Semerian Sankori
Equipping Maasai women for economic success, health, education and climate resilience
Kenya
Semerian Sankori is a Maasai woman from Kajiado County in rural Kenya, a region bordered by the breathtaking Amboseli National Park. Semerian's childhood dreams were filled with the desire to study and work in the tourism sector, managing some of the lodges and reserves that neighbour her home, where she had seldom seen Maasai, let alone Maasai women, in management positions.
She was fortunate to have parents who valued education, and she pursued her studies in Australia, specialising in tourism management and marketing. However, the disparities she observed between herself and fellow Maasai women during her formative years left a lasting impression. Many of her childhood friends found themselves in situations typical for Maasai women: no access to education, early marriages, battling domestic abuse, mistreatment, and the unyielding clutches of poverty that specifically disempower women.
Her dream of working at the national park was temporarily deferred when a catastrophic famine hit her region. The shocking conditions she witnessed her people suffering in spurred her into community development work. Leaning on her networks in Australia, she orchestrated fundraising campaigns to support her local community. In the process she realised this was where her passion lay, and she established her organisation "Patinaai Osim."
Patinaai Osim, a term of endearment in the Maa language spoken by the Maasai, embodies the deep bond between a mother and her child. Committed to establishing a platform for sustainable livelihoods for women, Semerian has become a champion for addressing the numerous challenges confronting Maasai women. These challenges encompass a lack of access to education, patriarchal control over livestock in a pastoralist society, the adverse effects of climate change, and the burden placed on women responsible for bearing and raising many children. Semerian and her team have introduced a range of initiatives to meet these diverse needs, all with the goal of catalysing positive transformation within their Maasai community.
Distributing goats to Maasai women herders.
Patinaai Osim has made literacy and numeracy accessible and relevant to the Maasai context. They have reached over 1,800 children so far across seven schools in Mashuru sub-county. The approach hinges on close collaboration between Patinaai Osim and community-run village Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres. Churches are repurposed into halls for remedial classes where parents contribute by providing meals for the students. This initiative exemplifies the intersection of education and community engagement - and it works!
Her organisation also lays emphasis on women's sustainable livelihoods. They support registered women’s groups, aiding them in generating income and achieving self-sufficiency. These initiatives encompass livestock farming - which Maasai women are already experts in, they just need the stock - as well as tailoring programmes. By building upon their existing skills and assets, the programs are culturally appropriate and set up for long-term success.
Importantly, Patinaai Osim also engages in maternal health support, supplying girls with sanitary towels and offering women education on family planning, prenatal and postnatal care, and reproductive health. These are crucial issues for Maasai women who traditionally live in polygamous and deeply patriarchal communities.
In 2022 Semerian won the National Diversity and Inclusion Awards & Recognition, and METIS - reimaginED - Community Led Impact AWARD for her contributions to Maasai empowerment. She’s grateful for her parents' wisdom in providing an education to her and her siblings, acknowledging that this privilege paved the way for her life and largely protected her from the challenges facing women in her community. She is now extending these same opportunities to other Maasai girls and women addressing their education, economic and health needs.
As she continues these crucial initiatives, her next steps involve ensuring that Maasai women are prepared to cope with the profound effects of climate change, which are significantly impacting Kajiado and the pastoralist peoples that live largely off the land. Semerian is there for the long haul, sparking transformation, hope and tangible life improvements for women who have historically been marginalised.
Primary school kids learn menstrual hygiene and management.
Providing water filters to Maasai women during a drought.