Home > Anthropology, Archaeology > Vol 1 No 1 June 2013 Abstract 2
Indigenous Irrigation and Food Security in Tot Division, Kerio Valley, Kenya
Daniel Kipkorir, Joram Kareithi
Journal of Anthropology & Archaeology, 1(1), pp. 12-27.

Abstract
Kerio valley is one of the driest areas in the republic of Kenya. The region is inhabited by the Keiyo and Marakwet sub-groups of the Kalenjin speaking people. The Keiyo inhabit the south while the Marakwet occupy the northern part of the region. Oral traditions state that the communities settled in the semiarid valley in small agnatic clans in early 1800s and have for hundreds of years used indigenous irrigation furrows to enhance food security through food crop cultivation. Kerio Valley experiences an annual rainfall of 900-950mm per year which mostly falls in the months of May and August with intermittent dry spells within the months. Irrigation activity, therefore, supplements the insufficient rain. The Marakwet introduced the irrigation by tapping water from perennial rivers such as Embobut, Arror, Embomon, Enou, Tunyo, Chebilet, Kiptinos, Embolot and Chesegon. Recent studies show that Tot Division is highly plagued with hunger. Although the area has many irrigation furrows, it is perennially dependent on food relief by government and other agencies. Decay of the irrigation systems and increased population are the main factors that have directly contributed to food insecurity in the valley.

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Kipkorir, Daniel., & Kareithi, Joram. (2013). Indigenous Irrigation and Food Security in Tot Division, Kerio Valley, Keny. Journal of Anthropology & Archaeology, 1(1), pp. 12-27.

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Mr. Daniel Kipkorir is a Curator at the National Museums of Kenya (NMK) and a Part Time Lecturer at the Department of Anthropology and Human Ecology, School of Arts and Social Sciences, Moi University. He graduated from the University of Nairobi in 1994 with B.A (Hons) in Anthropology. He joined NMK in1996 as Research Fellow at the Department of Ethnography and was appointed Curator in 1999. In 2004, he worked at Kabarnet Museum and assisted a team of American researchers led by Dr. Andrew Hill of the Yale University in anthropological projects undertaken in Tugen Hills and Baringo Basin. He returned to the University of Nairobi in 2005 to pursue post graduate Diploma in the Care and Management of Heritage and Museum Collections.
In 2007 he joined Moi University to pursue MPhil in Anthropology and completed in 2009. Currently, he is a PhD Candidate in Anthropology in the same university. His research interest in anthropology includes material culture and museology, indigenous knowledge systems, human evolution, archaeology and conservation of historical sites and monuments. He participated in international anthropological field school in Karonga, Malawi in 2009 with students from Germany, Ethiopia, Tanzania and Malawi. He has published and edited articles in international journals. Kipkorir is a member of British Institute in Eastern Africa, International council of museums, international council of museums of ethnography and African council of museums.

Dr. Joram N. Kareithi is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Anthropology and Human Ecology, Moi University, Kenya. He graduated with a BA (Hons) in Anthropology from the University of Nairobi in 1989, MPhil in Anthropology (University of Cambridge) 1991 and a DPhil (Moi University) in 2000. Before joining Moi University he worked in the Ministry of Culture and Social Services in the Government of Kenya as a District Cultural Officer in charge of Marsabit District.
He was Head Department of Anthropology and Human Ecology, Moi University 2005-2011 and is currently the Graduate Studies Committee, School of Arts and Social Sciences, Moi University. His research interests are in, Economic Anthropology, Development Anthropology, and Political Anthropology. He has recently carried out research projects in Drought Planning and Rain Water Harvesting among the Turkana of North-West, Kenya under the Netherlands Israel Research Programme (NIRP); Urban Poverty under the Robert McNamara Fellowships Programme (World Bank Institute) ; The Challenge of Orphan Fosterage in the Era of HIV/AIDS in North Rift Region, Rift Valley Province, Kenya, Sponsored by Organisation for Social Science Research in Eastern and Southern Africa (OSSREA); and was an Anthropological Advisor on a research project on Urban Land Delivery System in Eldoret Municipality, Kenya under Birmingham University. He has published articles in journals and book chapters in these areas of research.
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