NRT Trading

Women's Training & Education Project
In the harsh arid lands of northern Kenya, the nomadic people share their land with elephant, lion and the rare Grevy’s zebra. Sharing meagre resources causes conflict. NRT Trading is a non-profit organisation based in northern Kenya which is educating women to understand, benefit from and conserve the wildlife in their area through the creation of a sustainable fair trade enterprise producing unique, quality, hand-made gifts. The profit raised from the sale of these gifts goes directly to education, healthcare and improved nutrition for women and their families.

An Enterprise & Product Development Officer and Assistant oversee the project. A 20-minute training and promotional DVD was produced which will be shown as the training team travels to the various groups it is working with. Initial training and engagement with local women’s groups in Samburu District, principally Sera, Kalama and West Gate Community Conservancies has started. In addition, craft and jewellery samples have been collected which is the first step in identifying, improving and diversifying local products. With the progress made to date and the complementary overlap with Northern Rangelands Trust’s Micro-Credit Scheme, NRT Trading has a firm foundation upon which to build and its staff are fully engaged and enthusiastic about the future potential and growth of the project.

Micro-Credit Scheme
The Micro-Credit Scheme, like NRT Trading, is aimed at local women and providing income opportunities through modest micro-credit loans for the development of small local business. This micro-credit is managed through local women’s groups, who vet and award loan applications and ensure regular loan repayments. It is planned that this facility is used in certain instances to provide small loan financing to enable local women to purchase materials for craft and jewellery production under NRT Trading.