Founded in September 2006, The Samburu Project began with a single, essential mission - bringing clean, reliable water to communities that had none, so that women and families could not simply survive, but thrive!  As we approach our 20-year anniversary as an organization, we find ourselves reflecting not just on how far we’ve come, but where we go from here. 

Then: Our earliest work was about access. We wanted to eliminate the long walks women and children were making to collect water- water that wasn’t safe. We knew that the first step to empowering women was to give them back their time, so they could devote their lives to more fulfilling activities. 

Now: We are witnessing schools opening, women starting businesses, gardens growing and communities taking their first steps out of poverty. Access to clean water opened the door to education, improved health, community growth, and gender equality. Women participate in Samburu Sisters programs, learning leadership, income-generation, and their rights. Girls benefit from menstrual hygiene initiatives that keep them in school. Communities cultivate school gardens, nurturing both food and opportunity. Mentorship programs help young people envision a future beyond survival.

Over the past two decades, we have drilled 170 wells for 155 communities. And because we don’t just drill and walk away, 143 of them are still functioning today. And the ones that were destroyed by natural disasters are being replaced because our commitment is to our Samburu partners. 

Throughout the year, we will be taking a journey through the history of our wells and the communities they serve - highlighting where it all  began, the lives they’ve changed, and the communities they’ve strengthened.

2005-2007

The journey began in 2005 with one simple question: What do women and girls in rural Kenya need most to shape their own futures? Seeking answers, our founder Kristen Kosinski traveled across the country, meeting with women leaders, listening to their stories, and learning from their lived realities. 

It was in Samburu that the answer became clear. There, Kristen met Mariamu “Mama Mussa” Lekwale, a respected community leader who opened the doors, walking her from village to village, introducing her to hundreds of women. Different lives, different struggles, but one shared truth: without water, nothing else could follow.

From that realization, The Samburu Project was born. Together, Kristen and Mama Mussa brought the first four wells to life, transforming access to clean water in communities that had long gone without. When Mama Mussa passed away unexpectedly in 2007, her spirit and leadership did not end; they became part of the foundation of every well, every program, and every life changed since.

In our first two years as an organization, we drilled 12 wells for Samburu communities suffering from extreme drought. Today, all but one of those communities continues to receive life-saving access to clean water. According to recent surveys, the wells drilled in our first two years currently serve more than 7,100 people. Five of the communities now have primary schools. Since drilling wells for these 12 communities, we have hosted one Samburu Sisters workshop, nine menstrual hygiene workshops, and supported the installation of handwashing stations and latrines at one of the Primary Schools - expanding the impact of clean water into health, dignity, and opportunity.