Kenyan power walker traverses seven countries to bring the gift of mobility to disabled

Traversing seven countries and more than 5 500km on foot, Kenyan Carlo Saio reached Ballito last week on his titanic walk from Uganda to Cape Town.

Saio (28) has spent the past nine months following the ‘Camino Ancestral’, a route that mirrors the migration path of early humans.

He is raising funds for the distribution of wheelchairs across East Africa through the Living With Hope charity.

“I am doing all of this for my great friend Michael Panther. He is the real hero of this story,” said Saio.

A South Sudanese refugee, Panther contracted tuberculosis in his spine, and after an operation went wrong was left paralysed from the chest down.

Not willing to languish in the pain, Panther started Living With Hope, which provides 1 500 wheelchairs annually to people who could not otherwise afford them.

“Michael has been my inspiration and every time I felt like stopping, his example kept me moving.”

With visa issues, bouts of malaria and tick bite fever, encounters with gang members and of course the physical toll on his body, the difficulties have been manifold.

“Through everything however, by far my most difficult period was with Olemanu the donkey, who I travelled with through Tanzania. I needed him as a pack animal because of the vast expanses between towns.”

Olemanu had been trained by being beaten and did not initially respond to Saio, who refused to hit him. It took weeks of butting heads before the two eventually became friends.

“Overcoming the initial acrimony between us felt instructive of many of my experiences on the walk, where leaning into the difficulties allowed something beautiful to emerge.”

Yet Saio’s overwhelming feeling has been positive, experiencing the kindness of people and beauty of Africa throughout.

After stopping briefly in Ballito on September 14, he still had about 2 000km left to go, hugging the coastline to Cape Town.

To follow his story, visit walk2letothersmove on Instagram, where you can also find the gofundme link.

He is always on the lookout for a place to stay. If you are able to offer one, message him via Instagram.

A graduate of East Anglia University with a masters degree in creative writing and language, Saio plans to release a book on the trip called ‘Each Step Holds Wisdom of its Own’.

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