About Namunyak Maasai Welfare (NMW)
and it’s founder Emmanuel Leina Tasur



Emmanuel Leina Tasur is a Maasai living in the Village of Oronkai, in rural southwest Kenya.  He was born “sometime in 1972” to a polygamist father and one of his four wives.  Emmanuel grew up in the area where he now lives, beginning school with no shirt or shoes and walking 10 miles each way every single day.



While his father and many others in the community discouraged an education, Emmanuel was determined and with the support of his mother, and against all odds, was able to earn the highest score in the Kilgoris region on the primary school final examination.  He was accepted to a top National Secondary School and upon graduation, went to work for the City Council in Nairobi.  He later attended Moi University and earned a degree in Informational Sciences in 2006.

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In pursuit of his dream of transforming Maasailand through the education of its children, Emmanuel founded Namunyak Maasai Welfare in 2004.  Through this non-governmental organization, he works to give Maasai children the educational opportunities they would otherwise not have. NMW hopes to break the cycle of despair and hopelessness common among its rural poor, through education, self-empowerment and capacity building.  Integrated sustainable development and environmental protection are fundamental beliefs of the Maasai.  NMW believes that, through education, the Maasai will have the ability to enhance their future with the opportunity to provide a meaningful impact on their communities and the global community at large.