Male Porter Subject #1
This interviewee wishes to be anonymous due to the potential retaliation from companies that he works with.
I am a 33 year old male porter from Arusha. I have been working as a porter for 8 years. I have 3 children. I support my parents and kids.
I work as a porter on all routes to Kilimanjaro. I work mostly with big companies. I became a porter because of the lack of better opportunities. I never went to school. The only other option to make a living is to work in agriculture.
The sleeping conditions on the trails are terrible at times. We sleep in tents but there is too many of us in a small tent. We do not have blankets or a bed or a mattress. At times, I bring a mattress on the Marangu route. The companies do not provide these sleeping items.
I eat bread and peanuts on the trail and very minimal food. At times, I eat nothing. Depending on the company that I climb with, they feed us about 2 or 3 times. The companies do not cover all the food. I have to pay for snacks and other mountain items.
I earn a total of $7 a day with all my expenses deducted. This is much lesser than the minimum daily pay.
The company does not provide hiking shoes or clothing for us. We have to buy our own which is too expensive. The companies do not reimburse us for the gear that we buy.
I carry 20 kg mostly but at times it’s more. We don’t get paid for the extra weight that we carry. There’s no set schedule for us on the trail. We basically work all day. We wake up at 6 am to do chores like fetch water, wash dishes, collect trash and carry the load to the next camp. We go to bed around 9 pm.