decide for the community what they want to accept or not
Volunteers really need to be willing to be pro- active and develop innovative ideas and
solutions to community challenge.
If the project you want to initiate requires the County government input the you need to
engage them early and also start placement projects as soon as possible
Team work: Ensure that you work closely with your counterpart and community members
for a greater impact
Always maintain a positive attitude
Learn to let go, be free and enjoy every moment on the program while doing your best to
make a difference
Volunteers need to patients and ready to explore all possibilities to ensure they get the
best from the whole volunteering experience.
Volunteers need to understand the meaning of respect to all age groups and apply it
accordingly
Embrace every opportunity that the program provides you with
Volunteers should remember that community development is a process and they cannot
decide for the community what they want to accept or not
Volunteers need to be very sensitive to cultural differences as this will greatly affect their
stay
Ask for help as soon as possible and consult your team leaders and Project Coordinator

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VSO Staff
The Country Director is responsible for VSO operations in Kenya including ICS, the HR is in charge
of HR matters and overall in charge of volunteers/staff security. Youth Programmes Manager
oversees the implementation of youth programmes which includes ICS project and carries the
vision of the programme. Logistics Coordinator will be in charge of special passes for the
volunteers and team leaders (legal requirements for volunteers in Kenya). The project Officer will
offer both technical and administrative support in project implementation, support the PC in
ensuring the volunteer learning is adequately supported and captured. One Project Coordinator
will be based in the community where ICS will be implemented and will support and work directly
with volunteers, address/assist in any concerns regarding host homes and placements. There will
be two volunteer team leaders (Kenyan and British Nationals) working closely with volunteers on
an advisory/guidance level, to promote learning and personal development for ICS volunteers as
well as for themselves.
SECTION 2: WHAT TO EXPECT IN DAILY LIFE

Host Homes
In Loitoktok town and nearby environs, there are stone houses with electricity whereas
communities further away from the town and off the tarmac roads are traditional Masaai houses
called Manyattas. They are made of locally available materials such as clay bricks, twigs and
wood. They are safe, clean and warm at night. Electricity isnt available in the Manyattas and solar
powered or paraffin lanterns are used for lighting. Cooking by fire, outdoor toilets and domestic
animals around home is a typical setting as well. Water has to be fetched by the springs or the next
available community based water outlets. Families highly uphold family time and prefer if one is
Getting
homearound
early to eat dinner together. You will find the town has gone quiet after 7pm unless it is a
weekend since there are many local tourists from big cities thronging the town. A gift that
symbolises the UK culture would be appropriate to give to your host family.
Most residents prefer to walk and actually walk for long distances. Motorbikes rides are easily
available for short distances. Strictly note that you are only to ride motorbikes as passengers and
not permitted to drive a motorbike yourselves and wear VSO Jitolee approved helmets it is safer to
use Matatus (Mini buses) for longer distances. However; Matatus arent available for travels off
the tarmac since roads are in poor conditions. Salon cars (used for public transport) are available
for distances within towns in Loitoktok District and charge higher than the Matatus. Loitoktok
Town is small in size and you could walk round it in less than 30minutes. Public amenities or
service providers are in close proximity to each other. You will find you can walk to the Hospital, to
the government offices, to the main local market and or to the Bank within the same time. The
border separating Tanzania and Kenya is 30minutes drive from the town.

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Seasonal Weather Implications
The region is very dry with no continually flowing rivers and is officially designated as semi-arid.
The annual rainfall varies between 500 and 1,250mm. There are two wet seasons, the short rains
between October and December and the long rains between March and May. In recent years
there have been long periods of drought when there has been little or no rain. In the long rains, it
is wet and cold. Volunteers need to bring warm clothes and boots. Roads become impassable and
challenges access to placement sites. During short rains, the weather oscillates between wet and
hot. From December to February, it is a hot and dry season and communities migrate in search of
pastures and may mean change of field site to the new homes.

Physical Requirements of the project

Most placements will be based in the field but have offices in the town. This means making travels
away from the office. Some roads are impassable thus volunteers will sometimes walk to the
placements/host homes. As such, volunteers need to carry comfortable walking shoes and hat for
sun protection. Some placements may require volunteers to train the community on use of
equipment/technology or getting your hands dirty and performing manual activities in setting up
demonstration farms and other projects. Protective attire may be provided by the organisations.
Some

Access to Internet and Communication

In Loitoktok, Wi-Fi services are very limited and volunteers may need use a cyber caf services or
buy a local modem and sim card to access internet. Most placements use modems for
connectivity. There are many internet service providers to suit your needs and it is possible to use
Skype to call home. Volunteers can easily get a local sim card in any shop and you need your
passport number to be a registered user. Sim cards cost averagely 0.5 and reliable internet access
would costs averagely 5 .Most of the organisation have very limited or shared laptops and these
should not be used for personal calls and email. Thus for use of internet, cyber cafes would be
ideal or personal lap tops but it will be your responsibility to ensure that they are kept safe and
you should avoid travelling with them. There is a post office within the town and volunteers can be
Clothing
able to send and receive posts.
This is a generally conservative community where you are more accepted if you wear smart casual
and loosely fitting clothes rather than tight trousers, spaghetti tops, miniskirts or shorts especially
for female volunteers. Please do not bring revealing clothing. Male volunteers can wear casual
shirts and trousers. Please do not wear shorts. Denim trousers are acceptable especially when
undertaking field trips. You may carry one official wear for one off government meetings if need be
and a decent party wear for social activities. Avoid high heeled shoes as the terrain may not be
suitable. Bring along comfortable sports shoes and sandals as well as it can get hot especially parts
further from Mt. Kilimanjaro. Volunteers hosted in Loitokitok town and environs should carry
warm clothes as the town sits on the foot of the mountain and cold winds are common in the
morning and after 5pm. You will find some Masaai men do not wear trousers rather they wear a
cloth called shuka

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Essential packing
Do not bring; expensive jewellery and mosquito nets (locally available and will provide). Shopping of
essentials such as toilet paper, washing soap, junk food can be sourced locally. Bring: A torch in case of
power cuts, flip flops to use in the bathrooms and toilets of your host homes, high factor sun cream, hand
sanitizer (also available locally), a light waterproof jacket or a small umbrella, water bottle, sunglasses,
camera, charger, memory card, spare batteries and your laptop if you have one. You will also be required to
Finance
carry wellington boots since only the main roads are not tarmacked, it would be easier to walk with
wellington boots when it is raining.
Also carry a power banks as Loitokitok can experience frequent power blackouts, this will enable you to
charge your phone when there is a power blackout.

Money
Volunteers will receive their allowances on a weekly basis from the Project Coordinator, the allowance is
sufficient for volunteer daily upkeep and there is no need for volunteers to carry extra funds. Volunteers are
strongly encouraged to live within their allowance.
Loitokitok town is served by two local banks which have money transfers facilities such as western union and
money gram...Kenya is well served with MPESA, a mobile money transfer application which allows you to
receive and send money instantly using your phone. Almost every Kenyan over eighteen years uses MPESA.
You can chose to open the MPESA account in Nairobi or Loitokitok. It is safe and reliable and you can use it
for transactions instead of going to the bank hall queues. MPESA also allow you to save money in your cell
phone as well.

Diet
The community relies heavily on livestock as their main source of food and protein. However; the shops sell
maize flour, rice, wheat flour and variety of grains and cereals and sometimes pasta. Seasonal fruit is
available. Volunteers should expect to eat traditional food rather than western options. You may find French
fries in very few cafes but there are no fast food cafes, coffee shops or ice cream parlours in the town. Most
eateries serve meat eating and traditional menus. Families eat together as a shared meal and you will join
them in this. The community has three meals per day. The time of day for lunch is 1pm and evening meals
are served from 7pm onwards.

Alcohol
Generally, alcohol is consumed by locals. However; study the attitudes of your host family or organisation
to know if they are receptive. Avoid local brews and if one has to, drink responsibly and only consume
national and recognized brands in the company of a trusted people and do not drink to the point of being
inebriated. At all times consider the ICS code of conduct and that you are ambassadors of VSO in the
community working to achieve community development outcomes.

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Security Tips

Travelling with Public Transport.

Ensure you follow instructions and guidance from PC on the transportation you should use in
community
If theres a seatbelt in a vehicle, wear it.
Be very observant while alighting and crossing the roads, always ensure that you alight at the
designated bus /matatu stages as it is an offence to board and alight from a matatu or bus in
areas that are not the designated bus stage.
Volunteers will only be allowed to use motorbikes if:
Their placements can only be accessed by the use of motorbikes
Read, understood and signed the ICS motorbike agreement form that will be provided
by the PC
Has a reflector jacket and a helmet (This will be provided by the country office)
They ensure that they only use PC approved motorbike operators to take them to and
from their placement

Corruption and Bribery

Do not address corruption directly yourself- seek advice from the PS or the Country Office first.

Sexual Harassment
Dressing conservatively
Avoiding being seen alone drinking alcohol
Avoiding being seen out late alone
Avoid being in compromising situations that may encourage such incidents
Avoid walking alone at night or in dark areas
Avoid conversations about personal relationships and sexual behaviour these conversations
are highly taboo in most communities
Ensure that you report all sexual harassment and assault cases immediately to the PC for support.

Theft and Robbery

Avoid being in possession of large amount of hard cash while in host homes, placement and the
walking around the community always carry what you will need for the day your transport and
you lunch allowance.
Always ensure that you keep your belongings and valuables safely when attending public events
or activities with other community members.
Ensure that you are with your counterpart if you have to arrive in your host home after dark,
avoid travelling after dark as Loitokitok is a Rural Town with no streetlights in most areas.
Ensure that placement activities do not run till dark and if they do ensure your placement
supervisor escorts you to your host home or directs a trustworthy taxi to take you home and
make sure that you inform the PC and host home.
Watch out for your luggage when you are travelling with public transport or taxis
Ensure that you have contacts of trustworthy taxi drivers at all times this will be provided by the
Project coordinator.
Keep valuables at home and only take then out when needed and if you need to change
currencies, strictly do so in the banks.

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 Curfews
Please observe the local communitys curfew hours. Loitokitok can get quite dark very fast. This poses
additional risks to volunteers. Also being near the border encourages occasional cross border
trespassing, international volunteers stand out too much and they need to take extra precaution when
walking home. You are advised to always walk around with your passport that has your identification
details as well as the page that has your visa and the page with special pass that will be stamped on your
passport once you arrive in the country. If you have been stopped and asked for identification by
policeman or any other local authority, call your PC immediately for assistance.
. More information on the security and health will be given during your in country orientation workshop

More information on the security and health will be given during the in country orientation