The following project, including a video and photo essay, was made possible through funding from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting. 


Breaking Out of the Boma


For the past century, Maasai men have been the sole financial providers for their families. However, with increasing droughts and dwindling land access due to conservation, men are becoming unable to provide for their multiple wives and families. Many women, often forbidden from working and yet unable to watch their families suffer, have forgone societal norms and started businesses — selling small goods like petroleum jelly or snuff tobacco from their homes or nearby markets. While usually making less than $5 USD a week, these women risk abuse and community backlash for their actions. In recent years, NGO’s and veteran Maasai businesswomen have created women’s collectives that provide support to this new generation of Maasai businesswomen. With these collectives, opinions towards women are shifting.

The photos follow three generations of women in Oltukai Village, Tanzania as they learn from each other, struggle to grow (or start) their businesses, and challenge their village’s conception of women. 

This project recently placed as a National Finalist for the Society of Professional Journalists' Mark of Excellence Awards.

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Nearly finished with her two-hour walk to the Sunday market near Tarangire National Park, Kelele’s mother, Sipapei Lekisamba, laughs at a joke made by a fellow Maasai woman. Since most Maasai in the area go to the market after church, Lekisamba often walk
Nearly finished with her two-hour walk to the Sunday market near Tarangire National Park, Kelele’s mother, Sipapei Lekisamba, laughs at a joke made by a fellow Maasai woman. Since most Maasai in the area go to the market after church, Lekisamba often walks early to the market alone or with one or two other businesswomen. The practical problems associated with selling goods in such a rural area keep many women from starting businesses. (Sydney Combs / Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting)
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