Traditional grass-thatched huts and granaries made specially from grass and wattle dot the plot teeming with assorted indigenous trees.
There is a lot to learn from the grain stores of yore, Mr Muindi said, as grains stored in them would last for more than a year without the need for pesticides.
A makeshift museum modelled around the Igongo Cultural Centre in Uganda and the King's Museum in Rwanda sits at the heart of the Akamba Cultural Centre.
When Mutuku Muindi acquired a 10-acre plot at Uvilisyani Village in Makueni County the first thing that came to his mind was growing maize, the region’s staple food, and beans. He also contemplated turning the plot into a grazing field.
However, a rusty metal blade stuck in the bark of one of the indigenous trees dotting the plot sparked a burning desire to preserve elements of Kamba culture. This saw the teacher and cultural enthusiast set up Akamba Cultural Centre, an idyllic park featuring a museum that has spawned a thriving enterprise.
The centre was hosting a team of Aambua Clan elders who were on a mission to reconcile a local family when a Business Daily team visited.
“Traditionally, Kambas are organised in 22 clans which are not only a source of identity but also the go to places when resolving simple and complex disputes, including some murder cases. Although the clan dispute resolution mechanism is firmly entrenched in the Constitution, we are deeply concerned because the clan system is, unfortunately, among the important elements of the Kamba cultural heritage facing extinction,” said Mr Muindi as she showed the Business Daily team round.
“We are at the heart of what used to be Kasamu Shrine where elders frequented to offer sacrifices for animal, human, and crop fertility. The rusty blade is what remained of a knife which elders accidentally abandoned at the shrine in 1952 when the state of emergency was declared. They were barred from returning to the shrine,” said Mr Muindi, citing accounts of various elders he has documented.
Traditional grass-thatched huts and granaries made specially from grass and wattle dot the plot teeming with assorted indigenous trees. There is a lot to learn from the grain stores of yore, Mr Muindi said, as grains stored in them would last for more than a year without the need for pesticides.
“The traditional hut is climate-friendly. When the environment is hot the hut is cold. And when it's cold outside the hut is warm. We charge Sh5,000 a night for a stay in the huts. We also charge Sh5,000 a day for groups to hold conferences under tree canopies. Some of our clients pay more citing the conducive ambiance,” he said, pointing at a spot under trees where a Makueni County government team had hosted a workshop the day before.
A makeshift museum modelled around the Igongo Cultural Centre in Uganda and the King's Museum in Rwanda sits at the heart of the Akamba Cultural Centre.
Mr Muindi embarked on setting up the museum in 1996 after visiting an exhibition of African artefacts at Stockholm in Sweden where he studied international relationships and community development.
Almost three decades later, his museum is still a work in progress. It however prides itself in being the only custodian of highly valuable but hard to find Kamba artefacts in Kenya.
The artefacts which Mr Muindi has been collecting in Kitui, Machakos and Makueni counties over the years include two wooden boards featuring ancient Kamba record-keeping system, a set of notches of various degrees known as ika, which borrows heavily from the Egyptian hieroglyphs.
The Akamba Culture Centre is also home to a special traditional drum nicknamed Kameme which a local troupe of traditional dancers used to entertain presidents Jomo Kenyatta and Daniel Moi, arrow poison, a special stool made from the foot of a rogue elephant which terrorised locals in 1970s, and various shades of ikoma, a special snuff holder hung from the neck which Kamba elders carried with them as they went on important missions such worshipping in traditional shrines.
The main attraction at the Akamba Cultural Centre is kaluvu, a Kamba traditional liquor made of honey which the government has blacklisted. However, in 2020, Makueni County government licensed Mr Muindi to brew the liquor under certain standards of hygiene.
Mr Muindi brews kaluvu using honey and sugarcane juice which is extracted using a traditional wooden mill known locally as imili. The main clients at the centre are holidayers whiling time away and evading the hustle and bustle of cities, families looking for an ideal weekend getaway, and pupils and students on a mission to catch up with certain elements of Kamba culture.
The centre has also hosted scholars studying the local culture. They interact with key informants mobilised by Mr Muindi. The centre has been hosting parties organised by young celebrities based in Nairobi.
Kenya Tourism Board and the National Museums of Kenya have shown interest in the establishment and significantly boosted Mr Muindi’s morale to preserve cultural heritage.
