It was late afternoon in Faidika Village in Isinya Kajiado County, the evening sun struggling to radiate the remaining heat with all its might. Sitting on a concrete approach road outside her house, Wambui, with her youngest son, was trying to make the best use of the dying warmth of the sun.
Seeing visitors approach, she rushed to lead them to her house, through an open courtyard so spotlessly clean that stepping on it might evoke a feeling of guilt. But that is how Wambui likes to keep her house, resting on an eighth acre piece of land located on the plains of Isinya Sub County in Kajiado, Kenya. Land that she calls her own.
“I received the land title and record of my rights to the land from Ndatani Enterprises Co Ltd about one and a half years ago,” she said, producing the documents from a plastic file. Wambui lives with her two sons and her husband, Njoroge, a day laborer. It’s difficult for the couple to make ends meet on a meagre income. Their plot of land, however, is a big relief.
Life is improving for the dwellers in the hamlet after receiving their title deeds secure rights to the land, thanks to Ndatani Enterprises Co Ltd(a real estate company that have been in operational for over the last two decades) for providing affordable plots to the new home owners .After receiving their own piece of land, Wambui and 41 other families in her Faidika village decided to approach the Ministry of Agriculture for advice on what they can do with their plots in addition to their houses. Fortunately the Cabinet Secretary under the Ministry of Agriculture offered them agricultural training, and vegetable seeds for cultivation in their gardens.
“They gave us onions seeds last year,” said Wambui. Produce from the garden helps feed her family.
“We have also learned to do small green houses,” she added, a technique for planting vegetables for a much better production.
This year, Wambui with the help of her husband applied her farming skills to cultivate onions in her mother-in-law’s field that she got from the same Company since she does not have enough space for this in her plot.
“Onions are profitable,” said Wambui, noting it can fetch Kshs 60 per kilogram. She hopes to collect almost 1,500 kilograms at harvest time, valued at Kshs 90,000. – A huge windfall in a place where many people live on less than $2 per day. Like many other plot owners, Wambui also received 20 chicks from the county government, along with chicken feed. These chickens sell at a price of more than Kshs 1000 per kilogram once grown, while eggs can cost up to Kshs 250 per dozen at the market.
Wambui also rear pigs, explaining that she’ll sell one next week for Kshs 40,000.
“The additional income from this plot will help me to take care of my family in a better way, and buy many more plots” Wambui said. “Today I can feed my children better and ensure a better education for them also.
“This land actually solved many of my problems,” she continued. “Today, I have both the hope and the capacity to make my dreams come true.”