This archive report was first published on 20 June 2020.
June 20, 2020 - The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted traditional practices in various communities worldwide, and the Bukusu and Tachoni people of Western Kenya are no exception.
Every two years, these communities hold a circumcision ceremony to mark the transition of young men into adulthood. However, due to the pandemic, the ceremony scheduled for August may be postponed to 2022.
This would be the first time in 36 years that the traditional rite has been postponed.
Wangila Wanyonyi, a traditional healer, expressed the community's concerns, saying, 'We are ready for the rites, but Coronavirus has changed everything.'
The Bukusu and Tachoni people have been practicing circumcision as a way of initiating young men into adulthood for generations.
Doctors have advised the communities to adopt modern methods of initiation to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
However, the community prefers to postpone the ceremony rather than abandon their traditional practice.
