Establish a Goat Herd for Maasai Women
Provide a group of 20 Maasai women with goats they can raise and breed to establish their economic independence.
Semerian (centre) is working to empower her fellow Maasai women economically through goat herding.
To discuss supporting this project contact Johanna jo@justpeoples.org
In pastoral rural communities Maasai women face significant economic challenges, including limited access to formal education and employment. This, combined with the constraints of traditional patriarchal gender roles, mean women often struggle to support their families. Their lack of empowerment perpetuates their marginalisation and dependency on men, making it near impossible to access income to invest in their education, health and overall well-being.
Maasai are expert goat herders - but the women need ownership!
To address these pressing issues, Semerian Sankori has a solution: goat rearing. Maasai women are experienced goat rearers, but are not usually given the opportunity to own the goats, as ownership is traditionally reserved for men only. Semerian aims to provide a group of 20 women with 20 healthy goats so they can establish their own herd, as a tangible pathway towards economic empowerment.
The goats will undergo veterinary checks and will be tagged for identification and tracking. Women will receive support from Semerian and her team to help them establish and manage their goat-rearing enterprises successfully.
Each goat represents more than just ownership; it symbolises a pathway to financial security and independence for women in pastoral communities, ultimately creating a more equitable society. As these women prosper and become strong role models for their daughters, their families and communities will benefit both in the short term and for generations to come.
Meet Semerian
the woman dedicated to freeing fellow maasai women from economic and cultural constraints
Semerian Sankori is a Maasai woman from Kajiado County in rural Kenya. She was fortunate to have parents who valued education, so she was able to choose her own life path. But many of Semerian’s childhood friends found themselves in situations typical for Maasai women: no access to education, early marriages, battling domestic abuse, mistreatment, and gender-specific poverty. Semerian took action and launched an organisation to address these numerous challenges confronting Maasai women, with the goal of catalysing positive and sustainable transformation within their Maasai community. And she’s doing it! Learn more.