The Dorobo of Kenya and Tanzania
Scripture: “Shepherd your people with your staff, the flock of your inheritance, who dwell alone in a forest in the midst of a garden land.” Micah 7:14. Pray the Dorobo would come under the protection of the Good Shepherd and be shepherded by godly Dorobo pastors.
Population: 67,000
Location: The Dorobo live mostly in the Rift Valley in the highland forests and mountainous areas.
History: The Dorobo are not actually a single people group, but a diverse group of peoples descended from the ancient San people who originally settled in the Rift Valley around 1000 AD and lived as hunter-gatherers. The name ‘Dorobo’ comes from the Maasai word Il-torrobo for ‘the ones without cattle.’ In Kenya they are also known as the Okiek, and they are considered a pioneering group of Kalenjin who first moved to the Rift Valley from the north.
Culture: Many Dorobo have been assimilated into the cultures of neighboring tribes, such as the Maasai, Samburu, Kipsigis and Nandi. They often provided a service doing jobs considered unclean by the dominant neighbors. Many are still hunter-gatherers. They are adaptable to their environment, and often make their living through beekeeping, especially where hunting has been banned.
Religion: Animism. Perhaps 1% are evangelical Christian. There are at least 25 churches among the Dorobo with over 20 trained pastors.
Latest Prayer Updates:
Outreach
Pray for an upcoming visit to the Opusimoru area on the Kenya-Tanzania border to organize a June evangelistic outreach to the Akie group of Dorobo hunters who split off from the main Kenya branch and moved into northern Tanzania about 50 years ago. Pray that God would provide a ‘man of peace’ to host our outreach, which is planned for late June.
New Believers
Pray for our Dorobo church on Mount Eburru called AIC Songoroi. We visited a few weeks ago. We were encouraged by the growth in the church. One older man named Joseph who had resisted the Gospel for years had made a profession of faith a few weeks before and stood up at church to give his testimony. Joseph’s son Luka has finished school and made a profession of faith last June when we had visited his school and shown the Jesus film and has been faithfully attending church. Pray as he prepares to take a driving course with hopes to get a job as a driver. Continue to pray for Pastor Josphat Musanga who drives 40 kilometers on his motorcycle once or twice a week to disciple and encourage the believers at AIC Songoroi.
