The Kasigau Basket Trust

Taita women are responsible for care of the household and fields. Maize is the most common crop; however it does poorly in the arid climate. To supplement their small, unstable income, the women have become creative to provide for their families. The women from the villages surrounding Mt. Kasigau have developed a Basket Trust. They are skilled weavers and have long utilized the sisal plant to create a wide range of utilitarian baskets.
They use a mix of naturally dyed fibers and bought yarn and string for decorative detailing. The women soon realized that although they used the baskets to accomplish daily chores- tourist and outsiders saw them as a beautiful, authentic Kenyan keepsake.
While conducting research in the Kasigau area over the past four years, participants from WKU and the University of Nairobi became familiar with the Basket Trust. We realized immediately the importance of capacity building in the communities and began brainstorming ways we could enhance the income of The Basket Trust. During our research trips we buy baskets from each village. We then re-sell the baskets at a much higher rate in the U.S., returning 100% of the profit to The Basket Trust. A percentage is given to each individual basket-weaver and a percentage is turned over to the trust for investment in projects as they so choose. So far the monies have been used by The Trust to purchase maize in seasons of drought and to pay secondary school fees for the community's youth.