The Economy of the Francesco: First Edition of the Amboseli Mission, August 2023

Story

Summary

This summer from August 10th to August 27th four of us will be traveling to Amboseli, Kenya, to join our brother Samuel Lekato who is participating in the Economy of Francesco “Life and Lifestyle village”. Samuel is the leader of the NGO “Enduata Emaa community- based organization”, that he founded in 2021 (for more info please visit: https://enduataemaacbo.com/).

Amboseli, in Kenya, is inhabited by the Maasai community, an indigenous group that has not fully eradicated illiteracy in the local setting. We are going help to help this Maasai Tribe build an economy at the service of the human person, an economy that is sustainable and can actually help the Maasai Tribe to preserve their culture, and way of life and improve the overall conditions of its people in Amboseli. We believe this can be a great opportunity to embrace the principles of our friend Saint Francis of Assisi, namely the renounce of earthly goods, the cultivation of the inner life, and the embrace of poverty.

Goals

The overall goal is to contribute to the integral human development of our brothers and sisters in Amboseli listening to their needs and offering the skills and training we have received in our home countries.

Our actions will be around three major topics:

(1) education
(2) natural conservation
(3) economic development.

More explicitly, in the first phase (August 10th–August 27th, 2023), we will focus on capacity building in the areas of entrepreneurship (1), nutrition and healthcare (2), and on the assessment of the most relevant infrastructure needs (3).

(1) We will conduct a two-week workshop covering topics such as sustainable entrepreneurship, social innovation, agriculture, solar power, and women empowerment. The training will be adapted to the local conditions, considering that this pastoral community has been affected by recurring droughts. Our goal is to train the villagers, and women in particular, to start small businesses and micro-enterprises (i.e., selling food in the local market etc.) that may provide self-employment and social enterprises. Women can engage in entrepreneurial activities as a form of income generation while also contributing to the family and, simultaneously, preserving and celebrating their cultural heritage, since, in comparison to men who work far from home throughout the year, women remain a constant presence for the family in the village. Promising initiatives identified are related to enhancing agricultural yield while reducing irrigation water, for example, developing multi-storey gardens, to conducting reforestation campaigns which can help not only combat climate change but also bring revenues to the community from CO2 abatement mechanisms, and to the development of a library that can both support children in its education, host digital professionals, and provide internet and printing services to the local community.

(2) We will also conduct another two-week workshop focusing on the areas of nutrition, hygiene, and sanitation. During the first week we will conduct a child nutrition assessment, followed by theoretical and practical sessions to improve overall health conditions of the children, typically the most vulnerable members of these communities. On the second week, we will assess hygiene and sanitation practices and offer them best practices on cooking, hygiene, and sanitation that can be implemented in communities like theirs.

(3) During the two weeks we will assess the need for infrastructure in the village to be developed. The first project identified is a library which will be a study center fitted with electric lights, tables, chairs, desktop computers, and internet access. The library’s goal is to provide the kids with a place to read, study, and do their homework, and will be used as the site for a meeting point for the local community, where, for instance, women can easily meet and sharing innovative business ideas. Additionally, the library can help bring revenues to the NGO Enduata Emaa community-based organization which could offer printing services, internet access, and could also host digital professionals in the future. Additional projects identified are related to clean water and sanitation currently lacking in the community.

In future phases, we will:

1. Proceed to the construction of the library and launch its related services (e.g., printing, internet) and develop the identified entrepreneurship projects.
2. Monitor and evaluate the impact of the projects implemented and identify the best approach to scale the impact to other communities in need leveraging the large international network of the Economy of Francesco.

Our team

Samuel Lekato. Economist and community leader in the land of the Maasai. Founder of Enduata Emaa: community-based organization, after experiencing drought and famine within Maasailand. Cows were dying, kids were sent back due to school fees, and high teenage dropouts. Samuel assembled youths, change makers, and fees of the community to bring change and transform the community substantially. We now advocate climate change, take kids to school, educate the community about health education, and plant trees. Enduata means vision in the Maasai language, and Emma means the Maasai community.

Emmanuel Kakooza. Founder of Kakooza Nutrition Solutions, a food and beverage venture which produces 100% natural fruit and soy-based juices, he also offers consultation on nutrition and collaborates with his local dioceses in Masaka, Uganda. He has conducted volunteer work for over 10 years focusing on vulnerable children carrying out trainings on nutrition, hygiene and sanitation. Emmanuel has studied a BSc in Nutrition and a postgraduate diploma in Nutrigenomics.

Roberta Sferrazzo. Associate Professor of Organization Studies & Ethics. She’s a teacher and researcher in organization studies and management and lectures on change management, human resource management, social and sustainable entrepreneurship, and business ethics. During Amboseli mission, she will provide entrepreneurship training to the women of the village and other educational courses to the kids of the village.

Diego Luca de Tena. Engineer, entrepreneur and consultant, has ample experience working on economic development projects for the World Bank and for large corporations as a consultant. Is the founder of the technology consultancy Pharoes that supports the energy transition developing AI-based solutions to more efficiently plan the infrastructure requirements for full decarbonization.

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We take this opportunity to thank ZABA Bank and Monri, which enabled payment with Mastercard®, Maestro® and Visa cards, Erste Bank which enabled payment with the application KEKS Pay, Airchash Ltd. which enabled payment with Aircash mobile wallet, and Electrocoin and PayCek, which enabled payment with cryptocurrencies. We also thank the hosting company MyDataKnox for maintaining the server.

Contact

Organization: Enduata Emaa Community Based Organization
Address: Loitokitok 258, Kajiado County, Kenya
Representative: Samuel Lekato, Chairman
E-mail: enduata.emaa.cbo@gmail.com
Mobile: +254 710 334396
Website: https://enduataemaacbo.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/enlightmaaassociation/