Tourism and the Truth: Kenya Stacey Dooley Investigates

Welcome to Kenya, one of the world's fastest-growing tourist hotspots.

In Kenya, you can have it all.

Beautiful beaches, gorgeous hotels and once-in-a-lifetime safaris.

It's never been cheaper for young Brits to have their very own African adventure.

-It's brilliant.

-It's lovely.

But is there a hidden cost behind our holidays?

Tonight, Stacey Dooley is going to Kenya

to expose the side of tourism your average holidaymaker doesn't see.

So, the water that they've got is limited

and that limited water is actually dirty?

-And then coming home to this?

-Yeah!

Can Stacey find out why hotel staff here are so desperate they've taken to the streets?

People are dying! These people's friends are no longer here because they haven't been paid!

Can she help a community whose daily life is being threatened by tourism?

There's dirt, there's filth. The quality of this water is disgusting.

On safari, can she get to the bottom of who's really benefiting from our tourist pounds?

So, the tourists think they've paid this village £40. In reality, all they've received is about £3.

They must be losing thousands every single year!

Literally just arrived in Mombasa, so I'm off to the coast.

All-inclusive. Very sunny.

Stifling hot. The weather's out of control. It's brilliant.

I'm really up for it. Very exciting!

Mombasa is the gateway to hundreds of miles of stunning beaches, which

are attracting more and more tourists every year.

This is really popular with all the English.

All the Brits come here and have their all-inclusive holidays.

Last year, nearly 200,000 Brits holidayed in Kenya.

That's more visitors than from any other country.

You know, you can get these holidays super-cheap, and that includes absolutely everything.

So I'm just interested to know how that's possible. How are they doing that?

For the past three years, Stacey's been lifting the lid on shocking stories in the developing world.

In Cambodia, she met victims of sex trafficking.

You're constantly having sex with men in the karaoke bar and you're 13?

And in Africa's Ivory Coast, she exposed child labour in the international cocoa industry.

I'd much rather them be hanging out in the classrooms than working in the cocoa farms.

Now Stacey wants to know what's happening in Kenya, one of our favourite holiday destinations.

But despite a booming tourism industry, Kenya is still

a poor country, with around half its population living in poverty.

Just drove past a rubbish dump, and I think they were burning the rubbish

and the kids were picking through it, cos I think sometimes they try and get bits of plastic and glass.

It's so weird, because on the plane I've been reading, oh,

honeymoons, honeymoons, and you see all the plush suites and...

lots of wedding pictures and the girls look beautiful in their

dresses, and then you drive past that and it's a real...

difference, isn't it?

20 minutes down the road, Stacey arrives at the lively tourist area of Bamburi Beach.

She's staying at the Travellers Beach Hotel and Club,

where a week all-inclusive can cost you less than £80 a day.

-The £80 price tag includes your flight, room, as much as you can eat and drink.

-Woo!

And even your very own welcome dance.

Woo!

Jambo! Hello!

-Jambo, Stacey. How are you?

-How are you? I'm well, thank you.

-Welcome.

-Thank you so much.

-So, what's this bracelet for?

-This is for the all-inclusive.

You are booked in the all-inclusive site.

-Uh-huh.

-This will enable you to access for the drinks, meals.

-Oh, OK.

-It's a full package.

-So a lot of your customers come here and just don't leave?

-They don't leave the place.

-It might shock you, but I actually...

I've never been on an all-inclusive, so this is quite a treat for me.

The hotel has 288 rooms, a fitness club, a spa, six restaurants,

five bars, two swimming pools, and hundreds of staff on hand

to look after your every need.

Woo!

This...is...beautiful.

I like Kenya.

From what I can see so far, it's outstanding value for money.

It's really cheap, isn't it, you know?

So, obviously I'm not a "tourist" tourist,

I'm a pretend tourist, so I'm gonna do everything that the tourists would do.

# Holiday, oh holiday

# And the best one of the year. #

The hotel really does cater for everything.

Food and drink are available round the clock,

and there is even a team of people whose job it is to keep guests entertained 24/7.

OK.

I think I'm going to shine in this position.

Woo!

Not me. Not me.

It's lunch time, and at the all-inclusive that means an all-you-can-eat buffet.

I've come to see what's on offer, and there's absolutely loads.

There's tons and tons and tons of food.

-Please may I have some of them?

-OK.

Thank you.

-You're welcome. Another one?

-Why not?

-Yeah.

-Greedy guts.

It's fantastic value.

Pay your lump sum, you can eat like this as much as you want every day while you're here.

More and more people are choosing to go all-inclusive.

With money tight, knowing exactly what your holiday will cost before you leave home is a big draw.

Is it your first time to Kenya?

-Yeah, it is.

-And how long are you here for?

-Just a week.

-Just a week?

-Yeah, it's all-inclusive, so drinks are free.

-We don't need any money.

The bar's right there. The restaurant's right there.

What was the price that you paid to come here all-inclusive for a week?

-I think it was about £600 each.

-Wow!

For the week all-inclusive.

They've paid £600 for absolutely everything.

I spent £400 on the flights!

How are we able to have these holidays at that kind of price,

without someone being squeezed or something not being quite right or...?

Hotel work is highly sought after in Kenya, where unemployment is high and job options limited.

It's common for those working in the industry to receive the minimum wage,

around £3 a day, which is considered enough to live on.

Stacey wants to see if this is what the workers here are paid.

So she's joined worker Lillian who's taking guests on a beach walk.

Course. Course.

Yeah, it's a long old shift. How much Kenyan shillings do you get?

Actually, I can't tell you that.

-Is it a secret?

-It's not a secret, but...

-I know what you mean. You don't have to.

-Yeah.

But all I want to know really is are you earning enough

to be able to live comfortably?

It's not enough, but for me I think it's better than having nothing, you know?

I unders... Yeah.

It's true, I suppose it is better than nothing.

But the thought of how hard she works, and the thought of her

not being paid reasonably well gets you a bit like that.

-Woo!

-This is where you are going to have your massage.

-Thank you. No sweat.

With Lillian reluctant to reveal what she's being paid,

Stacey's hoping staff will be more frank behind closed doors.

Oh! This is the life, Florence.

She's booked a treatment with the hotel's head masseuse, Florence,

who works up to ten hours a day, six days a week.

How much do you get a day?

In a day, maybe it's like 500.

-500 Kenyan shillings a day?

-Yes.

That's a basic wage of around £3.60 a day.

-So, your wages really is, you live month by month?

-Month by month.

What you earn is what you give out.

-Right.

-So there is nothing that you can be able to save for yourself.

Florence, with so many tourists coming here to Mombasa,

really honestly, is that money making a real difference to Mombasa?

If I had the powers, I would say no more inclusive.

-Really? That's interesting.

-Because all-inclusive they pay from England,

so that means that money doesn't come to us.

So, the economy that is more improved is from UK, not on our site.

-The people on the ground are the ones who are suffering.

-Yeah.

She was really speaking strongly against all-inclusives.

She was saying, you know, with the all-inclusives what the problem is,

you pay in England. A lot of the money - most of the money stays in England.

Come to Kenya, cos you've paid your bulk you think, "Oh, I don't need any money."

So the locals on the beach aren't seeing any of it, the staff aren't seeing none...

You know, no-one's being able to

actually benefit from us tourists spending here.

-Hello!

-Hello.

Stacey's arranged a meeting with one of the hotel managers

to find out where the money we pay on the high street ends up.

Thank you for seeing me. What is being dished where?

What amount is going to flights? What amount is going to transfers? What amount is going to staff?

What amount is going to the run of the hotel?

Right now, I won't be able to give you the actual nitty-gritty of...

the two quid that is spent on what.

It is the food, the pineapples, the apples, mangos.

I think it's a really big deal for me to ask where this money is being spent,

because I think most of the tourists would hope that the workers are

-really being paid a fair wage, you know?

-Yeah.

They're paid well above our minimum wage.

Many of them are married have children.

-They're able to run a home?

-Yes, and take the children to school.

So, you find the system in the hotel industry in Kenya

is very, very, very considerate of workers' remuneration

and they are very, very happy.

'It didn't add up for me.'

You know, I was promised that they're all above minimum wage

and that wage is a great wage, and they're able to live very comfortably off that.

But I think I'd probably like to have a nose and find out for myself.

Next day, Stacey's determined to find out more about hotel workers' pay and what it really affords them.

I've arranged to go and meet a guy, and he's set up his own independent trade union.

So, you know, he really wants to look after the hotel workers and fight for their rights.

I wanna go and hang out with him, spend time with him

and really see what life is like for hotel workers.

Livingstone Abuta represents workers from many different hotels.

-Livingstone?

-Ah, over here.

-Hello.

-Welcome.

-I'm Stacey.

I've been spending time in a hotel on the coast and they assured me

that every worker in that hotel was being paid above minimum wage.

We are come to this place so that you can witness

that the amount that they are being paid

is too low to enable them to stay in a decent house.

For example, a waiter is earning 350 shillings per day.

It's really shocking for me to learn that, you know, these hotel workers are being paid under £3 a day.

Even in Kenyan standards, you know, that is very, very low

and of course it's not on. It's totally not on, you know?

Livingstone has brought Stacey to Kisumu Ndogo,

which is just ten minutes away from the main hotel strip

and home to an estimated 2,000 people, most of whom work in tourism.

This is pretty basic, you know? It smells like a sewer, to be honest.

Is there an open sewer around, though, cos I smell, like, waste?

-Is this the equivalent to a shop?

-Yeah.

-You can see this is some fish.

-God.

-And you see there is some sugar.

The workers are working in the five-star hotel...

-And then coming home to this?

-Yeah!

-Right.

-This is where they get their water.

If they don't have electricity, there's no water.

-Right.

-So, most of the time, there is no electricity.

-So, I mean, water isn't even guaranteed?

-It's not good.

So they have to spend some money to buy clean water for drinking.

-So that limited water is actually dirty?

-Exactly.

-But you can come in and see here.

-Oh, OK!

-Yeah?

Livingstone takes Stacey inside a local restaurant.

There's grilled meat on the menu,

but it's a far cry from what Stacey ate at the hotel buffet.

Jesus.

The contrast is massive. It's a huge difference.

They get pally with the hotel workers. If I was to bring tourists and say,

"This is where your friends are living," they would be appalled,

and I think they would probably make it their business

to make sure that this isn't going on,

because it's just massively unfair, isn't it? It's just not on.

Where's their actual home?

-Where's their house where they sleep?

-Yeah, those are the houses.

You can see the houses, where they are staying.

Livingstone wants Stacey to meet workers from other hotels.

Although it's illegal not to pay staff the minimum wage of roughly £3,

many of the workers from these other hotels aren't even getting that.

Livingstone introduces Stacey to one such worker.

Oh, thank you, Kennedy.

-It's this way?

-Yeah, this one here.

-Brilliant.

Kennedy has lived here for three years.

He shares this one room with his pregnant wife and two children.

-What is this? Kennedy. That's you!

-Yeah.

-And this was you at work?

-Yes.

Kennedy was receiving £1.50 a day.

That is way, way, way, way below

what the minimum wage is supposed to be.

-And that is...

-Your two boys?

-Are they your two sons?

-Yes. Yes. Uh-huh.

-Wow.

-Yeah.

Unable to support his family on this wage,

Kennedy went in search of other work, but is still looking for a job.

No, of course.

You're just gutted for them, aren't you, completely gutted, because...

It's not like they're shy of hard work.

It's not like they don't want to work, you know?

We're here to listen to you.

We don't want you to be ignored, you know?

At the hotel that I was staying in, you know,

the people were being paid above minimum wage.

And so you think that's all fine and you feel happy with that.

And then you come to somewhere like this and listen to Kennedy

and you soon realise that that's not the case in every hotel in Mombasa.

Other hotels are not only just not paying them minimum wage,

they're paying them way below minimum wage.

That's happening in hotels in Mombasa.

Hello!

Workers like Kennedy are unable to survive on their wages,

but those who decide to ask for more money sometimes face extreme consequences.

-Is it Henry?

-Yes, I'm Henry.

-Yeah? Ha-ha! Henry, I'm Stacey.

-How are you? Welcome, Stacey.

-Thank you. Lovely to meet you.

-You are very welcome, please.

-Hello!

-Hello!

-I'm Stacey.

-I'm Apke!

-Apke?

-Yes, and I'm Henry's wife.

-Lovely to meet you. Ah!

-Welcome.

-You're very pretty.

-Yeah.

-Yes.

-You're a lucky man.

-Yes.

-Thank you.

-Welcome, welcome. Yes.

-Thank you.

-You are welcome.

-Have a seat, please.

-Oh, look at this chair, look.

-Yes.

-Very dapper.

We joined the union so that we can...

the union can defend us, yes,

so that they increase our salary every year.

But the management, they don't like this.

If they found you are with the union, they sack you.

Is this happening to many families like you?

Yes, it's happening to many families. Yes.

-And when you came home, you had to tell Apke.

-Yes.

-"I've been sacked."

-And how did you feel? Were you worried or?

-I felt sad.

-Yes, she...

-Yes, I was shocked.

-I, I, I, I don't want talk about it.

-No.

Sometimes your boy isn't able to have tea before he goes to school?

-Yes, because the money we had cannot afford.

-I understand.

-Yes. Yes.

Henry fears his family will lose the roof over their heads.

Do you owe the landlord money?

It's always good for me to listen to these kind of things,

because you can get so...

..worried about nonsense at home, can't you?

And you just think, "Sheesh, we're just so incredibly lucky."

You know, we have so many rights in England and...

It's really tricky. It's difficult.

Really gets on my nerves, because I listen to nonsense from management,

"Ah, this, that, this, that," just, just nonsense.

And they know, they know, they know that people aren't living comfortably.

They know that this isn't...

This isn't ideal for families. They know that.

I think, "Why aren't you sticking up for your people?"

Next morning, Stacey has had an unexpected call from Livingstone.

Right now, I am on my way to go and witness a protest.

There's some workers at a particular hotel that really have just had enough.

And they're all there, they're going to be together protesting.

I really want to go, I really want to see what the vibe's like,

I want to see what these guys have got to say.

You never know, do you?

I mean, I might get there and it might all kick-off, it might be very calm.

I've not been to a protest in Kenya, so fingers crossed.

Workers from the Dolphin Hotel claim they've been having problems with pay since 2004.

Part of the African Safari Club chain,

it's a popular destination for British tourists.

-Livingstone!

-Hi!

-How are you?

-Fine, thank you.

-Nice to see you.

-Thank you very much.

-Thank you for letting me know about today. It's very interesting.

-Yes, please.

These are the workers who are working in the hotel.

We worked for one year and three months without payment.

Now, when we go to demand for our payment, we are sacked.

That's disgusting. That's completely wrong.

Now I'm desperate. My children are not going to school.

Even I sleep in the church because I cannot afford to pay the rent for the house.

Not only have people lost their homes,

it seems some have lost their lives.

In 2008, six people died. 2009, four people died.

2010, last year, there are more than six people who dead.

As you have to pay for medicine in Kenya, workers claim that friends have died of treatable illnesses

because they've lacked the money to buy drugs.

People are dying!

Their friends are no longer here because they haven't been paid!

If you're sacked, you're not entitled to any of the back pay

or any of the money that you earned.

So they're using that as an excuse.

"We sacked you, so we don't have to pay you!"

This is the outside of the hotel that the guys want to protest to.

It'll be interesting to see if they even let them in.

As the protestors try to march onto the hotel grounds,

the head security officer stops them going any further.

Do you understand why they want their money that they say they've been owed?

You're not willing to even talk to me?

Absolutely no response. You know, I...

I don't understand why people are sticking up for the management

and the hotel if it's true that even the workers aren't being paid.

I don't understand!

This is a man, this is an African.

He is being used by the hooliganism here.

-You are very stupid.

-Me?

-You don't see these workers are demanding for their rights?

-Thank you very much.

And you're forcing it. You are not ashamed!

Getting nowhere with the staff,

Stacey wants to know what the hotel guests think.

If we stop coming the rest of the people won't get any money.

I'd probably stay in a hotel where I was confident

that the people were being paid. But how can you know?

-You don't know when you book, do you?

-I understand.

-If you see the management, maybe say how important it is for you.

-Absolutely. We'll do our best.

-It's not fair. In England they'd have been chucked in jail!

-That's what I'm saying!

-For us it's crazy to think...

-Absolutely.

-Some of the guys say they haven't been paid in over a year.

-Absolutely.

The police have just arrived,

so obviously these guys on the other side have called the police.

Hello. Hello. Excuse me.

So, you will keep on filming us or you want us to resolve this problem?

The security guard's got the hump, he's shouting and moaning, la la la.

We've been told to turn the camera off, else nothing's going to be resolved.

But I don't think there's any danger of it ever being resolved from what I'm hearing.

Do you think there is any way that I would be able to, me, just me,

none of the workers, could come and speak to management?

-Let me call him.

-Yeah. Shall I come with you?

-Come with me.

-Yeah, OK! Brilliant. Thank you.

After a frustrating morning, it looks like Stacey's presence is making a difference.

The hotel's HR manager comes to address the protestors.

All other days when the workers came to the management for their rights, he was not coming out.

-Really?

-Yeah.

-Is this the first time?

-This is the first time he's coming. Thank you.

So, I've just been sent again to confirm the same information

that was relayed to you, that the salary will be paid on the 18th,

so that this issue can be sorted out.

You see, I'm not qualified to answer any question.

I was just called to relay a message, clarify, that's all.

I was just wondering if you know, are they going to be paid all the money they're owed?

Do you believe that you're going to get paid everything you're due on the day they say?

No, no, no. We don't believe anything.

Hello. I wonder if you can help me. My name is Stacey.

Still not convinced the workers will get all the money they're owed,

Stacey tries one last time to get a concrete guarantee from the hotel.

They're not having any of it.

I'm just going to keep ringing, I'll keep ringing over the next few days,

I'll keep speaking to Livingstone, see if he's got any feedback,

if his workers know anything else.

Hopefully, Friday they do get paid, but I don't think anyone's holding their breath.

Yeah, that's probably where we are with that.

What else can we physically do?

Unhappy with the outcome at this hotel,

Stacey is determined to speak to someone in power about the plight of all hotel workers.

I've arranged to meet the Minister for Tourism, so it's a big deal.

Minister Balala. I really just want to speak to him,

tell him what I've seen, what I've witnessed,

and see what he's got to say.

Jambo!

-Jambo. How are you?

-Minister Balala?

-Yes, very good.

-Pleasure to meet you. My name's Stacey.

-Nice to meet you.

I've been hanging out with the hotel workers.

And I've learnt that there is a minimum wage

and a lot of them are telling me that they can't live a basic standard of life on this wage.

Anywhere in the world minimum wage is just to get a livelihood.

No, I accept that.

I understand you can't be paid lots of money if you haven't got a particular talent or flair.

However, I went to some of these workers' homes

and there's no clean water available.

They're living in squalor, there's sewer running through settlements.

The living conditions for some hotel workers are diabolical.

We have problems. We know we have to resolve them.

We cannot resolve everything overnight, but we're determined to do something about it.

The stories are all very similar. People aren't even being paid minimum wage,

they're being paid below minimum wage.

-Tell them to ask their union.

-Well, this is it!

Well, they're going to the unions because they know this isn't on.

They know their rights so they think, "I'm going to join a union and stand up for myself."

If they join the union the hotel gets the hump and says,

"Your services are no longer required."

I haven't had any reports for that matter,

that people are removed from their jobs because they've joined unions.

If those reports are there I'll be more than glad to do it.

-How's the product?

-The hotels?

-Yes.

-Oh, fantastic!

You can't knock the hotel!

You can't knock the service you receive in the hotel.

But I think that we have to make sure these workers

are living a basic standard of living.

-At least I think they have a very good advocacy.

-Well, it's not that!

I don't want to sound like I'm banging on,

but I just have to tell you, you know?

You're a good man, you do care about these things, and I think things have to change.

You have to take into account that he is a minister

and he has got to say certain things and certain spiel.

He said that he's taken everything I've said into account

and he's going to work hard to make things better.

Maybe it might seem that I'm being a bit naive

and a bit hopeful, but you get a feel for people,

and I think he's quite a good guy.

But the plight of hotel workers isn't the only issue on the coast.

With more and more hotels and resorts being built, many other Kenyans are suffering too.

I've been told about a local village that's having real issues

with being able to access water.

So I'm just on my way there now.

I'm going to go spend some time in the village.

Just 20 minutes from the coast is Chaudhari, a typical rural village.

Jambo!

Families have lived here for centuries,

farming and collecting their water from a local spring.

But, as is common in Africa,

they have never had legal rights to the land.

A few years ago, businessmen built a golf development for tourists.

A perimeter wall was constructed and, as a result,

the villagers lost direct access to their main source of fresh water.

In Africa it's always the woman's role to fetch the water,

so I'd like to speak to some women and see what they've got to say about the whole thing.

Government water supply is unreliable and must be paid for,

which means these villagers now rely heavily on a small spring ten minutes' walk from the village.

Hello! Oh, my goodness. Are you all right?

-Jambo. Jambo!

-Jambo.

-Hello.

My goodness.

You can't see through the water here. It's...blacky-brown.

There's, like, leaves and dirt.

You can't imagine the villagers having to drink this water.

Makembe shows Stacey how they try to avoid the dirtiest water.

From here? The water doesn't look great,

and, I mean, it smells a little bit as well.

Yeah. Mmm-hmm.

The quality of this water is disgusting.

The kids are here playing, they get thirsty - this is the water that they're given. There's...

there's nothing she can do, she's saying, though.

They can't treat it, so they rely on God to...

to make it OK for them.

The water hole is half a mile from the village down a steep hill.

The women have to make this journey up to six times a day.

ALL CHUCKLE

Well, I've been started on the baby size.

I'm sure a five-year-old kid probably runs up the hill with this size bucket, but...

I'm going to have a try.

Oh, no, the hill!

Crikey.

Thank you.

My friends have got my back.

I don't want to play fetching water ever again.

I do super-hate doing stuff like this,

but it's so good, because you do really get...

..a feel of what these ladies do every day, you know?

And it's not easy, man. It's hard. Ooh. Climbing up...

..massive steep hills in the burning sun to get this water

and the water's not even clean.

The water's brown.

This is my exercise done for 2011.

Oh!

Whoo!

Are you all right? Ah, we need a sleep.

Local charity worker Patrick Ochieng has agreed to show Stacey the wall.

-How are you, Patrick?

-I'm good, and you?

-Lovely to meet you.

-Welcome.

There's a massive great big whopping wall. What is this wall for?

Behind this wall, there's a water source that the community

has been using for many years.

Right now with this wall, many members of the communities

-cannot access that water point.

-Course. Mmm.

-It may be 25, 30 kilometres.

-Kilometres?

Yeah. All concrete.

-And it's so high as well. Like ten foot?

-It is very, very high.

-12 foot?

So you can imagine villagers have to walk around this wall every day.

God, you'd hate the bloomin' wall, wouldn't you?

-You know the footballer Peter Crouch from England?

-I know Crouch.

-I don't even think he could have a peek over this wall.

-It's probably taller than him!

Villages like this one on this side of the development

have been worst affected.

If the villagers want to get to the spring,

they now have to walk around the wall, which means a two-hour round trip.

With walls like this, your options keep on narrowing, you know,

given that you are already living in a region where water is a problem.

What this does is it increases the amount of problems

that people in this place have.

When it becomes dry, there's water on that side

and there's hardly any on this side, so you still find a lot of locals, you know,

crossing over underneath to find some water.

I'll show you this.

Oh, I see.

So basically these are trenches for water to flow through.

Sometimes you find desperate community members

crossing to fetch the little that is left on the other side.

-What would happen to them if they got caught?

-Of course, if you got caught, you'd be trespassing

and this country has very clear trespass legislation.

-So you run the risk of going to jail getting some water?

-The risk of... Yeah.

It's really tempting for me to just squiddle over there and just have a little nose.

You can imagine if you're on this side

and you know there's loads of water a couple of metres away, it's very tempting, but...

I don't think there's any policemen right now

-who are going to arrest you for trespass.

-Patrick, are you trying to get me nicked?

-Well, I hope not. But if they do...

-No.

I mean, just to get a sense of what these people are doing.

So they're literally just going through here?

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

-You can do it!

-HE CHUCKLES

I don't need you egging me on, Pat! You're meant to be my mate!

God, I'm so tempted to go over, but I don't think it's a good idea.

-Let's go back, Pat. Retreat.

-What? Keep going.

-No, Pat!

-Keep going.

-I'm retreating. HE LAUGHS

I'm not getting nicked in Kenya. Me mum will go loopy.

-Just come down slow.

-That's insane, though, isn't it?

-Pat, someone's just gone in now.

-Yeah.

Of course, people do this all the time.

-Hello! Are you all right?

-People do this all the time.

-Are you all right?

-Yes, I'm all right.

-Oh, good.

-Yeah.

-My name is Stacey.

-Your name is Stacey.

-Your name?

-My name is Duken.

Is there loads of water on the other side?

The whole of that area is filled with water.

Do you and the local villagers sometimes have to go through to get water?

-Er...

-You can say. I won't say.

-Do you sometimes?

-Yeah, sometimes, yeah.

-I don't blame you!

When the wall went up, the golf course did provide

this village with an alternative source of water.

-What is this?

-This is water tank.

-I mean, does it work? Does...?

-No, it doesn't work. There's no water. There's no water at all.

So the villagers now don't drink water from the tank.

-Well, there's not even one tiny drip. It's as dry as a bone!

-Mmm, no, it's totally dry.

It really hammers home, in this heat when you're stood in the middle of Africa sweating,

there's kids that have got no water! There's no water, you know?

It used to be the case they could just go and walk for 20 minutes

and get it and now there's not that option. It's not there. There's no water.

I'm dying, dying, dying to go on to the other side of that wall.

I'd love to go to the golf development and see what the craic is.

Next morning, Stacey's wish is granted.

The man in charge of the golf development has agreed to a meeting.

I'm actually really looking forward to going to the other side.

Spending time with the villagers, you hear about the other side, the other side of the wall.

It's like...Narnia!

I really, really just want to get there and see what it's like!

Hello!

I'm here to see...management.

When the development is completed,

there will be another golf course,

more luxury villas and a five-star hotel here.

They're like super-fancy houses.

Doesn't look like their swimming pools are going to dry out any time soon, no.

It's very green, very lush.

It's just mad, isn't it? To think that not far away from here

are people running up and down silly hills to get dirty water.

It's crazy.

Oh, my God, look, there's water here. Loads.

Just to make the place look pretty.

That must be the water, the spring.

My God. It's absolutely ginormous.

It's huge. Please may we stop a second?

Is that possible?

I just want to have a look at this.

That's like a massive lake.

That's like, that's like you could put a boat across there!

Just shockingly different, isn't it? It's just absolutely perfect.

It seems ideal for the villagers, you know?

And remembering the spring that they've got now, it's pathetic.

Like it's, it's like a puddle in comparison to this.

Just looking at it, it's purer, you can see through the water...

It's a million times better.

Stacey's meeting the golf course's chief executive, Robert Ward.

I'm here to see the big boss, the main man.

You know I really want to speak to him about this development,

the issues it's causing the villagers,

and ideally I'd like him to say, no, I completely get you, I'm with you,

and maybe commit to helping the village I saw.

-Hello, you must be Robert...

-Hi there.

-Pleasure to meet you.

-Welcome to Vipingo Ridge.

-Thank you so much.

You've got a massive, massive amount of land here. It's huge.

Like, I can't even see end to end.

How many people are you employing?

We directly employ 310 people.

The area that we've chosen to do this development,

it was really a very undeveloped area, so now they've got

somewhere on their doorsteps where they can find work.

I spent some time with the local community just on the other side of the wall.

They used to use like a spring, a big water spring.

Now, that really was their source.

And now the wall has been built, they're not able to get to that water.

-Mmm.

-Were you aware of that?

If we deny them something, we've always tried to put something in place to replace it,

which is why we've put in a pump system to pump that water up to them in their villages.

So, in fact, they no longer have to walk down the hill to get the water, we now pump the water up to them.

But actually the locals brought me to the pump - and it's not working.

I wasn't aware - and we will certainly look into it.

I mean, the... You know, there's a lot more that we will be doing in the future with the local community.

Of course, yeah.

So, it's really just a start.

But the, er...

-I was not aware that it didn't...

-Yeah.

-..didn't work.

-With any new development, there is difficulties for people.

-Of course.

-Yeah.

-As the project grows, it won't be 310 people working here, it will be thousands of people working here.

And therefore, I think that there's really no question in anybody's mind that the long-term

benefits to the local community will far outweigh any of the difficulties that they're currently facing.

Now you know, Robert, that the tank and the tap that you have

given the village isn't working, is that something that you can promise you'll look into and you'll fix?

You can tell them that we will find a solution as quickly as we possibly can.

And if that means sending some water to fill the tank immediately, we can do that very quickly, yeah.

Great. Brilliant. I think that's...

I think they'll be made up to hear that.

Jambo!

Hello! Oh, hello, everyone!

Word has got round that Stacey's had a meeting at the golf course.

Nice to see you again!

Hi! Hi!

-All right?

-Hiya. Hi. Jambo.

Ah! Today... Yeah? ..I went to the other side of the wall.

So I went to go and visit the development, the golf development.

-Yeah.

-And I met the CEO - so I met the big, big guy.

-Yeah.

-So, he's going to make sure that the tank they donated you...

-Yeah, provides water?

-Provides water constant. Constantly.

So he's going to mend that for you and make sure that there's constant water for you and all the villagers.

That's what we want, because we don't want empty, empty promises.

No, I wouldn't fill you with, like, false hope.

-OK, thank you.

-I genuinely believe... he is going to sort it for you.

OK. God bless you.

I do honestly think. OK, thank you.

And we'll keep in touch and if he doesn't, then we can say.

But I'm almost positive he will.

The day after Stacey's visit, the staff from the golf course

came and fixed the tap, providing the villagers with fresh water.

It's time for Stacey to leave the coast and embark on the final leg of her journey.

The other big deal in Kenya is safaris, so I'm off to the Masai Mara to learn what's going on there.

The Masai Mara is a large game reserve and one of the best places in the world to see wild animals.

In Kenya, safari is big business.

Hundreds of thousands of tourists arrive here every year for the trip of a lifetime.

So, here I am on a hot air balloon safari in the Masai Mara.

Super-popular destination.

You can see the animals from here, the scenery's beautiful.

It's one of the most amazing things I've ever done.

I can totally see why this is so popular with the tourists.

Visitors don't just come here to see the animals - for many, a big draw is

visiting local tribes in their traditional homes.

It is amazing, but I'm not here to frolic around in a hot air balloon, as much as I'd love to.

I'm here to see the impact tourism is having on the local communities.

Stacey is on her way to a Masai village called Ololume.

Oh, my God, look at the zebras!

Amazing! Very Kivali.

For generations, the tribe have survived by raising cattle on the Masai Mara.

But the growth of the safari business means they've lost access

to land, and with it much of their traditional livelihood.

As a result, the Masai have become heavily reliant on tourism.

Oh, my God!

THEY SING Thank you!

Hello!

Hello! Oh!

Oh! Here we go!

Each year, tens of thousands of visitors pay for day trips to

villages like this to see the Masai re-enact traditional ceremonies.

This is a long dance!

I feel like a cheerleader!

God! This is the weirdest day of my life!

The village gives Stacey the full Masai experience.

There's lots going on. It's good to try a new look every now and then.

You don't want to get stale.

-I don't know if the cape is a bit much.

-You're Masai now.

-Well, listen, I don't think I'm not Masai now.

-You're Masai now.

Very much so.

Apart from the fee that tourists pay for the visit, the villagers' only other means

of making money from tourism is by selling handmade souvenirs.

Ah! That's my favourite.

How many tourists do you get a day, Eunice?

Per week we get maybe two cars.

-Two cars.

-Really?

-Yes. Per week.

And how does that affect you girls if you're not selling things every day?

Stacey wants to see how village chief Olay Kapira feels about tourism.

Nowadays it seems like tourism is a real part of your life.

How do you feel about tourism?

I'm just starting to find out there's a real issue at the minute.

Drivers are dropping tourists here and the tourists are paying the Masai people

directly to come into their homes, but then the Masai people are having to go to the driver

that's dropped the tourists here and give a lot of the money back!

While Stacey is talking to the chief, a driver from one of the lodges

is spotted heading towards the village with a group of tourists.

This is Stacey's chance to see if the drivers really are taking money that

should be going to the Masai, so she needs to be discreet.

I've got to look like a tourist and I've got to act just completely like I'm here on my holidays.

We've got to hide the camera so that the driver doesn't become...

the driver doesn't become suspicious so I can see

what's going on. Thank you!

Oh, goodness me! Thanks, guys.

So, we've got a little camera and I'm going to see if we can

just get to see the driver being handed over the money.

The middleman is miked up, so hopefully we'll be able to get some kind of idea what's going on.

The tourists are coming. Come on, Chase.

-Today, the driver has brought a family of four to the village.

-So you're enjoying yourself today?

Yes, very much so. I mean, who wouldn't when you have these sort of surroundings around you?

Are you happy to pay to come to see this kind of thing?

-Yeah, I don't mind that at all. I think that's fair, you know?

-Yeah.

And this goes to them, so it's not middleman and all that sort of thing, so I think it's OK.

It's important for you that the money goes directly to the Masai people?

Yes. Absolutely. I think you should have more of that within tourism.

So, the tourists have come in to see the Masai village

and I think they've given the money over to one of the local guys, one of the Masai men.

The driver's coming.

The Masai man goes to negotiate with the driver.

The guy that's got to give the driver the money is going to the driver.

The driver and the Masai man go behind the jeep and out of range of our microphones.

I feel like Inspector bloody Clouseau!

I saw, I followed, I tried to be really discreet, and I saw the guy with the driver.

The guy and the driver walked up to the car, walked

behind the car, so it wasn't even the side of the car that's on view.

I was trying to act like a tree!

Act like a tree, think like a tree.

I can't believe it.

The Masai man is coming back, so I just want to see how much he's left with.

How are you?

-Fine.

-Are you OK?

-Yes.

-So...

This is what you're left with?

-300 Kenyan shillings.

-Yeah.

When the tourists paid 4,000.

So, the tourists think they've paid this village £40 or thereabouts,

when in reality all they've received is about £3.

How would the driver react if one day you said, no, it's not fair, I'm not giving you most of the money?

What would the driver do?

So he's blackmailing them. You either do what I say

or you don't get any tourists at all and you make no money whatsoever.

The tourists genuinely have absolutely no idea what's just gone on.

Not a clue. And I would never know if I was just here not specifically looking for it, you know?

The 4,000 Kenyan shillings that you've handed over, 3,700 of that is sat in the driver's pocket.

These guys have got 300 Kenyan shillings.

Ugh. It's just so devious.

They're missing out on thousands of pounds.

If you think of it over the year, they could be making so much money

from the tourists visiting, and they're not.

And it's not like they couldn't do with the extra money here!

-OK, thank you.

-Thank you very much.

When I had a nose at that driver I was keen to see if he was being employed by anyone.

So I wanted to look if he had a uniform on - and he totally did.

And I made a note of the name of the safari lodge.

You know I would, I'd like to go to the lodge and just see if they're aware, you know?

Do they know that drivers are carrying on like this?

Do they know that there's even an issue?

Stacey wastes no time in finding the lodge.

Aw! Thank you!

See you in a bit! Ah!

Okey-dokey, I'm on my way to go and speak to the lodge.

Wish me luck. Fingers crossed it goes well.

The lodge owners refuse to speak to Stacey on camera.

Ah!

They said, look, if we had 100% proof

that the driver was taking money that he shouldn't be taking, then we would, we'd sack him on the spot.

You know, we wouldn't put up with that, we'd take him to the police station. That is what we would do.

I explained the situation. You know, ideally the lodge guys

would have said to me, oh, we're totally with you.

We totally don't want any of this carry-on, right, we're going to do this, this, this.

That would have been ideal, but it doesn't always happen like that.

You have to be realistic.

There are things going on that I do think need to change,

but that doesn't mean they're going to happen!

Other local villages do well out of tourism, so Stacey's determined to find another way to help Ololume.

They also make money by selling their handmade jewellery.

But they are reliant on tourists coming to them, and as these items are mass produced and sold

all over Kenya, visitors have often already bought souvenirs elsewhere.

I have had a little think and I think the real issue

is the fact that they just can't get regular access to the tourists - I think that's the main problem.

So, I think it might be an idea if I just ring a couple of lodges, explain the situation and maybe

see if anyone's up for maybe meeting me to see whether or not we can get some of the ladies into a lodge.

That way they'd have constant access with tourists.

Next morning, Stacey's had some news.

Ha-ha! How are you today? Ah!

-Good to see you. I've got something to tell you. I rang a lodge...

-OK.

..and discussed it and asked maybe if they would

be up for meeting me and you and maybe talk about having you there?

-Yes.

-So they said yes.

-Good.

I'm glad. Da-da-dah!

So we need to pick a few things to show them what you can make.

We can show her that.

Maybe a couple of bracelets, do you want to show her? Da-da-da-dah!

You have to bring this, Eunice.

OK. This? This is what will get you the contract.

-Handbag.

-This bag.

Yes, handbag. Deffo the bag.

Ready for action? Yes. Come on then.

Elephant Pepper lodge is within walking distance of the village.

It's run by Sophie Macfarlane and her husband.

-Hello!

-Hi.

-Well, I've brought Eunice here today.

-Right.

-I think she just wanted to show you some of her bits and bobs

and see if there was any way maybe in the future, I don't know

how you would feel about it, but whether or not some of the girls could maybe come into your lodge.

Could we show the choker? Yeah.

-First, Stacey shows her the jewellery.

-Yeah.

A lot of these items were maybe quite novel, say, 20 years ago

when people really started travelling and really started coming in to this area.

-OK.

-I'd say now they've sort of seen this stuff, and they want something maybe of a slightly higher quality.

So something that still requires all the Masai beading and all that kind

of skill, but something just a little bit different?

I quite like this, Sophie, because I just thought like I'd seen a lot of

the bangles and a lot of the necklaces.

But I mean I quite like that. I'd probably like it a bit bigger, but is that the kind of thing maybe?

This would bring in more money,

because it's not something that's just going to sit on a shelf or something.

You're going to be using it and all your friends will go, oh, wow!

Would you consider selling it in your lodge if it was a bit different, a bit...?

-Yeah, definitely.

-Eunice, how do you feel about what Sophie's saying?

Do you feel like that's something you'd be up for maybe doing?

Yes. I like it.

-You like the idea?

-Yes.

We'll try and work together and see what we can achieve.

I'm so happy that, you know, I was

able to bring Eunice here and me, Eunice and Sophie all had a chat and together we've come up

with this great idea! I'm very happy.

It's lovely seeing you.

-Yes, also I.

-Cuddle. Ah!

OK. Bye.

-Bye, Eunice.

-Bye.

-Take care.

See you!

Stacey's trip to Kenya has come to an end.

It's not about tourists never coming to Kenya again.

You know, have a holiday. Don't come here and feel guilty.

Totally come, the Kenyans want us to come.

I think it might just be worth, though, once we're here, just being a bit more savvy, a bit more

in the loop about where our money that we're spending is going and who it is truly benefiting, because

it's the fat cats, the top dogs, the people at the top that are benefiting from the money

and maybe it's not filtering down to the people that really do serve us and make our holidays lovely.

Since filming, the Kenyan High Court has ordered the African Safari Club

to pay their hotel workers the money they're owed.

And Eunice and the other women have gone into business with the lodge

and are now selling bags to their guests.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd

E-mail [email protected]