Salt water from nearby mines is killing Kahaso’s crops
Kahaso Charo, 60, is a farmer who has lived near Garithe in Kenya’s Salt Belt since 2015.
Her once fertile farmland is now being polluted by the salt mining company, Kurawa Salt, which recently moved into the area. The change in water salination is threatening her livelihood.
Kahaso processing her crop
Erika Piñeros/ActionAid
“Our village was filled with palm trees but now they’re all dead because of the salty water,” Kahaso says. “They want me to sell my land to them, but where do I go? The salt company has come to make their money, but it’s killing me.”
More than 2,400 people are locked in a legal battle with a salt mining company.
The Garithe community in Kenya’s Marereni Salt Belt are fighting for their right to continue living and working on nearly 800 acres of land they have farmed for generations.