A collage of Ian Rop and Rose Chepkoech
What
began merely as business for women in the remote areas has now turned into a
big venture profiting thousands of beneficiaries.
Through capacity building, modernization of production, and training on entrepreneurial skills, Ushanga Kenya initiative is creating a great impact to women in the beadwork business across nine Counties.
Conceptualised way back in 2017, the initiative aimed to transform living standards for the pastoralist women by dint of monetising beadwork business.
The initiative also focused on adding value to the raw traditional talent and has consequently spearheaded creation of more than 60 cooperative societies countrywide.
On realising the impact of the venture, the government has taken it a notch higher by launching a digital marketing platform an act that has since proved to be a game changer.
The platform has given the women an advantage in accessing broader market, business sustainability, cheap credit to start and expand businesses, as well as access to cheap loans from the government that help them navigate through the changing market trends.
This initiative has in addition instilled the businesswomen with modern beadwork techniques and styles while connecting and showcasing their artwork to the global online market.
Showcasing different beadwork from different counties, the digital platform has correspondingly helped in boosted tourism at the grassroots hence profiting the women directly at the same time benefitting their respective counties indirectly through revenue collection.
In retrospect, Ushanga Kenya Initiative has recorded immense success stories among them opening of the business to International market through participation of some of the women in the trade fair exhibition in Dubai, greatly impacted the business by bringing more of them on board.
The beadwork, has also been sold and shipped to as far as United States of America, United Kingdom, Germany and France, bringing more money to the beaders and revenue to government.
Creating beautiful products, the women happily narrate love, resilience and cultural pride on their economic transformation.
The benefits they get from selling their products locally and Internationally, has hugely turned around economic stability in communities around them.
I am urging the government to pump in more resources and bring on board government and non-governmental organizations’ players to partner with us in bringing more women into beadwork business thus creating jobs and putting more money into their pockets” advises Dorothy Mashipei, C.E.O. Ushanga Kenya Initiative.
"Since Ushanga Kenya took the initiative to train us, I have now taken beading work as my full-time job and I nowadays bead quality products that I sell locally and internationally.
The profit from my sales, have accorded me support by educating, feeding, and taking care of my family with ease.
We thank the government for coming up with the initiative because it has given us an economic turn-around to our lives," confesses Hellen Montet from Narok County.
The government has also reported a reduction in FGM practice since the creation of Ushanga Kenya initiative an action, that has seen more girls accessing education in the pastoral communities that exercised the outlawed vice."
“Ushanga Kenya, honors and preserve cultures while fighting practices that do not add value to our lives. We are currently supporting other initiatives to get rid of such shortfalls in our communities.
By producing, marketing and selling beadwork globally, we are showing the world that we are on top rather than, at the perennial perceived backwardness” Hellen Ngaiserry, Chairperon Ushanga Kenya Initiative observes.
The height of this success, came in June during the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics.
Apart from directly impacting these women economically, Team Kenya inspired the world with eye-catching Lady’s bracelets, neck pieces, head gear, and Men accessories during the Parade of Nations.
Some of World-beating Olympic champions from different countries were spotted donning Kenyan flag-colored bracelets on tracks competing for medals and the streets of Paris.
Bringing in more women into beadwork business not only diversify their economic income but also expands government’s revenue streams from the export of these products.
The challenge is now upon the National and County governments to put in place policies that recognize, support and makes beadwork business part of traditionally known businesses.
Rose Chepkoech/Ian Rop works at the Office of Government Spokesperson as the PSIP Intern
