The Maasai are an indigenous tribe that has been living as semi-nomadic/seasonal pastoralists for centuries. Through the modernization that comes with a globalized world, the original Maasai lifestyle has become more and more difficult to maintain. An increasing population combined with the loss of grazing lands has resulted in a reduction in cattle livestock – traditionally the core source of income and basis of existence in Maasai culture and society. Poverty rates among many Maasai are high as they struggle for livelihood opportunities in an economic system foreign to their culture.

At the same time, in Maasai culture, the women’s role is restricted to rearing children and housekeeping. Just one generation ago, less than 20 percent of Maasai women in Kenya enrolled in school. Today, even with free primary school education in Kenya since January 2003, less than 48 percent of Maasai girls enroll in primary school, while only 10 percent of girls make it to secondary school. Due to cultural barriers and wide-spread illiteracy, Maasai women typically have no possibilities to equally contribute to their family’s income and participate in today’s economic system.