Samburu, Kenya

Monday, November 10, 2025

By Julie CAPELLE

“God, God, God, protect them,” chant two pastors as they watch a dozen camels rush toward acacia trees, indifferent to the dry riverbed in northern Kenya, where it hasn’t rained since April.

Sitting on the edge of a nearby well, Chapan Lolpusike recounts how he lost his cows and oxen, “all dead” after the worst drought in four decades in the region, caused by a succession of failed rains in 2021-2022.

“We no longer have any cattle at home,” explains the Samburu herder, a semi-nomadic ethnic group. “We only raise camels,” he continues, referring to dromedaries, which are part of the camel family, or camelids.

These long-necked, one-humped mammals, which can feed on dry grass and go more than a week without drinking, are becoming increasingly common in northern Kenya, which is vulnerable to global warming. This is especially true since they produce up to six times more milk than traditional livestock

The Samburu County authorities launched a large-scale food security program based on these quadrupeds in 2015, after several episodes of drought had decimated at least 70% of cattle in Kenya’s arid and semi-arid areas, with a devastating impact in terms of malnutrition. 5,000 Somali camels—a larger and more productive species than the native livestock—have already been distributed, including 1,000 during the past year.

– Nutritious milk –

Mr. Lolpusike, who knew nothing about camelids, received some in 2023.

In his manyatta, a hamlet of rectangular huts set in a shrubby savanna area, a dozen camels lie peacefully chewing dry grass.

The goal is that eventually every family in the county will have their own, explains James Lolpusike, the village administrator, who has no family ties to the farmer. “If the drought persists, the cattle will disappear,” unlike the camels, which will “replace” them, he observes.

Camels remain less well known than cattle, the official admits. Several studies have pointed out that some of their herds have been decimated by disease.

But a positive change is “visible” in northern and eastern Samburu, where these mammals can be seen in greater numbers along the roads, and children are healthier, he says.

In Chapan Lolpusike’s manyatta, the inhabitants are delighted that camels can be milked up to five times a day.

“Cows are only milked when the grass is green,” explains Naimalu Lentaka, 40. “Camels (…) during the dry season, we still milk them, and that’s the difference,” she says happily.

In the region, families now “depend on camels, on those who have them,” says Naimalu Lentaka.

– Instrument of peace –

Camel milk and human breast milk have similar nutritional and therapeutic properties, according to a 2022 study by the University of Meru (central Kenya). During prolonged dry seasons, milk contributes up to 50% of the total nutrient intake among pastoral communities in the north of the country.

The animal is also a star in the region, where an endurance race is dedicated to it. At the “Maralal International Camel Derby” in Samburu County, some 40 camels raced in front of a jubilant crowd at the end of September.

The winner covered 21 kilometers, the equivalent of a half marathon, in 1 hour and 22 minutes, far outpacing many local long-distance runners.

But the event was primarily aimed at promoting “peaceful cultural interactions.”

Among its countless virtues, the dromedary is also described as a vector of peace.

When the dry season arrives, cattle must be taken to more fertile lands, where they may encounter herds from other communities, leading to conflicts between herders that have resulted in hundreds of deaths.

But camels stay put, says administrator James Lolpusike, and “reduce conflicts.”

But even for these resilient animals, “we need more water,” he notes. “In reality, (…) we pray that the situation does not get worse.”

Humaniterre with AFP