Sponsoring Girls' Education in Naiyobi

Naiyobi Village holds a special place in my heart. It sits on the northern slopes of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area in northern Tanzania, looking across the Great Rift Valley and up at impressive Ol Doinyo Lengai. It is the birthplace of my husband, the home of his family, and the center of a Maasai community of about 10,000.

Though the grass is green in the rainy season and the setting idyllic, life is far from easy there, especially for the women. The women live within the restraints of both traditional Maasai culture and the regulations of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area (for example, they cannot grow food for their families and can only graze their livestock in certain areas). Inadequate access to water, transportation, hospital services, and reliable communication heightens their struggle. Limiting their opportunities is the fact that very few women were given the chance to attend school. Most cannot read, write, or do basic math. Despite these incredible challenges, the women's smiles, warmth, and laughter prevail; their tenacity endures and inspires.

Most mothers that I know in Naiyobi recognize the importance of education and want their daughters to go to school. Fathers, however, often see things differently. Some of them refuse to invest in their daughter’s elementary education, even though tuition is free. Paying for uniforms, pencils, and notebooks is not a priority they are willing to make, yet alone paying the costs associated with sending a daughter to secondary school.

Nadupoi, a women’s centered Community Based Organization in Naiyobi, finds sponsors who make attending secondary school possible for girls. Some sponsors have supported students into and throughout college as well. The sponsors’ contributions pay for school fees, such as room and board, as well as required supplies, uniforms, transportation to and from school, and the like. It costs approximately $800 US to sponsor a student for her first year of a public secondary school and about $600 US to sponsor the second, third, and fourth years. Surplus funds are pooled to help students who may have lost their sponsors continue their education.

Attending school can gift a student with knowledge and understanding that can inform her decisions throughout life. It can provide her skills and strategies that can help her better care for herself, her family, and her community. Going to school can potentially give her an opportunity to delay marriage and make informed choices about female circumcision, a rite of passage practiced by many Maasai families. Please help me raise funds to sponsor the secondary education of girls in Naiyobi today!

Much appreciated, Kim