Without women there is no light

Eva Darare works with CAFOD partner the Diocese of Marsabit, supporting both men and women through gender development initiatives [Georgina Cranston]

It is not just fighting drought that the Rendille women of Northern Kenya have to cope with - many are also victims of domestic violence

Traditional and cultural attitudes to women in Kenya can be summed up in a quote from an elder of a nomadic community; “Women belong wholly to men except their teeth.

"If you break a woman’s arm you don’t pay for it, if you break her teeth, you do."

Against this backdrop of violence, Eva Darare, a dynamic and committed woman, supports both men and women through gender development initiatives.

She says: “The Rendille are a marginalised group within the community and women are second class citizens, they often suffer domestic violence and are discriminated against in so many ways.

"For example, they don’t own anything, they don’t inherit anything. There is a lot of wife beating - all those injustices which women go through in the name of culture.

Turning the world upside down

But change is slowly happening, with some accepting the new ways of working alongside women, while for others, as Eva says: "It’s as if their whole world has turned upside down."

Eva, who grew up as a nomad herself and now works with CAFOD partner the Diocese of Marsabit, runs workshops from a dull, grey single-room brick building, the only solid structure for miles around, where all community events take place; elders meetings, schooling, and Mass.

Sitting in rows on basic wooden benches, women learn about their rights and about how to set up and run businesses - enabling them to be more independent.

Business skills not only provides an alternative income - vital during hard times such as drought - but also raises the status of women within the community, which in turn leads to men and women working together.

Without this kind of awareness-raising the future for the community is brutal and bleak.

Eva says: "Everyone was excited about it - before, they were not given opportunities even to speak about their problems. It's a moment of sharing - they can discuss freely, they don't hide anything. They were not given the time or opportunity before.

"It's only after the workshop that they realise 'Kumbe - ah! So it's like we are discriminating women!'

“Without women there is no light”, goes a Rendille proverb. The reality of the work in Marsabit is that light is being shed so both men and women are supported to change together - and that change ultimately means their survival.