Paying to Visit an African Village, Right or Wrong?

We recently took our three kids to Kenya.  Of course, this included a safari in the Maasai Mara, home of the indigenous Maasai Worriors. I did my best to find an outfitter that seemed to give back to the local community and was pleased when we arrived to learn that it was one of only a few outfitters of over hundreds of camps actually owned and run by a Maasai.  Like many outfitters, this safari included the option (for an additional fee) to visit a local Maasai village.

The village clearly knew we were coming and welcomed us with a dance in their traditional Maasai Worrior clothing, took us inside one of their mud huts, talked about how they lived, let us take as many pictures as we wanted, and ended in a little craft market with heavily inflated prices.

Was this a contrived experience?  Should we have done it?

I am going to err on the side and say even though it was contrived to some degree, these people really do live and dress like this.  We are talking tiny mud huts, with no running water, no agriculture, children in tattered clothes of whom a small percent go to school (supported by our safari camp).  Nothing contrived about that.  The Maasai are also extremely proud people and there is pride in showing others how they live.

My travels have taught me that abject poverty and oppression do not necessarily go hand in hand as is easy to assume.  Enough cannot be said about the power of community and a strong sense of tradition to enrich even the poorest of lives.  This is important to me for my kids to understand.

The ending of the visit with the push to buy inflated crafts clearly diminished the geniality.  However, it is sickening to see the millions of dollars passing through the safari camps, a high percentage foreign owned, with obviously very little benefit to the Maasai people who clearly live in extreme poverty.  The ability to charge for people to visit the village is an income source for them.  While not quite what I would call a market based solution, it is an assets they have and one that actually allows them to maintain their sense of community and cultural traditions.  

This isn't because of the demands by  tourists to visit. The income source affords them to stay as a community rather than be swayed to sell their land for short term income.  This results in the disbandment of the community and displacement of many Maasai who have nothing to show for the sale once the money is gone.

Overall, I felt good about the safari outfitter we chose who has created a market based solution that benefits the community and I look at my overpriced purchases as a donation. My family will enjoy them along with the lessons for my children of seeing how differently people can live and do more than just survive even if not quite thrive.