While most of Mifuko's products are made in seven different workshops across Nairobi, our bags and baskets come from Mombasa and Machakos.
We have tried to design the Nairobi products in a way that conveys some of the city's vibrancy, the hot midday sun, red soil and razzmatazz of the roadside, which forms part of everyday life in this hub of East African commerce and culture. The Mombasa products reflect the more laid back rhythms of the Indian Ocean, the smell of spices and the curvaceous lines of palm fronds and coral.
Mifuko artisans in Kenya
In the Eastern Province of Kenya in Machakos, there is a village, where a group of 40 women work together. Mama Kasee is the head of this women's group, called Eetu Aombe, which makes kiondo baskets for Mifuko. The group uses a work system based on a merry-go-round idea, in which each member puts part of their salary, received from the sale of baskets, into a common fund. This means that they can access savings when needed and more importantly, protect part of their salary from relatives or husbands who might otherwise have a claim to it. We have met Mama Kasee several times and received a great gift from her of mangoes and a rooster!
Raphael is married and he and his wife have five children (three boys and two girls). Raphael also walks with a limp as he was affected by polio at the age of five.
He joined Bombolulu in 1996 as a trainee in tailoring and dressmaking for one year, after which he become a self employed tailor in his rural home.
He decided to come back to Bombolulu to train in leather work so that he could learn a new skill and when he finished his training, he was offered a contract. Raphael is paid on weekly basis and the amount he earns is enough to cater for the needs of his wife and children. Raphael plans to have his own workshop in the future, so that he too can offer employment opportunities to people with disabilities.
Jonathan Charoe walks with a slight limp because he was affected with polio at the age of nine.
Jonathan joined Bombolulu as a trainee in tailoring and dressmaking in 2000. When he saw how some of his colleagues worked with leather, he became very interested in this craft but decided that he should nevertheless follow through with tailoring and dressmaking. On completing his training, he was given a sewing machine and started his own business as a tailor. Although he was successful, he never forgot his fascination with leather work. In 2003, Jonathon decided to join the leather workshop and re-train. At the end of his year of training, Jonathan had become an excellent leather craftsman and was making bags, belts and menu covers. Bombolulu noticed his diligence and skill and asked him to stay with them on a contractual basis. He has been with them ever since and makes an average of three bags a day, depending on the complexity of the design.
Jonathan enjoys his work because he earns a living, feels a sense of pride, broadens his skills and is not held back because of his disability. Thanks to Bombolulu, he has gained acceptance despite his physical handicap and discovered a remarkable talent that he gets to use every day.
In future Jonathan hopes to be able to acquire the necessary machines to enable him open a leather training school for other disabled persons.
Marcia grew up and did her schooling in Nairobi. She had had nothing to do with disabled persons until she joined Bombolulu, as an administrative assistant, in 1997. Her original intention was to gain some work experience and then look for better prospects elsewhere. However, she soon realized that the disabled persons at Bombolulu were a very special and loving group of people. She was able to make friends and even fit into the community, by learning sign language. Marcia decided to stay at Bombolulu and advance her studies, to enable her get a better position. She now helps disabled people connect with the outside world, with her sales skills. She enjoys her work and hopes that she will continue making positive changes for disabled people. Marcia believes that disabled people do not necessarily need charity but they do need to be given an opportunity to make a decent living, by using their natural talents.
Mifuko wooden owl key rings and birds are produced in a carpentry workshop near Nairobi. Nicodemus, Benjamin, Cecilia and David carve East African wooden birds in their workshop. Nicodemus and Cecilia have four children, who are already in school. The carpenter's trade has been learned from their parents.
Nicodemus and Cecilia are originally from Kitui village but now live in Ongata Rongai, on the outskirts of Nairobi. The benefits of their work are being independent entrepreneurs, being able to educate their children and taking care of their mother. Their biggest challenge is finding markets for their goods, which have little local appeal and which are aimed at foreign markets which they cannot reach. This is where Mifuko hopes to help with their great product.
Mama Sairas leads to a self-help women's group, which employs more than 100 women in Karinde village near Nairobi. Mary has three grown children and has always been a single parent. Mary is a strong and determined woman who is good at organizing things. Mifuko wants to support the group and keep the women working!
Caro Heta joined Rift Valley Leather in January 2009 and has progressed rapidly through the company, from Administrative Assistant to Purchasing and Production Manager. She identifies suppliers, negotiates prices and ensures that the factory is readily and promptly supplied with all necessary materials. She has forged particularly good relations with Bata, our principal leather supplier. Caro manages most aspects of production, with her colleague Peter Mutua, identifying bottlenecks and overseeing the regular flow of output.
Steve works as a smith making casted aluminum and brass jewelry for Mifuko. He is 29 years old and lives with his baby son Fidel (named after Fidel Castro), nine year old sister and beautiful wife Maurine, in Kibera slum. He has a small workshop behind his house, which employs five people. Aluminum jewelry is cast from scrap. Steve buys it from street boys. He told us that his goal is to help them back to normal life. Currently, he employs a former street boy called Mbura (meaning cat). Mbura no longer lives on the street but has a house and family.
Steve is doing good job!