Saturday, September 4, 2010

Jiko Stove Project - Phase 2, Final Installment

The second phase of the Jiko Stove Project in Rift Valley Kenya is nearing completion.  We are making stoves in the villages of Chepkurbet, Anamoi, Kapcheptoror (5 miles from Kericho Town) and Kimilot which is inside the tea estate about 20 miles from Kericho Town.

As I mentioned in  my last post here, we have not had to supervise Emily and Regina who are making the stoves.  Yet these two women have gone beyond the call of duty, making beautiful stoves and even teaching the other women how to take care of their jikos.

Now the rest of these  photos below will show you the latter phases of the work.  Some of the pictures were taken at night so they are a bit dark but they will more than give you an idea about how well this project has gone.

This is a new stove that is in the process of curing (drying and being readied for baking).
Another angle of the stove.

The majority of stoves were made in Chepkurbet for the village women there and last time I checked in, Emily and Regina were on their third day of stove making for the widows in Anamoi. The balance of stoves will be made in the other villages and altogether this part of the project will see 35 stoves completed. In the first phase of the project which occurred about one and a half years ago, we were able to make 11 jiko stoves.  If you like, you can read more about that here.

A small child who will benefit from the reduced smoke emissions of this stove.
All the children in this household who will benefit from reduced smoke and reduced labour to collect firewood.

We are now able to get to more women and families with the jiko stoves. Not all of the women recipients of the stove are widows. Some of them have husbands. The thing they all have in common is that they need a new stove to help them with the environmental and health risks associated with the three stone fires they had been using. Read more about that here. For humble villagers like these to put in such a stove would be quite costly and also viewed as a luxury item.  While it might be financially doable for some it is likely at the expense or risk of not providing food and education for the children and other family members. Food is a necessity for people who often only get one meal a day and education would be considered far more valuable than a jiko stove.


Here is the mother. Just think how much better her daily cooking experience will be. Thank you God!
A fire is lit.
Another family benefits from the jiko.
A mother and her child with the new jiko.
This is an older type of jiko stove that at least one village woman had. You can see that it is an improvement over a stone fire but it is not energy efficient. Smoke and heat still escapes from the top. In a new jiko model the smoke is funnelled to the outside of the home and the stove would need less wood to keep a fire going due to energy efficiency.

I want to say one thing about the husbands also. Generally in Kenya, the men do not associate themselves so much with the concerns of the kitchen or the hardships of cooking. These areas of home life fall under the responsibility of women.  Consequently, I was very happy to hear how as a result of this project, some of the husbands are actively engaged and supportive of these new stoves and that they value them as an advantage for their wives and their households. You will see one of the husbands posing in the photos. You can see he is smiling and proud to have a new jiko stove.


One husband who so appreciates the stove for his family.
This concludes my series on Phase 2 of the Jiko Stove Project. Phase 3 will happen when I get to Kenya. You can read about that in the weeks to come.

16 comments:

Jan said...

I see in the last line that you are going to Kenya.... I am looking forward to hearing all about it.

Thanks for sharing, it is such a different way of life to anything I know.
Hugs and Blessings.

Joyful said...

Hi Jan, yes I plan to go to Kenya, Lord willing. I will indeed be writing about it here on my blog so stay tuned.

Thank you for you interest. Please let me know if there is anything in particular you would like me to report on while I am there. Hugs xx

OneStonedCrow said...

Thank you for this series on the Jiko Stove project Penny - the lot of African women in general is a difficult one indeed.

Kudos to Emily and Regina for driving the project and for their dedication ...

... and not to forget your contribution and effort. Your compassion is a shining light and you are an inspiration indeed.

Unknown said...

Well done on the stove project - it is a huge blessing for the villagers. God bless all the volunteers for easing hard lives.

My Castle in Spain said...

This is wonderful and i'm so so glad that men actually feel concerned too and take part in this project...
it's wonderful to hear... well done !

Bossy Betty said...

Thank you for sharing all of this!!! It is a wonderful project. What a difference you are making.

affectioknit said...

What a blessing those stoves are for warmth and food!

Joyful said...

OSC, thank you for following the series Graham. I appreciate your kind words.

I can hardly wait to get to Kenya and see the women first hand and talk to them about the stoves and other things.

Joyful said...

KTSG, thank you for dropping by. I appreciate your reading and your comments :-) I second your words of praise, thanks and blessing for the volunteers who made this project come to life.

Joyful said...

Lala, thank you my dear for dropping in. I was so pleased also when I heard about the men getting involved. This really warmed my heart so much.

Joyful said...

Bossy Betty, thank you for your kind words. I do believe that each and every one of us has the ability to make a difference in someone's life; either at home or abroad.

Joyful said...

Affectioknit, I totally believe these stoves will be a blessing in the ways you imagine and in other ways for the environment and for the health of the villagers.

Kilauea Poetry said...

I had to eat dinner just now, smile))
"a result of this project, some of the husbands are actively engaged and supportive of these new stoves and that they value them as an advantage for their wives and their households"
Fantastic share..
I too agree- what a blessings for these volunteers! Blessings-














"a result of this project, some of the husbands are actively engaged and supportive of these new stoves and that they value them as an advantage for their wives and their households

Joyful said...

Thank you Regina. I agree ;-)

Heidrun Khokhar, KleinsteMotte said...

Here's hoping you have a safe journey. It's touching to learn that a cleaner way of cooking can have such a big influence in status. We take far too much for granted. Carry on with your mission to help. Gos bless!!!

Joyful said...

I had to eat dinner just now, smile))
"a result of this project, some of the husbands are actively engaged and supportive of these new stoves and that they value them as an advantage for their wives and their households"
Fantastic share..
I too agree- what a blessings for these volunteers! Blessings-














"a result of this project, some of the husbands are actively engaged and supportive of these new stoves and that they value them as an advantage for their wives and their households

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