CBSE Class 9 Answered
Problems faced by the Maasai pastoralists during the colonial rule were
Shrinking of grazing land: European imperial powers divided Massailand between England and Germany. The grazing lands were taken over by the colonists. Thus, the Maasai lost more than half of their grazing lands.
Expansion of agricultural field: The British government encouraged local farming communities to expand cultivation. Thus, the pastoral lands were converted into agricultural fields.
Building of National Parks and Reserves: Large patches of pastoral lands were also converted into reserves such as Maasai Mara and Samburu National Park. The entry of the Maasai was restricted in these reserves.
All the above factors created shortage of pastoral fields for the Maasai pastoralists. The size and the quality of the pasturelands declined. They were forced to live within a semiarid drought prone stretch of land. As a result, large number of Maasai cattle died of disease and starvation and their animal stock steadily declined.