Isukuti Legislative Theatre Project Launches to Restore Idakho Women’s Land Rights

ULIMBWENDE LINKS WOMEN FRONT is proud to support the launch of the Isukuti Legislative Theatre: Restoring Idakho Women's Land Rights Through Cultural Performance and Policy Advocacy a 12-month project in Kakamega County that blends traditional Isukuti dance with Legislative Theatre methodology and direct policy engagement to address the persistent exclusion of Idakho women from land ownership.

The project, backed by a USD 17,500 grant from FIMI and a quantifiable community co-investment of USD 5,050, will train ten Idakho women as Legislative Theatre facilitators over a five-day residential workshop covering Kenya Constitution Article 60, the Matrimonial Property Act, and customary land law. Fifteen Isukuti dance troupe members will then perform across three sub-locations Shinoyi, Shisiru, and Shitalu using performance as a catalyst for community dialogue on women's land rights.

Beyond performance, the project supports a tangible land restoration component: ten abandoned gold mine plots across Ikolomani will be identified, leased, and prepared for cultivation, with 50 women receiving twelve months of agroecology training in partnership with Bukura Agricultural College. Indigenous seeds amaranth, vegetables, and medicinal herbs will be introduced to restore both the land and community food sovereignty.

The project will culminate in a public closing festival at which a community-developed Land Rights Charter formalized with the support of a community paralegal aligned to Kenya Constitution Article 60 will be presented to Kakamega County Assembly committees, the Office of the County Attorney, and the National Land Commission. A delegation of 20 women will lead advocacy meetings in Kakamega town and Nairobi.

Community co-investment in this project is substantial and runs far deeper than cash contributions: families are providing traditional Isukuti costumes, elders are donating testimonies, volunteer labor is being given for land preparation, a bull and food are pledged for the closing festival, and the full weight of indigenous Isukuti knowledge including blessings, spiritual protocols, and oral histories is being brought to bear. These non-quantifiable contributions are as central to the project as its formal budget.

Monitoring and evaluation will track food security, income, and land rights knowledge for all 50 participating women through baseline and endline household surveys. Follow our news page for updates as performances, workshops, and advocacy milestones are reached across the 12-month project cycle.

“When we invest in a young pastoralist woman’s leadership, we invest in the next thirty years of change in West Pokot.”