The Birth of the Opuk Jakinda Cooperative

In the last year, Kisumu has undergone a social transformation over as it grappled with the effects of a bitterly contested presidential election that resulted in extreme cases of violence. Unfortunately, the women and children bore the brunt of the violence. Given that the society is patriarchal in nature, many women were victims of sexual violence, others lost property, while still others lost their breadwinners in the violence and since have been exposed to increased poverty and ill health. At this time of economic recession, the country is unable to adequately provide its people with basic needs and food prices continue to skyrocket. This has lead to cases of increased incidences of HIV/AIDS and food insecurity as women are forced to use various means to make ends meet.

Following the trauma, fear, and injustice of the December 2007 elections and their aftermath and given the economic challenges facing the community, Voices and its partners have facilitated trainings and networking for groups comprised of primarily women in the Kisumu area in an effort to develop viable and sustainable income generating projects to assist them in providing livelihood for both their families and orphans in the community. Through these trainings, the Opuk Jakinda Cooperative was born.

Opuk Jakinda means hardworking tortoise in the Luo language. Opuk Jakinda Cooperative makes marketable products such as jewelry, paper products, and woven mats from recycled materials and the water hyacinth plant, a plant that spreads over Lake Victoria at an alarming rate and is linked to increases in vector borne diseases, reduced supply of clean potable water, blocking irrigation canals, and a decrease in biodiversity. Voices is working to connect this cooperative and others with partners in the U.S. to earn them a fair wage.