Born from the Maasai community, built for every girl.
Aret Haven Foundation (AHF) is a Kenyan non-profit headquartered in Kajiado County, along Magadi Road. We work at the intersection of education, gender equity and community development — focused on the girl child in pastoralist and marginalized communities.
Our founders were born, raised and educated near the Maasai community. We have witnessed first-hand the shame, stigma and degrading language often associated with menstruation, and the realities of FGM and early marriage. That lived experience shapes everything we do.
We are committed to a society where every girl can achieve her full potential — especially through education.
A society where girls from marginalized communities can achieve their full potential, free from period poverty, FGM and early marriage.
To partner with families, schools, and community leaders to keep girls safe, in school, and on a path to opportunity.
Cultural respect, patient partnership, and locally-led solutions.
From our founder.
Born and raised in Ngong, one of the urban towns in Kajiado County — an area predominantly inhabited by the Maasai community — I have seen first-hand the challenges this community faces. The Maasai are mainly pastoralists who move with their animals in search of pasture and water, but grazing land has become less and less available with urbanization. As they strive to conserve their traditional heritage, the community has been pushed further into the drier arid lands. The struggle is real for men, women and children — but women and girls face an additional set of problems shaped by cultural norms that marginalize them in education, the economy and decision-making.
During my early days in school I was surprised to meet girls who had not heard about menstruation until they had their first experience. Most girls from the Maa community never spoke openly about it; the topic was surrounded by stigma and shame. Many could not afford sanitary pads and had to stay home during that time of the month. Even where mothers worked hard to support the family, decisions about money were made by the men of the household, and it was taboo for a daughter to ask for pads. Early forced marriage compounded this — the onset of menstruation signaled that a girl was "ready" to be married off in exchange for livestock as bride price, a practice that creates a cycle of poverty.
Witnessing their struggle to manage such a natural process pushed me to learn more about the community. Period poverty was widespread and was negatively affecting the education and life of a Maasai girl. I started by supporting those in my own school who could not afford sanitary pads, reaching out to family and friends to fund hygiene packs.
In secondary school I joined the scouts and later became commander, which gave me a chance to travel across the county. During school holidays my colleagues and I would visit villages, trading centres and markets to speak with girls, sensitize them on menstrual hygiene and distribute menstrual packs. When I completed secondary school, with the support of friends, I founded Aret Haven Foundation (AHF) with one core aim: keep a girl in school and tackle period poverty.
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