Ngutuk Ongiron Group Ranch (NOGR) is a registered community owned group ranch under the laws of Kenya, certificate of incorporation number 343, it has an area of 35,414 hectares (ha) with an estimated population of about 3000 people, and lies in the heart of Samburu Land.

The Westgate Community Conservancy (WGCC) is the development arm of the Ngutuk Ongiron Group Ranch (NOGR) and is also a registered community based organization that deals with all developmental issues on the ranch in terms of conservation, tourism and the community.

The aim of the WGCC is to educate the local community to understand the benefits of living harmoniously with the surrounding wildlife. Conservation can never be truly successful without the support of the people whose livelihoods depend on the habitat that is trying to be conserved. Wildlife must bring perceptible benefits to the communities it shares the land with, if people are to stop seeing it as a threat and start to see it as an advantage.

AIMS OF THE SASAAB COMMUNITY AND EDUCATION TRUST

The Sasaab Community and Education Trust has been established to work with the WGCC to help improve the quality of life of the members of the NOGR community.
We hope to generate income for this project through the kind donation of funds from friends, guests and other visitors to Sasaab Lodge.

We will provide a mechanism for donor feedback and ensure that all monies are accounted for and progress reports are sent out.

EDUCATION WITHIN NOGR

The Group Ranch has a total of four primary schools and eight pre-primary schools, all these schools are in need of facilities and educational materials.

PRE-SCHOOL DEVELOPMENT

These schools have been developed for children between the ages of 3 and 6. It has been found that if the children are introduced to the education system early, before they have taken up their traditional role within the manyatta of goat herding, they are more likely to continue to primary school.
We visited all of the NOGR pre-schools - three of them have no classroom furniture at all. Two do not have any latrines or toilet facilities for the children.
Two of these schools have only one teacher and two classrooms that cater for over 60 children each all of very different ages, with differing needs. Due to the enormous distances between villages, these schools are providing an education for children who should have moved into primary schools.

PRIMARY SCHOOL DEVELOPMENT

There is only one school on the group ranch that provides a full primary education, which is located at the Eastern end of the ranch (boarding facility available). Ngutuk Ongiron Primary School, is centrally located but is only able to educate children up to Class 4. There is a future requirement to develop this primary school so that it can educate children up to Class 8.

PROGRESS SO FAR:
Thanks to the generosity of our guests we have provided Ngutuk Ongiron Primary School with:
• 50 New desks
• 2 Cupboards for books and art supplies
• A selection of posters and learning materials to decorate the class room walls
• Art Supplies.
• All the curriculum books the school required - over 200 books.

SCHOOL FOOD PROGRAM

Providing school children with a meal during the school day is a way of encouraging parents to allow their children to come to school.

It is a well researched fact that children also perform better with significantly higher levels of concentration when they are well nourished.

A guest has funded a project to provide food to one school on WGCC for one year.

WOMANS COMMUNITY PROJECTS

Within the Samburu culture woman are marginilised and have not been allowed to become involved in any significant development. They rely on their men folk to provide for them which can result in long periods of very difficult living conditions. They play the vital role of rearing and transferring generations yet most of them live in abject poverty. This is compounded by a high prevalence of illiteracy and therefore a poor understanding of the matters that affect them.

However, as education becomes more available to young girls and woman, subtle changes are starting to occur, and the Samburu women are coming together to form groups and they are trying to fight their poverty together.

In conjunction with the Community Development Officer of WGCC, we are working with organized groups of women, to buy artifacts from them to sell in our shop and for use around the lodge.

PROGRESS SO FAR:
We have three registered woman's groups who are making Samburu bracelets and beaded bottles for Sasaab Lodge. For every bracelet sold 50% of the sale price will be set aside to fund more community projects and each woman will be paid for their work thus providing them with an income.

WGCC is a member of the Northern Rangelands Trust, who have formed NRT Trading, a non-profit organization, which is educating women to understand, benefit from and conserve the wildlife in their area through the creation of a sustainable fair trade enterprise producing unique, quality, hand-made gifts. The profit raised from the sale of these gifts goes directly to education, healthcare and improved nutrition for women and their families. NRT Trading products can be purchased in our shop.

For more information please see their website at: www.nrt-kenya.org/trading

COMMUNITY HEALTH PROJECTS

HEALTH PROJECTS

We are working with the WGCC community health care workers to identify other areas of need to help plan a community health program which would benefit the whole community.

A motor bike has already been purchased through the very generous donation of a guest, with the aim of introducing a mobile clinic to help bring health care to people who live in very isolated areas of the group ranch.

THE BEADY EYE

The Samburu Tribes people are nomadic pastoralists living in manyattas. A lack of clean drinking water and poor sanitation makes them vulnerable to infectious diseases. Trachoma is one of the leading infectious causes of blindness and preventable blindness world wide. It is a chronic eye infection caused by poor hygiene techniques. It is a very painful condition and will lead to blindness

There is a national initiative underway, funded by the Ministry of Health in conjunction with AMREF in the Samburu district which Sasaab Lodge wishes to help support.

For more information please look at the website: www.olmaloeyeproject.com

NOMADIC COMMUNTIES TRUST

The NCT is a Kenyan registered community based project, which through means of a mobile medical clinic, offers health care services to the communities of the Samburu district. The services provided include Reproductive Health, and Family Planning advice, HIV Aid awareness including voluntary Counseling and Testing and provision of non-antiretroviral health services, basic primary health facilities, immunization and information on Female Genital Mutilation.

This clinic is unique in that it uses any means necessary to provide access to people in the most remote parts of the region.

For more information please look at their website: www.nomadictrust.com

WILDLIFE CONSERVATION

Lion Project

Lion Conservation has become a global issue with a species population reduction of 30-50% over the last two decades. This is largely due to habitat loss and conflict with humans.The lions in the Samburu region are in a vulnerable situation, living in or adjacent to areas inhabited by nomadic people. Their predatory behaviour has caused great resentment amongst the increasing rural pastoralist population.

The overall objective of this lion study is to enhance the survival of a vulnerable species by gaining a better understanding of the issues facing the future of lions in this region.
This research is being carried out by Shivani Bhalla as part of her PhD, and will also contribute to the research being carried out on the already endangered Grevy Zebra population.

For more information please look at Shivani's website on: www.ewasolions.org and also her blog on Wildlife Direct which is www.ewasolions.wildlifedirect.org

The Grevy Zebra Trust

In recent history, Grevy's zebra (Equus grevyi), a species nearly endemic to Kenya, has undergone one of the most drastic reductions of range of any African mammal. Northern Kenya holds approximately 93% of these with the remaining 7% in Ethiopia. The decline in numbers continues over the majority of this species' range, primarily as a result of poaching and competition for critical resources. In addition, there have been significant, very recent declines in the numbers of Grevy's zebra due to disease and drought.
The long-term survival of this species is, thus, inextricably linked to the support of local communities that share the land. Involving local communities in the ongoing efforts to protect and monitor Grevy's zebra and raising awareness of the benefits of wildlife conservation are critical prerequisites for success.

WGCC is home to the core conservation area of the Grevy Zebra Trust.

For more information please look at their website: www.nrt-kenya.org/endangered.

The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust

Since the WGCC was established we have had two orphan elephants Lempaute and Loijuk rescued by the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust and taken to Nairobi to be hand reared. Both very sick baby elephants recovered and are doing very well, their rescues are documented in a file in the mess.

If you wish to Foster an orphan elephant or find out more about all the fantastic elephant and rhino conservation work the trust is involved with please look at their website www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org

WATER PROJECT

The highest priority social project for the community is a reliable, portable and affordable supply of water to the settlement area of Ngutuk Ongiron. The Samburu community who occupy this village have little capacity to utilize the scarce water supply that they currently have to its full potential. This coupled with poor management of the existing water resources further truncates water accessibility within the village. As a result lack of water has hampered other development initiatives in this area of the group ranch.

This is a large and costly project to initiate but will significantly improve the quality of life and opportunities for the resident population.

Total Budget: 5,577,764.00KShs (90,000usd )

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES
• To safeguard and facilitate the right of the community to a portable water supply.
• To create awareness of the value of water and its requisite management.
• To protect and sustainably conserve the catchments environment.

BENEFICIARIES
To serve members of Ngutuk Ongiron Village - a general population of approximately 500 people.
To serve institutions such as primary schools, the health centre and the church.

There is a full written proposal for this project in the office for any person who is interested in having more detailed information.

To support any of these worthy projects donations can be made to:

If you would like your donation to be used for a particular project please make sure that you specify clearly with your payment.

Thank you for your support.