Tanzania
Tanzania
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The research considers Masai communities, primarily pastoralists, in Northern Tanzania which are heavily affected by climate change, land fragmentation and population growth. In particular, working together with communities and grassroot groups, the research focuses on the specific role of indigenous knowledge to elaborate strategies for the mitigation of food scarcity and deprivation.
A Maasai Ceremony Through the Lens of Milk
A Maasai Ceremony Through the Lens of Milk
Novembre 15th, 2024
Angela Kronenburg García
Tanzania is one of the study countries of the Food Communities (FOCE) project with a focus on Maasai pastoralists. However, because the land of the Maasai extends across the border into Kenya, we have decided to look at Maasai food dynamics in Kenya as well.
Earlier this month, I had the privilege of attending a Maasai ceremony in southern Kenya. The ceremony took place in Loita, an area located in the highlands west of the Great Rift Valley, next to the international boundary with Tanzania. Loita is home to a sub-group of the larger Maasai community called the Loita Maasai. This is a place that I know well, having conducted research there for the past two decades.
The ceremony marked the inauguration of the new Ilaiser clan chief of the Loita Maasai in Kenya. It was attended by over 3000 people, including local politicians, the media and a delegation of Loita Maasai from Tanzania. Although I was there as a friend, and having recently joined the FOCE team, I couldn’t help looking through the lens of “food” at what was happening around me. Here are some observations and thoughts on Loita Maasai food practices, with a special focus on milk.
Maasai as a food community. Early notes from Terrat village
Maasai as a food community. Early notes from Terrat village
September 13, 2024
Ruth John
The Maasai of the North of Tanzania face significant challenges in sustaining traditional food systems. Historically reliant on pastoralism and small-scale agriculture suited to semi-arid climates, they now confront disruptions due to the introduction of exogenous farming methods supported by the government and land fragmentation mainly due to wildlife conservation, tourism and mining, composing the main development interests of present-day Tanzania, a vibrant East African country. Analysing Maasai food communities as unique ecological and cultural identities may reveal the communal and convivial practices of production and sharing that intertwine people, animals, and environments. These practices could also contribute to developing new frameworks for understanding food security from a pluriversal perspective, which is open to diverse cosmologies for human-nature interaction, particularly indigenous ones.
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