ABOUT TURKANA COUNTY

Facts about Lodwar Town

Lodwar is the largest town in northwestern Kenya, located west of Lake Turkana on the A1 road. Its main industries are basket weaving and tourism. The Loima Hills lie to its west. Lodwar is the capital of Turkana District. The town has a population of 17,000.

According to the Insider’s guide to Kenya Lodwar’s history began around 1933 when a trader named Shah Mohamed, arrived on the banks of the Turkwell River. The roads were inaccessible so he brought the donkeys. He eventually built a permanent trading centre in Lodwar including a gas station. The district commissioner’s office was built followed by a small medical clinic and a government prison. Police headquarters were built in Lokitaung as the tribal disputes were common in the area. During the 1960s, missionaries built schools in and around the town. Shah Mohamed opened several stores in the remote towns of this Turkana district because he was the only contractor and supplier to government departments, carried mail to the area, supplied and transported the goods for the Norwegian and Italian fish-canning projects on Lake Turkana (both projects eventually failed).

During the colonial period, Lodwar functioned as a transit point for British officials moving Kenyan political prisoners to the north. Jomo Kenyatta, Kenya's first president was restricted to house arrest for two years in Lodwar in 1959. The town had developed a reputation as an isolated outpost removed from in the rest of Kenya, but in recent years, Lodwar has expanded and gained commercial and economic prominence.

Lodwar is considered the capital of the region, housing local and governmental facilities, including Turkana’s biggest health facility and the main referral hospital, Lodwar District Hospital (LDH).^[2] It is also the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lodwar. The town is also served by Lodwar Airport.

Facts about Turkana County

Turkana County is located in north western Kenya bordering Marsabit County to the east, Samburu County to the south east, and Baringo and West Pokot County to the south, to the South-west.

The only town of any size in the northwest of the region is Lodwar, the administrative centre of the Turkana District. Historically it was an important colonial outpost where frequent Ethiopian raids were countered. Jomo Kenyatta was held here briefly in 1959 whilst in detention. It has been said that Kenyatta was taken to Lodwar so that the Mau Mau would be unable to rescue him given the distance and the fierce nature of the Turkana tribesmen.

It is not nearly so isolated as in the past due to the opening of the surfaced road from the highlands and an airstrip, but it is still very much a backwater town. Poverty is very acute and many of the Turkana residents are under-nourished. Take good care of your possessions and be prepared for aggressive begging. There is a branch of 

Kenya Commercial Bank with an ATM (though do not rely on it taking TCs), a post office, a small supermarket and a Kobil petrol station in town. The local people are persistent in attempts to sell their crafts, but it is generally done in a friendly spirit. You can buy large, beautiful baskets made by local women.

North of Lodwar the A1 continues the 130 km to Kakuma on a good road that the UN has recently tarred. This is the site of a very large refugee camp that was set up in 1992, predominantly to house refugees from southern Sudan. The Lokichokio border is another 188 km further on. Now the civil war has ended in Sudan, people are starting to trickle back, but at its height it accommodated 70,000 people.

Area (Km 2): 68,680.3 Km 2

Climate/Weather: Warm and hot climate, unreliable rainfall pattern ranging between 300mm and 400mm per annum

Road Network: Bitumen Surface (319.2 Km), Gravel Surface (296.7 Km), Earth Surface (2030.5 Km)

Key National Monument(s): Lake Turkana National Park

POPULATION

Population: 855,399 (Male – 52 %, Female – 48 %)

Population Density: 6.9 people per Km 2

National Percentage: 2.2 %

Annual Growth Rate: Not Available

Age Distribution: 0-14 years (46.0%), 15-64 years (51.6 %), 65+ years (2.4%)

Number of Households: 123,192

GOVERNMENT

County Capital: Lodwar Town (proposed)

Number of Constituencies (2010): 3 (Turkana North, Turkana Central, and Turkana South)

Registered Voters: 116,816

National percentage: 1.0 %

Number of Districts (2009): 6 (Turkana Central, Turkana North, Turkana South, Turkana West, Turkana East, Loima)

Number of Local Authorities (2010): 2 (Municipal council of Lodwar, County Council of Turkana)

ECONOMICS

Poverty Level: 95% of populations live below poverty line

Age Dependency Ratio: 89.4

Resources: Natural (gemstones and saltlicks, gold – dormant, wildlife, Lake Turkana, Turkwell Dam)

Tourist Attractions: Lake Turkana National Park, Loiyangalani Desert Museum

Financial Services: 3 Commercial Banks, 2 Micro-finance Institutions

Main Economic Activities/industries: Livestock farming and trade, fishing, weaving, and tourism

Agricultural products: Sorghum, Maize

EDUCATION

Number of Institutions (2007): Primary (202), Secondary (19)

Primary: Enrolment (122,883)

Teacher to Pupil Ratio: 1: 51

Secondary: Enrolment (48,004)

Teacher to Pupil Ratio: 1: 27.7 (Public Schools)

Tertiary: At least 2 Institutions

Adult Literacy Classes: Enrolment (562)

HEALTH

Health Facilities: District Hospitals (3), Sub-District Hospitals (2), Dispensaries (91), Health Centers (6), Medical Clinics (19), Health Programs (3) Others (3)

Doctor to Population Ratio: 1:52,434

Infant Mortality Rates: 60/1000

Under Five Mortality Rates: 12/1000

Prevalent Diseases: Malnutrition

Notable Hospitals: Lodwar, Katilu, and Lokitaung District Hospitals

Prominent People from Turkana County.

Pauline Akai Lokuruka… holds an MA in International Development from Cornell University, USA, and currently lectures at the Institute of Women, Gender and Development Studies at Egerton University

  

Sons and daughters

A Bachelor of Education graduate of the University of Nairobi, Ms Lokuruka has more than 20 years’ experience and involvement in women’s and girls’ development and education and is a board member of various learning institution and state corporations.

Joyce Akai Emanikor … is chairwoman of the Kerio Valley Development Authority and has been instrumental in championing for educational rights of Turkana children, especially girls, and for beating poverty through work.

Ms Emanikor, who is experienced in social policy analysis and training for empowerment is undertaking a doctorate in environmental planning and management at Moi University, Eldoret.

Christopher Nekuleu … a former member of the East African Community Legislative Assembly from the Turkana North area, is a graduate of Moi University and a former teacher.

He has championed the rights of Turkana people, particularly in the accountability of public funding in their behalf (for example use of Constituency Development Fund) before being appointed to the assembly.

Samson Akoru … general secretary of the Reformed Church of East Africa, whose headquarters is in Eldoret, is respected among the Turkana for helping to broker peace with the Pokot.

The Rev Akoru, from Turkana South, has also been at the forefront of the fight against poverty and illiteracy and of irrigation in the Kainuk area, and in arguing for equal education opportunities.

Daniel Nanok … served as a principal of Lodwar High school before entering politics. He contested Turkana North in 2007 but lost to Mr. Munyes and is now advocating transparency in using CDF cash, and championing education and poverty eradication.

Ekuru Aukot … the lawyer was a member of the Committee of Experts on the new Constitution and one of the most respected Turkana professionals. He has also served as director of Kituo Cha Sheria.

Patrick Nachok … began his footballing career in Kitale before joining Eldoret KCC and finally the national team, Harambee Stars. A computer expert, his ambition is to run football in Kenya.

Joseph Kalei … the renowned marathon runner joined athletics having looked after livestock and has become a role model to Turkana youth.

Paul Ereng … is a former 800 meters champion who was among the first Turkana to take up athletics and is now a noted coach.

Joseph Ebuya … is another athlete who encourages Turkana youths to take up sport. He won last year’s world cross country championships

 

Kenya’s Largest Single Private Investment Endorsed by Kenya Vision 2030

Mugo Kibati, Director General of Vision 2030 Delivery Secretariat (right) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Carlo Van Wageningen, Chairman, Lake Turkana Wind Power (left), endorsing the largest single private investment in Kenya’s history, amounting to Ksh 75 billion (€582 million).

Kenya’s Largest Single Private Investment Endorsed by Kenya Vision 2030

Kenya Vision 2030 Signs Memorandum of Understanding with Lake Turkana Wind Power
16 October 2012 Nairobi, Kenya…

The Vision 2030 Delivery Board has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Lake Turkana Wind Power (LTWP), endorsing the largest single private investment in Kenya’s history, amounting to Ksh 75 billion (€582 million).
The project will provide 300MW of reliable, low cost wind power to the Kenya national grid, equivalent to approximately 20% of the current installed electricity generating capacity. The wind farm site, covering 40,000 acres (162km2), is located in Loyangalani District, Marsabit West County, in north-eastern Kenya, approximately 50km north of South Horr Township.
“The wind energy resource at Lake Turkana is exceptional,” said Carlo Van Wageningen, Chairman, LTWP. “The average wind speed is approximately 11meters / second and wind blows consistently from the South East. Given this exceptional wind resource at the project site the project will be a reliable and cost effective source of energy for the entire country.”
“In addition to providing reliable low cost power the project will bring numerous macroeconomic, community and social benefits for the region,” added Van Wageningen. “During the 32 month construction period, up to approximately 2 500 jobs will be created followed by over 200 full time jobs throughout the period of operations, mainly targeting local Kenyan’s. We will be implementing a comprehensive training and international skills transfer program for which it will not only build capacity for individuals to but intellectual benfit for Kenya as a whole.”
The Government of Kenya’s Least Cost Development Power Plan shows that LTWP wind power will be one of the least cost power generation options available in the country along with geothermal power and at even less cost than the feed in tariff for other wind projects set at US$12 cents/kWh.  The project will replace the need for Kenya to spend approximately Ksh 15.6 billion (€120 million) per year on importing fuel.
“This project reduces the need to depend on unreliable hydro and on expensive, unpredictably priced fossil fuel based power generation and insulates Kenya’s power tariff by providing a low and consistent power price,” said Mugo Kibati, Director General of Vision 2030 Delivery Secretariat. “Kenya stands to save Euro 120 Million of fuel imports as a result of shifting its electricity generation mix to include the power to be produced by LTWP.”
The Project will comprise 365 wind turbines (each with a capacity of 850 kW), the associated overhead electric grid collection system and a high voltage substation. The Project also includes upgrading of the existing road from Laisamis to the wind farm site, a distance of approximately 204km, as well as an access road network in and around the site for construction, operations and maintenance. The Kenya Electricity Transmission Company Ltd (Ketraco), with concessional funding from the Spanish Government, is constructing a double circuit 400kv, 428km transmission line to deliver the LTWP electricity along with power from other future plants to the national grid.
"Kenya is set to further develop as the hub of trade and logistics in the Sub-Saharan Africa in line with the Vision 2030 outcomes for Kenya. The inclusion of a wind farm in Kenya increases the industrialization efforts for Kenya, which are necessary to helping Kenya realize a middle-income status by 2030 by ensuring that there is access to reliable and cost-effective electricity. In addition, the project will bring numerous social and economic benefits to Kenya, which we as the Vision 2030 Delivery Secretariat are totally committed to implementing," added Kibati.
Ends –
For further press information please contact:
Mary E. O’Reilly Veronicah Muchiri
The Energy Source Communications Manager
Phone # + 254 733 751 799 Kenya Vision 2030 Delivery Secretariat
Email : media@ltwp.co.ke Tel.+254 (0) 722 320 333
Email : vmuchiri@vision2030.go.ke

Notes To Editors:
Lake Turkana Wind Power
The Lake Turkana Wind Power Project (LTWP) aims to provide 300MW of reliable, low cost wind power to the Kenya national grid, equivalent to approximately 20% of the current installed electricity generating capacity. The Project is of significant strategic benefit to Kenya, and at Ksh75 billion (€582 million) will be the largest single private investment in Kenya’s history. The wind farm site, covering 40,000 acres (162km2), is located in Loyangalani District, Marsabit West County, in north-eastern Kenya, approximately 50km north of South Horr Township.
Kenya Vision 2030
The Kenya Vision 2030 is the national long-term development blue-print that aims to transform Kenya into a newly industrialising, middle-income country providing a high quality of life to all its citizens by 2030 in a clean and secure environment.
The Vision comprises of three key pillars: Economic; Social; and Political. The Economic Pillar aims to achieve an average economic growth rate of 10 per cent per annum and sustaining the same until 2030. The Social Pillar seeks to engender just, cohesive and equitable social development in a clean and secure environment, while the Political Pillar aims to realise an issue-based, people-centred, result-oriented and accountable democratic system.
The three pillars are anchored on the foundations of macroeconomic stability; infrastructural development; Science, Technology and Innovation (STI); Land Reforms; Human Resources Development; Security and Public Sector Reforms.

Ministry of Public Health in collaboration with Aphia Plus Imarisha strategize on community health issues in Turk

Aphia Plus Imarisha and Ministry of public health today held a workshop at St. Teresa pastoral center to introduce activities done in the community by the two stakeholders. The workshop focused more on educating the community on health issues. Speaking during the workshop, the District Public Health Turkana Central, Mr. Innocent Sifuna, said that the best way to go about that is to involve the community in all the stages of community participation. Mr. Sifuna also said that through community strategy, involvement of the community in taking up responsibilities to improve community level of awareness. The workshop attracted more than 12 public officers from 6 districts and members of Aphia Plus Imarisha. The health officers were collecting issues which they believe shall help the government in the programme of health in the community. Mr. Sifuna, however, said that although they haven't run the programme they still believe they will succeed in doing so. The programme has never being in the Turkana community until recently some of the stakeholders have come in and have started to educate the District public health officers.

DISASTER REDUCTION PROCESS IN TURKANA COUNTY

The department of disaster risk reduction and response had ended their three day workshop at St,Teresa Pastoralist center in Lodwar. Speaking during the training, the assistant secretary in the department of disaster risk reduction and response Mr. Gordon Omuga said that the workshop aims at bringing about disaster reduction issue which is development issue is to mainstream pro gramme in the development so that they can minimizes the impact of disasters. MR. Gordon also said that the government has done a lot of response to disaster which in the long run is more expensive in damages caused, loss of lives and loss of properties. The pro gramme is supported by the ministry of state for special pro gramme in conjunction with united nation development projects [UNDP] which is a 5year pro gramme that started 2year a go. Mr. Omuga however said that the line ministries that attended the 3day workshop was the 6 Districts commissioners .The in charges of disaster management committees in Turkana region among other respective ministries . The pro gramme is not for Turkana country but it is a pro gramme that runs across the country, global county. district wise to the community level.

Farmers from Napeikar and Napak

Farmers from Napeikar and Napak along river Turkwel from Loima district today had their meeting at splash guest house on the issue of environmental, water management and conservation measures. Speaking during the event, the project officer Mr. Francis Mariao narrated on how the irrigation scheme of Napeikar and Napak began saying it was started by Turkana rehabilitation project (TRP) some 20yrs back and now is not working. Mr. Mario noted that the two irrigation scheme for Napeikar and Napak are funded by United state of African development Fund (USADF). Mr. Mariao said that the farmers are entitled to clean and healthy environment and have the collective responsibility to safe guard the environment. Mr. Francis said that, national environmental management authority (NEMA) is always carrying out environmental audits in the areas and monitors all activities that are likely to have significant effect on the environment. He also added that the project implements on food security to make sure that food is produced in Turkana, to curb dependency on relief food. He also reported that few individual farmers that toured pekerra irrigation scheme had learned a lot from there. In spite of keeping livestock in Turkana they have seen the essence of farming in the area.

Turkana: Beliefs and Religions

Introduction

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Despite their independence, their bravery and their freedom of movement, the Turkana are unable to control the single most vital element for ensuring their continuing prosperity: rain.
   Rainfall is erratic, although usually sufficient to provide enough fresh grazing for the animals. But every few years (on average every ten), a natural cycle which may be connected to the El Niño effect causes a devastating drought, and with it the decimation of herds and the deaths of many people. Contrary to what many people believe, these droughts are not a cruel anomaly of nature (or global warming), but a naturally recurring if unpredictable event which the Turkana must survive. Yet the unpredictable nature of these events, as well as the terrible toll they take, have inevitably led them to explain this - and rainfall in general - as the work of a force beyond their control. This force is God, whom the Turkana call Akuj.

Akuj - God

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The vast majority of the Turkana still follow their traditional religion, which on the surface seems straightforward enough. There's one supreme God - Akuj - who is associated with the sky, and who can be addressed through prayer or through intermediaries such as diviners and living-dead ancestors. Like most people living in dry lands, the Turkana associate God with the provision or non-provision of rain. If God is happy, he will give rain. But if he is angry with the people, he will withhold it.
   His plans can be 'read' by "dreamers", and he can be called upon in times of need or during important ritual life-stages such as birth, the confirmation of marriage, and in death. At other times, little concern is given to his existence, as indeed the Turkana believe that God pays little heed to them, and this to such an extent that he sometimes needs to be reminded of their existence.
   Akuj resides in the sky, or else is the sky itself. He also lives near the tops of mountains, particularly those responsible for rain. Akuj, however, is neither thunder nor lightning, for the Turkana know that there can be lightning without rain, but there cannot be rain without Akuj.
   The word Akuj (Akuji, or Kuj) itself derives from the same root as the words for 'up' or 'above' (nakuj means sky or heavens). As the provider of rain, Akuj is thus a benevolent force, although he is both the giver and taker of life. The Turkana have no God-centred creation myth as such, but Akuj's role as rain giver, and thus life-giver, is commonly misconstrued by some ethnologists to mean that he is also the Creator.
For the Turkana, the 'above' is a world divided between Akuj (God) or Akuj Nameri (God of the Stars) and Nipen or Ngiapan (spirits). Animal sacrifices are made both to Akuj and the spirits, so as to placate them at times of drought, famine, flooding, animal epidemics or any other disaster beyond human control.

Prophets and Diviners - the Dreamers

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With such an unpredictable God as Akuj, it pays to be forewarned. This is the work of various diviners and prophets known collectively as emuron, who are able to interpret or predict Akuj's plans through their dreams, or through other means such as the reading of a sacrificed animal's intestines, tobacco, "string", gourds and stones, and most famously through the tossing of sandals, whose configuration when fallen back to earth can be interpreted (akiteyen; "caused to know") as a sign. Most are men (ngimurok), although there are some women, too (ngamurok). The emuron are God's chief representatives, purifiers of age-sets, predictors of the outcome of raids or war, and rainmakers. There role is not only one of prediction, but also to find the causes and cures of disease, and thus they also function as doctors. When people have troubles, they approach the appropriate emuron, who will divine the proper course of action to take. Often, a diviner will have a certain limited area of responsibilities defined by the extent of their powers. In a case where other skills are needed, they will work together towards the common end.
   In all cases, it is the emuron's role to relate what Akuj wants to communicate with the Turkana.

Initiation of a Dreamer

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The most powerful form of emuron is the ekerujan or "dreamer", who has the closest union with Akuj, for it is in dreams that Akuj speaks most clearly to humans.
   The role of emuron cannot be learned; neither is it hereditary, although a successful emuron is more likely to have children with the same powers as him- or herself. Instead, the state of prophethood is literally a calling, one chosen by Akuj. Before Akuj begins to communicate, he leads the unwitting candidate away from his home by the means of good spirits (ngipian lu ajokak). The prophet is taken to a place with much grass and animals, after which he is returned home. The person, probably rather shocked by what has happened, will relate the experience to other people, who then take him to an established emuron, who assures them that the man has been "taken away" by Akuj. The man is then purified (amook), and returns to normal life. It may be that that's the end of it all, and nothing further happens. But more usual is that the man begins to dream in a way different from before: he can "see" his dreams clearly, he begins to "speak out" (alimor) his "dreams" (ngakirujaeta), and they come true. This is because his having been "taken away" took him close to Akuj. He is now an emuron.

Rain and Sacrifice

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Self-evidently, the dreamers can only be as accurate as Akuj or the extent of their powers allow them to be. In any event, they are powerless to prevent God from acting out his schemes or from forgetting to bring rain. Theirs is only a transmissive role.
   So, come a disaster such as the failure of the rains, it is commonly believed that God is angry with the people, or that he has simply forgotten them. Indeed, some sources state that Akuj prefers cattle to people, and that people are really no more than a side-show. Whatever, the people now need either to placate Akuj, or remind him of their existence, and this is achieved through the propitiatory sacrifice of animals to influence Akuj, presided over by a special emuron.
   The sacrifice itself is relatively uncomplicated. The animal to be sacrificed is presented to Akuj with a simple and direct formula, something like "This is your animal, take it" or "This is your ox, take him." The sacrificers then continue with an equally blunt demand: "Give us life, health, animals, grass, rain and all good things". As Akuj owns all the world's cattle, the sacrifice could be seen as the spirit of the sacrificed animal being recombined with Akuj.
   Animal sacrifices are also made at important social events such as birth, initiation, marriage and death, where God is made happy through a sacrifice, and presumably won't make anything bad in relation to the event sanctified. Sacrifices are sometimes also called for to cure a person of a disease. The sacrificial animal for this has to be the same gender as the person who wishes to be cured, although the emuron can decide otherwise if he dreamt about the case.
Anthony J. Barrett, in his introduction to Sacrifice and Prophecy in Turkana Cosmology, writes:

Sacrifice in Turkana can only be understood within the context of Turkana theology and, specifically, within the ambience of "prophecy" (adwaris) and its sub-elements, viz., utterance, word, vision, ecstasy, bitterness, dream, perspicacity, vocation (to call away), transportation (to be carried away by Akuj), prediction. All these elements are associated with sickness, "enemies" (ngimoe), war, raids, witchcraft, drought, rain and unusual occurrences.

Prophecy, sacrifice, the sacred and Akuj are intricately connected. Without prophecy, there would be no reason for sacrifice; without the sacred, the sacrifice would have no sense; and without God, the sacrifice would be done for nought.
   Sacrifices can be seen as attempts by humans to bridge broken relations with Akuj. Through sacrifice, Akuj is "made cool" (akitillimilim) and "happy" (akitalakar) through the sweet-smelling odour of the roasted meat and the live-giving principle (eta) which has been released. Incidentally, the principle of 'coolness' is not surprisingly a sacred one, with many connotations. This is especially evident in the respect which is accorded to trees by cause of the shade that they provide. Shade, as well as rain to which the Turkana word is related, is seen as a blessing. And in the shade of a tree, elders traditionally gather to make decisions, to offer sacrifices, or arrange raids. In this same shade, too, is where meat-feasts eaten, warriors decorated, men initiated, marriages arranged and finalised, judgement made, Akuj implored; spears, wrist-knives and fighting sticks are also made in a tree's shade.
From a musical point of view, the sacrifices are also some of the best times for traditional music. For despite the primary role of the emuron in ceremonies such as rain-making, songs addressed to Akuj can be sung both by individuals and groups to ask for rain. I found one sweet recording of a girl singing to Akuj for rain in Loiyangalani, but unfortunately that got left off the copy I made. Next time, I promise!

Death and the Ancestors

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The death of a family head is very important because it raises the problem of settling the inheritance. Death of a family head or older person is accompanied by intense mourning. The body is disposed of by burial and often a meat feast will follow.
   The cult of the dead is only given to the father and mother and important people such as emuron. These only have a right to be buried in the ground on which their hut is built. The hut will then be pulled down or abandoned. The eldest son inserts a piece of butter in the mouth of the dead person pronouncing this formula: "sleep in the cool earth and do not be angry with us, who remain on this earth." Other people traditionally were not given a burial, but were abandoned to hyenas and vultures. Nowadays, however, the Turkana are obliged to bury all their dead by law, although this is only verifiable in permanent settlements and in places where Christian missionaries have influence.
   As is a common belief throughout Africa, the Turkana believe that upon death, the souls of the deceased go to the sky or else near to God. This does not, however, cut them off from their human relatives, who continue to hold that the living-dead are near to them and can be approached through prayer, libation and offerings. Thus the living-dead act as intermediaries between men and God, or between men and important, but more distant, forefathers. The "good" ancestors (ngikaram) can influence Akuj on their people's behalf through the medium of an emuron and the elders. However, the "good" ancestors can also be temperamental: diseases are often said to have been caused by them in anger at having been forgotten, much like Akuj 'forgets' the rain if the people have forgotten him.
   In order to cure a disease, then, the patient can only be cured if the relationship with the ancestors is also cured, through prayers for unity that accompany an animal sacrifice, where pieces of meat are thrown towards the former dwelling places of ancestors, such as mountains, hills and rivers.

Christianity

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From the traditionalist's standpoint, the lack of success met by the Christian missions among the Turkana is a wholly refreshing change from the usual tale of conversion followed by swift entry into settled life, cash economy and abandonment of many pre-Christian beliefs, customs, rituals and musics.
   Since 1961, when the Africa Inland Mission established a food-distribution centre and mission at Lokori to offset a famine that had started the year before, Christianity has been met with only limited success. Despite two hundred missionaries in the field today, the swift nomadic lifestyle of the Turkana precludes any long-term attempts at conversion, so that the only established churches are among the minority of settled Turkana in the small towns near the lake, and on the lakeshore itself where fishing is practised. These missions have managed to infiltrate traditional society through the provision of healthcare and schools as well as feeding centres in times of drought. Of Turkana District's six hospitals, four are run by churches; six of the seven health centres are Christian-run, as are 25 of its 27 dispensaries. Of course, this is by no means a negative thing. If criticism is to be levelled at anyone, it should be squarely aimed at the both the colonial and successive post-independence governments who have consistently shown a monumental indifference to the state of the Turkana.
Nonetheless, evangelical websites talk wistfully of the Turkana:

"The Turkana are characteristically non-religious, therefore reaching them is difficult."
"The Turkana are receptive to change if they feel it is to their advantage. However, religion is not seen as a vital part of their life so they are indifferent to Christianity."
"The Turkana are nomadic people and any effort to assist these people will be difficult. The Turkana church must continue to deal with Turkana traditions. Some of these traditions are whole some and should not be incorporated into the Christian community. Others are contrary to Christian principles and must be transformed before they can be incorporated. Others must be rejected by the Christian community. A truly effective strategy that speaks to the Turkana has yet to be discovered."

The rather more Machiavellian truth is broached in passing on the Caleb Project's website: "The exposure to outside peoples, which has come with the efforts to assist the Turkana, has also exposed them to new lifestyle which is tearing apart traditional social networks. A people undergoing this kind of radical change are usually very open to new things such as Christianity, but unless they hear the Gospel quickly, new values will be patterned after other ideologies."
Thankfully, the Turkana have proved formidably indifferent to the message preached by the Christians. Surely, Akuj cannot be indifferent?!

Introduction of Turkana people

The Turkana are a Nilotic people native to the Turkana District in northwest Kenya, a semi-arid climate region bordering Lake Turkana in the east, Pokot, Rendille and Samburu to the south, Uganda to the west, and Sudan and Ethiopia to the north. They refer to their land as Turkan.

According to the 2009 Kenyan census, Turkana number 855,399, or 2.5% of the Kenyan population, making Turkana the third largest Nilotic ethnic group in Kenya, after the Kalenjin and the Luo, slightly more numerous than the Maasai, and the tenth largest ethnicity in all of Kenya. Although this figure was initially controversial and rejected as too large by Planning Minister Wycliffe Oparanya, a court ruling (Feb 7, 2012) by Justice Mohammed Warsame stated that the Kenyan government accepts the 2009 census figures for Turkana.

The language of the Turkana, an Eastern Nilotic language, is also called Turkana; their own name for it is ŋaTurkana or aŋajep a ŋaTurkana.
The Turkana people call themselves ŋiTurkana (The Turkana). The name means the people of Turkan. They are mainly semi-nomadic pastoralists.

The Turkana are noted for raising camels and weaving baskets. In their oral traditions they designate themselves the people of the grey bull, after the Zebu, the domestication of which played an important role in their history. In recent years, development aid programs have aimed at introducing fishing among the Turkana (a taboo in some sections of The Turkana society) with very limited success.
Famous Turkana include supermodel Ajuma Nasenyana, and key Kenyan government officials including: Kenyan Ambassador to Thailand, H.E. Dr. Richard Titus Ekai; Minister of Labour, Hon. John Kiyonga Munyes - MP; and Hon. Ekwee Ethuro - MP.

Clothing

Traditionally, men and women both wear wraps made of rectangular woven materials and animal skins. Today these cloths are normally purchased, having been manufactured in Nairobi or elsewhere in Kenya. Often men wear their wraps similar to tunics, with one end connected with the other end over the right shoulder, and carry wrist knives made of steel and goat hide. Men also carry stools (known as ekicholong) and will use these for simple chairs rather than sitting on the hot midday sand. These stools also double as headrests, keeping one's head elevated from the sand, and protecting any ceremonial head decorations from being damaged. It is also not uncommon for men to carry several staves; one is used for walking and balance when carrying loads; the other, usually slimmer and longer, is used to prod livestock during herding activities. Women will customarily wear necklaces, and will shave their hair completely which often has beads attached to the loose ends of hair. Men wear their hair shaved. Women wear two pieces of cloth, one being wrapped around the waist while the other covers the top. Traditionally leather wraps covered with ostrich egg shell beads were the norm for women's undergarments, though these are now uncommon in many areas.
The Turkana people have elaborate clothing and adornment styles. Clothing is used to distinguish between age groups, development stages, occasions and status of individuals or groups in the Turkana community.
Today, many Turkana have adopted western-style clothing. This is especially prominent among both men and women who live in town centers throughout Turkana.

Livestock

The Turkana rely on several rivers, such as the Turkwel River and Kerio River. When these rivers flood, new sediment and water extend onto the river plain that is cultivated after heavy rainstorms, which occur infrequently. When the rivers dry up, open-pit wells are dug in the riverbed which are used for watering livestock and human consumption. There are few, if any, developed wells for community and livestock drinking water, and often families must travel several hours searching for water for their livestock and themselves.
Livestock is an important aspect of Turkana culture. Goats, camels, donkeys and zebu are the primary herd stock utilized by the Turkana people. In this society, livestock functions not only as a milk and meat producer, but as form of currency used for bride-price negotiations and dowries. Often, a young man will be given a single goat with which to start a herd, and he will accumulate more via animal husbandry. In turn, once he has accumulated sufficient livestock, these animals will be used to negotiate for wives. It is not uncommon for Turkana men to lead polygynous lifestyles, since livestock wealth will determine the number of wives each can negotiate for and support.

Food

Turkana rely on their animals for milk, meat and blood. Wild fruits are gathered by women from the bushes and cooked for 12 hours. Slaughtered goats are roasted on a fire and only their entrails and skin removed. Roasting meat is a favorite way of consuming meat. The Turkana often trade with the Pokots for maize and beans, Marakwet for Tobacco and Maasai for maize and vegetables. The Turkana buy tea from the towns and make milk tea. In the morning people eat maize porridge with milk, while for lunch and dinner they eat plain maize porridge with a stew. Zebu are only eaten during festivals while goat is consumed more frequently. Fish is taboo for some of the Turkana clans (or brands, "ngimacharin"). Men often go hunting to catch dik dik, wildebeest, wild pig, antelope, marsh deer, hare and many more. After the hunt men go out again to gather honey which is the only sweet thing the Turkana have.

Houses

Houses are constructed over a wooden framework of domed saplings on which fronds of the Doum Palm tree Hyphaene thebaica, hides or skins, are thatched and lashed on. The house is large enough to house a family of six. Usually during the wet season they are elongated and covered with cowdung. Animals are kept in a brush wood pen. Due to changes in the climatic conditions most Turkana have started changing from the traditional method of herding cattle to agro-pastoralism.

Turkana Traditional Religion

A clear boundary is not drawn between the sacred and the profane in Turkana society. In this regard, Turkana traditional religion is undifferentiated from Turkana social structure or epistemological reality—the religion and the culture are one. The Turkana are pastoralists whose lives are shaped by the extreme climate in which they live. Each day one must seek to find the blessings of life—water, food, livestock, wives, children—in a manner that appeases the ancestral spirits and is in harmony with the peace within the community. Properly following the traditions (ngitalio) in daily life will certainly lead to blessing. Blessings are understood to be an increase in wealth, whether livestock, children, wives or even food. It is only through proper relationships with God (Akuj) and the ancestors, proper protection from evil, and participation in the moral economy of the community that one can be blessed.
Essentially, Turkana believe in the reality of a Supreme Being named Akuj. Not much is known about Akuj other than the fact that he alone created the world and is in control of the blessings of life. There is also a belief in the existence of ancestors, ngipean or ngikaram, yet these are seen to be malevolent, requiring animal sacrifices to be appeased when angry. When angered or troubled, the ancestors will possess people in the family in order to verbally communicate with their family. There is also the recognition of “The Ancestor,” Ekipe, who is seen as much more active in the everyday lives of people, yet only in negative ways. There is much concern over protecting one’s family and oneself from the evil of the Ekipe. Turkana Christians and missionaries equate ekipe with the biblical character of Devil or Satan and this has shifted more traditional understandings of ekipe away from “an evil spirit” to “The Evil one.” Turkana religious specialists, ngimurok, continue to act as intermediaries between living people and ancestors and also help in problem solving in communities.
As in most African traditional religions, traditional religious specialists in Turkana are present and play an active role in almost every community event. Ngimurok help to identify both the source of evil, sickness or other problems that present themselves, and the solution or specific cure or sacrifice that needs to take place in order to restore abundant life in the family and the community. There are various types of diviners differentiated by the emuron’s source of revelation. According to Barrett, the “true diviners,” also known as the “diviners of God,” are the most respected of the ngimurok because they receive revelations directly from Akuj, normally through dreams.^[2] These “true diviners” follow in the pattern of the most famous Turkana ngimurok, Lokerio and Lokorijem.^[3] The latter regularly received dreams from Akuj informing him of the location of the British Army during early 20th century colonial struggles, and the former is said to have used the power and knowledge of God to divide Lake Turkana so that warriors could walk across the lake to steal camels.^[4]
These ngimurok of God can still be found throughout Turkana, each in their own territory, alongside specialized ngimurok who have received specific abilities to read tea leaves, tobacco, intestines, shoes, stones and string. There are also hidden evil specialists, ngikasubak, who use objects in secret to work against people in the community, and ngikapilak, who specialize in pronouncing very strong curses employing the use of body parts from those recently deceased, but these are not included in the term emuron. Ngimurok are the people that Akuj and the Fathers speaks to in dreams; they are also the ones who can communicate with the ancestors to discern what sort of animal sacrifice is needed to restore peace, bring rain, find a remedy for a child’s illness, or who can properly bless the families at a wedding.
The ngimurok in each area receive direct revelations from Akuj, who is still directly active and concerned with the creation. These ngimurok do not speak or receive messages through an intermediary god or spirit through possession. While ancestor possessions are common in Turkana, they normally occur among younger people at the home, so that the ancestor can communicate their message to those in the home. The emuron would then be consulted as to what should be done. Ngimurok are not known as people who are normally possessed. Apart from the ngimurok, there are also important clan rituals in Turkana that represent the acknowledgement and transitions of life force. The most important rituals are the birth rituals (akidoun), male and female initiation rituals that do not include circumcision (asapan and akinyonyo), marriage rituals (Akuuta), annual blessing sacrifices (Apiaret a awi), and death rituals (Akinuuk). Each of these rituals is overseen by the elders of the clan, both men and women. The elders also over see the community wide wedding rituals, but an emuron normally plays a role in blessing the marriage.

History

The Turkana entered Turkana basin from the north as one unit of the Ateker confederation. The Ateker cluster split as a result of internal differences leading to emergence of distinct independent groups. Turkana people emerged as a victorious group. The victory of the Turkana people in the initial Ateker conflict led to enmity between Turkana people and other Ateker cluster groups. Ateker cluster groups formed military alliances against The Turkana. The Turkana emerged victorious again by co-opting young people from conquered groups. The military power and wealth of the Turkana increased in what is now the northern plains of Turkana.

The establishment of the Turkana people developed as a distinct group which expanded southwards conquering ethnic nations south of its borders. The Turkana people easily conquered groups it came in contact with by employing superior tactics of war, better weapons and military organization. By 1600s, the Turkana basin had been fully occupied by Turkana people and allied friendly groups.

There was a relative long period of peace among indigenous ethnic communities around Turkana until the onset of European colonization of Africa. Sporadic conflicts involved Turkana fights against Arab, swahili and Abyssinian slave raiders and ivory traders. European colonization brought a new dimension to conflict with Turkana putting up a lasting resistance to a complex enemy, the British. The Turkana put up and maintained active resistance to British colonial advances leading to a passive presence of colonial administration. By the outbreak of WW I, few parts of Turkana had been put under colonial administration.
From WW I through to end of WW II, Turkana actively participated in the wars as allies of Britain against invading Italy. Turkana was used as the launching pad for the war against invading Italian forces leading to the liberation of Abyssinia.

After WW II, the British led disarmament and pacification campaigns in Turkana, leading to massive disruptions and dispossession of Turkana pastoralists. The colonial administration practiced a policy of deliberate segregation of Turkana people by categorizing Turkana Province as a closed district. This led to marginalization and underdevelopment in the lead up to Kenya's independence.

History of Turkana, Music and Culture of People

Somewhat surprisingly, there's a fair amount of information available about the Turkana, collected not only from missionary sources and a few outstanding researchers, but by the British during their long stand-off with the tribe throughout the colonial period, during which time they never quite managed to subjugate what are still widely known as one of Kenya's most bellicose and warlike peoples. As a result, there was virtually no colonial influence in the district or on its people: no permanent roads, schools, churches, and with the exception of a few small outposts such as Lodwar, no towns or settlements either. Lodwar itself was considered so isolated from mainstream colonial Kenya that Jomo Kenyatta was sent here into one of his many exiles during the struggle for freedom. Lodwar still retains that outpost feeling, and several times I heard people exclaim, when they learned that I was headed back south, "Ah, so you're going to Kenya!"
After independence, the Turkana were left more or less on their own, and only in the 1970s was the district finally connected to the rest of Kenya by tarmac. Consequently, the Turkana have remained aloof to the modernization sweeping the rest of the nation, and for the most part remain essentially unfazed by persistent attempts to introduce them to agriculture, Christianity and the cash economy. This is not to say that they are stubbornly resistant to change - they are pragmatic when it suits them - but only that they rightly see no reason to change if the old ways are working as well as they have always done.
   In any case, their nomadic lifestyle has, of course, also precluded any lasting contact with the modern world and its missionaries, whether religious, political or economic. The only exceptions have have been during times of severe drought and famine, most devastatingly in the early 1970s and mid-1980s when thousands of families lost their livestock and were forced to congregate around the aid-distribution centres of Lodwar, Lokichokio and Kalokol on the west side of the lake, and at Loiyangalani on the east.

Mitochondrial DNA - the oldest society on earth?

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Thanks to the famous discoveries of fossilized ancient humans around the shores of Lake Turkana, researchers, guidebooks, authors of glossy coffee-table picture books, anthropologists, ethnologists and others have for many years taken to calling Turkana-land the "Cradle of Mankind".
   Thousands of papers have been written about these fossils, but sadly the heaps of accounts, reports, abstracts, books and theses concerning Lake Turkana make scant if any mention of the present-day Turkana themselves, as any search on the internet will verify.
   They made no mention, that is, until the late 1990s, when a group of researchers began using DNA technology to estimate the relative age of individual human societies. The logic, if not the technique, is actually quite simple. Human DNA, like the DNA of all living beings, can mutate. The best-known example is skin cancer, which is caused by the DNA of skin cells mutating due to, among other factors, extreme exposure to ultraviolet light. Other factors include artificial foodstuffs whose exact working remains unknown, radiation etc., and even - according to some - global catastrophes such as massive volcanic eruptions or a meteor or comet striking the earth, which would release huge amounts of potentially carcinogenic DNA-mutating materials into the atmosphere.
   The recent research into the human genetic blueprints of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) estimates the genetic diversity of a people by counting and mapping the number of mutations in the DNA. The idea is that there are less and less as different peoples interbreed. The results of these studies showed that, with 44 'random genetic mutations' in their mtDNA compared with only four among southeast Asians and the Maori, the Turkana are - so far - the 'oldest' human society yet found on earth. Well, at least among the 34 different racial groups who were studied.
   The general conclusion is that, as humans left Africa and fanned out in successively smaller groups across Asia and the Pacific, genetic diversity was gradually reduced. What it actually means (it doesn't actually prove the 'Out of Africa' or 'African Eve' theory, although it helps), is only that the Turkana have remained a more homogenous (interbred) group than any of the other tested. Being fierce, independent, nomadic, and not exactly taken to loving their neighbours, it's easy to see how!

Origins: the Wayward Ox and the Jie Woman

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The Turkana are the largest of the seven ethnic groups that make up what is called the 'Karamajong cluster', which includes the Karamajong, Jie, Teso, Dodos and Donyiro in Uganda, and the Toposa of Sudan.
   The actual name "Turkana" is something of a mystery, with the most commonly ascribed meaning being a corruption of 'turkwen', which means 'cave people', or 'aturkan' which means 'cave land'. As there are no caves in present-day Turkana-land (at least east of the Ugandan border), they must have migrated from elsewhere. This much is certain, as each of the nineteen sections of the Turkana agree that their recent origins lie to the west of their current homeland. The story, which has been carried down from mouth to mouth for many centuries, goes something like this:

A long time ago, the common ancestors of the Turkana, the Jie and of all the other 'Karamajong' tribes, lived in a place called Apuli, which was in southern Sudan or Ethiopia. Some 300 to 500 years ago, they began to migrate southwards to their present homeland in the far northeast of Uganda.
   After a while, a group of young men from the Jie section of the Karamajong were sent eastwards into the Tarach Valley (west/northwest of Lodwar in Kenya) in search of a wayward ox, whose tracks they were following.
   They wandered far from their people, and finally met a solitary old Jie woman called Nayece who was gathering fruit. She led the young warriors into a lush and verdant valley, unoccupied by people, that was rich in the wild berries which still form an important part of the Turkana diet. Nayece also gave the men fire, and taught them how to cook.
   Impressed with the area, the men talked other young people into joining them, and together they moved in with their livestock. Nayece divided the men into territorial sections (the basis of Turkana society today), and became the mother-heroine of the Turkana. Ever since, the Turkana and Jie have been allies.

Historically, this story is not disputed: the Turkana, as well as most historians, accept that the Turkana broke with the Jie around the middle of the eighteenth century, probably during extreme drought, and migrated eastwards over the Dodoth Escarpment in northeastern Uganda and into Kenya following the Tarach (or Tarac) river. Their "cave land" (aturkan) may well have been a hill called Moru a Nayece, though I'm afraid I know nothing more about it. The migrations may also have been caused by livestock overcrowding, brought about by successive migrations from the north, which - if the present climate is anything to go by - would have led to protracted feuding and fighting between the various Karamajong groups.
   Once in Kenya, the seasonal Turkwel and Kagwalassi (or Nakwehe) river valleys would have aided rapid dispersal into present-day Turkana District.
It is generally accepted that at least two separate migrations into Kenya took place, most probably in the form of successive sweeps, as there's also an oral history which states that, some two to three hundred years ago, the Turkana started to move southward towards the Kagwalassi and Turkwel Rivers which flow into Lake Turkana, where the episode with the wayward ox in the Tarach Valley occurred. The Turkana themselves make a distinction between an agriculturalist section named Ngicuro (who live in the western highlands on the Ugandan border), who are said to have some from the Teso people; and the remaining eighteen pastoralist sections called Ngimonia, who came from the Jie.
What is important to note is that the Turkana are indisputably related to the Karamajong tribes (and keep a number of their traditions to the present-day, such as not circumcising), and that they came originally from the north in what is now southern Sudan or Ethiopia. This southward-moving pattern is familiar throughout Kenya, not just among Nilotic and Cushitic tribes, but also among the Bantu of central Kenya and the Mijikenda of the coast. This would seem to reflect the increasing aridity of the northern tropics, which is the same mechanism by which the Sahara expanded and still continues to expand, pushing its original inhabitants outwards like foam on the edge of a wave.
   The wayward ox could simply be a metaphor for a leader, which fits in well with Turkana's celebrated love for wandering: there are apparently 23 separate words in the Turkana language for describing styles of walk - if anyone knows them, I've love to hear!

Early European Explorers

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Ptolemy's Map of the World, which dates from around 150 AD, shows two lakes as the presumed sources of Nile, both of them north of the Mountains of the Moon (now called Ruwenzori). The western one was almost certainly Lake Victoria, while the eastern one may well have been Lake Turkana. Although the lake no longer flows into the Nile, it certainly did in the past, albeit several millennia before Ptolemy's time.
   Whatever, its existence was already known before the first Europeans set eyes on it, and was marked as "Lake Zambura" on early maps, and known to mid-nineteenth-century explorers as Lake Samburu.
The first non-Africans to reach the lake were in all probability Arab traders in ivory or slaves, if the various trade beads found around the lake are anything to go by. The first Europeans to reach the lake were the Transylvanian count Sámuel Teleki von Szek and the naval officer Lieut. Ludwig von Höhnel. They arrived at the lake with their expedition in 1888, after having set out from Pangani (now in Tanzania) in February 1887, and climbed both Kilimanjaro and Mount Kenya. In time-honoured tradition, they completely ignored the local name for the lake (Basso Narok, which meant 'Great Water'), and instead christened it Lake Rudolf, in honour of their Habsburg patron, the crown prince of the Austro-Hungarian Empire who later committed suicide (the name was officially changed to Turkana in 1975).
   Teleki described the expedition's delight - and subsequent disillusion - on reaching the lake, in his diary entry for March 6, 1888 (these are extracts from several sources, unfortunately all quite loosely translated, as I haven't been able to see an original copy of his diary):

After several months of journeying, from October 1887 to March 1888, we approached Lake Rudolf. There was a mighty mountain mass looming up before us. We hurried as fast as we could to the top of our ridge, the scene gradually developing itself as we advanced, until an entirely new world was spread out before our astonished eyes.
   The void down in the depths beneath became filled as if by magic with picturesque mountains and rugged slopes, with a medley of ravines and valleys, which appeared to be closing up from every side to form a fitting frame for the dark green, gleaming surface of the lake stretching away beyond as far as the eye could reach.
   For a long time we gazed in speechless delight, spellbound by the beauty of the scene before us, whilst our men, equally silent, stared into the distance for a few minutes presently to break into shouts of astonishment at the sight of the glittering expanse of the great lake which melted on the horizon into the blue of the sky.

But the approach to the lake the next day hid disappointment:

...when the sun rose higher its rays were reflected from the smooth black surface of the rock, causing an almost intolerable glare, whilst a burning wind from the south whirled the sand in our faces, and almost blew the load off the heads of the men ... after working our way through plains covered with black streams of lava, and dotted with craters from one of which clouds of smoke rose, we finally stood upon the beach of the lake. The beautiful water stretched away before us, clear as crystal... although exhausted we felt our spirits rise, rushed down shouting into the lake ... and, bitter disappointment: the water was brackish.

The expedition was almost completely dehydrated, and it is easy to understand the delusion they felt on discovering that the water was saline and undrinkable. Yet actually, had they tried, they would have realised that the water is drinkable... obviously, nobody had bothered asking the lake's inhabitants (not surprisingly, as the expedition seemed happier firing on local people than trying to talk with them).
For all its exotic allure to the Europeans of the time, the report of the expedition had one important scientific result. In 1891, the Viennese geologist Eduard Suess, who had never been to Africa but had collected the explorers' accounts on his desk, realised that when plotted on a map, Lake Turkana and its smaller companion to the northeast, Chew Bahir, appeared as links in a connected chain leading north to the Red Sea. He declared that the whole line of country from Lake Nyasa in the south to the river Jordan in the north had been fractured by a connected series of earth movements. He called the feature a 'graben', which is German for a trench or a grave. Thus was the way laid open to the geological understanding of the formation of the Rift Valley, which itself led to the now widely-accepted theory of plate tectonics in the twentieth century.

Droughts of the recent past

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In such times of extreme drought, the Turkana are at their most vulnerable. But helping them is not as simple as it sounds. In the 1960s and 1970s, after a period of drought and wars, the Kenya government together with the United Nations resolved to 'help' the Turkana by transforming them into farmers. The people affected were primarily goat herders from along the Turkwel River, who traditionally fed their animals on the pods of acacia tortilis trees (or 'umbrella thorn', for its distinctive spreading crown), which the Turkana call ekwar. Some of these trees are individually-owned, but others - the primary fall-back in times of drought, for humans too, as the pods can be made into a porridge, and Maasai eat the immature seeds - are communally-owned. A group of elders were the arbiters of when each family would be allowed to feed off the communal acacias, which both avoided conflicts and helped preserve a valuable drought resource. However, when the farming projects failed, the Turkana went back to goat herding, but no longer had the firm guidance and restrictions of their elders about where and when to feed their herds. As a result, disputes escalated and the acacia trees quickly became depleted. Any trip around Kalokol will still reveal the scars of that time - I was told that there had once been thick woodland here, but for the most part all I saw was scrub.
   The depletion of woodland has also accelerated in the last few decades, as poverty-stricken people have turned to producing charcoal to sell to townspeople in the administrative centres and military posts, with obvious results. And with trees gone, erosion occurs so much more quickly, which in turn hastens the onset of the next famine as there is nothing left in the soil to capture what little rain does fall on this dry and dusty land.