Sauri Millennium Village (케냐 그린빌리지 사례 ④)

[김주영 케냐5기]

Sauri, Kenya

Population: 65,000

Villages: 11

Located in western Kenya, the Sauri cluster lies in Yala Division, Siaya District, Nyanza Province. The general topography is undulating with ephemeral(덧없는, 단명한, 순식간의) streams, rivers, and wetlands meandering(구불구불한) through rounded hills.

Sauri covers an area of 8 squared kilometers and is a conglomerate(집성체) of 11 villages. Nearly all citizens are Kenyan from the Luo ethnic group. The main languages spoken are Dholuo, Kiswahili, and English. The average household size is 5 people.

Sauri has a strong community system, but lacks the revenue for basic services necessary to sustain economic growth. Most households are subsistence or sub-subsistence farmers, and many residents rely on remittances(송금액) from people living and working outside of Sauri to supplement their meager farm incomes. Between 60 and 70% of the population live on less than $1 per day.

Village Characteristics by Sector

AGRICULTURE

Agriculture is the primary livelihood for residents of Sauri. Rainfall is bimodal and helps to define the planting seasons: there is a long rainy season from March to June and a short rainy season from September to December. Land area per household for farming is usually less than 0.5 hectares, which is generally insufficient to support an average family. Prior to the project, farmers produced an average of 82 kg of maize per person per year, a deficit of 18 kg per child and 38 kg per adult. The main crop is maize; farmers also produce beans, sweet potatoes, bananas, plantains, cassava, kale, tomatoes, and onions.

Progress-to-Date – MDG 1: Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger

• Average maize production in Sauri has increased from 1.9 to 5.0 tons per hectare 
• More than 3,800 of Sauri’s farmers also have started growing high-value crops 
• Farmers organized into interest producer groups, trained in agronomic practices, and were linked to potential markets as well as certified agrodealers and microfinance institutions to obtain loans for agricultural investments
• MVP is also supporting the development of dairy initiatives through trainings and artificial insemination(인공수정) of cows (축산도 포함)
• Just 4% of children under the age of 2 are underweight, down from 26%

HEALTH

Before the start of the MVP program Sauri was beset by malnutrition and poor health. People in the villages had limited access to medical care and most were too poor to buy the few medicines that were available. The average distance to a clinic or medical care was 5 km over rough terrain. There was no medical doctor at Yala Sub-District Hospital until January 2005, when the MVP brought one in to split his time between the hospital and the Sauri clinic. Sauri is a holoendemic area for malaria, meaning that malaria is preval‎ent year-round. In the Sauri cluster overall, Ministry of Health statistics show that 52% of cluster residents were afflicted with malaria and 24% with HIV/AIDS.

Progress-to-Date – MDG 4, 5, & 6: Reduce Child Mortality, Improve Maternal Health, and Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Other Diseases

• 5 new health centers have been constructed for a total of 6 in the Sauri cluster: includes operating theater and dental services
• Health facilities have been staffed with 1 doctor, 2 dentists, 7 clinical officers, and 32 nurses
• Training of more than 80 community health workers (CHWs) (구체적으로 어떤 직업?)
• Malaria preval‎ence decreased from 50% to 8%
• Near universal coverage of measles immunization for children
• Proportion of pregnant women tested for HIV has more than doubled to 76%

EDUCATION

At the start of the MVP there were three primary schools within Sauri. There was one secondary school near the western border of Sauri. One of the schools (Nyamninia) had connection to the electricity grid, but the others have no grid, generator or other high-wattage electricity supply. A limited school lunch program was in place prior to the start of interventions but it was only available to less than 20% of primary students.

Progress-to-Date – MDG 2: Achieve Universal Primary Education

• 12 of the 31 schools have been rehabilitated by the MVP, and plans are underway for the construction of more classrooms
• All of Sauri’s school children receive daily school meals consisting of locally grown maize, beans, fruits and vegetables
• Some schools now have school gardens and poultry, which contributes to the school meals and generates income for the program(어떻게 기르는지, 혹시 농사법을 가르치기도 하는지)
• Development of a program for adolescent girls, and hiring additional female teachers to improve student to teacher ratios and gender equity

INFRASTRUCTURE

Water sources in Sauri range from springs (protected and unprotected), shallow wells, piped water, and rainwater harvesting (RWH).(빗물 모으기 시스템) Springs are not easily accessible to the majority and residents walk an average of 300 meters, sometimes up steep slopes, to a water source. Many homesteads have informal RWH systems with metal roof and gutters discharging into buckets. However, approximately 20% of homesteads have only grass-thatched roofs, which do not allow for RWH. The Yala River Piped Water Supply, an extensive water system drawing water from the Yala River, was installed by the government in the late 1970s. Since then, it has rarely functioned properly.

Progress-to-Date – MDG 7 & 8 – Ensure Environmental Sustainability and Develop a Global Partnership For Development

• 60 water sources have been completed and 200 have been protected, serving 15,000 people
• 100% of population now have access to an all-weather road thanks to major road rehabilitation
• Energy saving institutional cookstoves have been installed in schools, and local groups were trained in constructing them
• Some community institutions have been connected to electrical grid and extended plans are underway
• Campaigns for importance of safe water systems and proper hygiene

National Impact

The positive experiences and lessons learned in Sauri are helping to catalyze support from the Kenyan national government, which has taken the initiative to expand the project to the district level. Nine Millennium Districts, including the Siaya District where Sauri is located, have been identified by the government as priority locations for scaling-up the project. Translating the success seen in Sauri to the district level is a crucial step being taken by the Kenyan government and is critical to the national effort for meeting the Millennium Development Goals and lifting millions of Kenyans out of extreme poverty.\