One thing that hasn't been mentioned, bring lots of dollar bills for tips, buying trinkets, etc. My husband even gave someone who kept bothering us to buy something $1 so he would leave us alone! We probably left home with at least $40 in ones and went through them all. I also brought a gross of pencils and gave them to our guide to give to kids.
Have a fabulous time. It is an amazing trip.

NOOOOOO....please... if you give someone a dollar becouse you want him to leave you are encouraging this person to bother you again or someone else...
If you don t know that something as a damaging effect, that s ignorance, if you know about it but are still doing it, that s idiotic...

I am afraid I disagree with most of these comments, as my experience is that appropriate gifts are generally appreciated by local folks. Here are my observations.

1) My best advice is to ask your trip coordinator before your trip what he/she recommends in terms of gifts to help local folks and communities, so that you are bringing something (which may very well be a financial gift) that is appropriate and needed.

2) We visited a small Maasai village, and a member of our group had brought small packets of beads from the U.S. that she gave to each local lady who was selling items. They were a HUGE hit, and I might add that she was the only one in our group who was given permission to photograph the ancient matriarch. These are ideal gifts because they honor a local craft, and take up almost no space in the luggage. I also brought light-weight scarves for special people, such as the cooks at our lodging locations.

3) When in doubt about who should receive a gift, talk to the person who sets up your visit to a village or other location for his/her advice. (You may be advised to give any gifts to the village elder, and he can distribute them so that you are not the one who decides who gets a gift and who doesn't.)

4) We also brought a duffle bag worth of deflated soccer balls and gave them to the principal of a local school. Big hit. Up until our visit, the entire school had one beat-up ball to play with.

5) An even greater way to make a lasting difference is to ask your tour operator or your contact with a specific lodging facility BEFORE your trip to help identify a local project to support. For our upcoming trip to Kenya, for example, we have arranged to provide a "bursary" (scholarship) that will make it possible for one of the local school's top students to attend high school. We will be visiting the school and meeting the recipient. What's better than that?

6) It's important to differentiate between local folks with whom you have a brief encounter, and staff people who provide significant services during your visit. A prime example is your safari guides. It is customary to provide a gratuity at the end of your stay at each location to those staff people. Again, ask your tour operator or facility contact for a recommendation for tipping key staff, including the recommended amount.

Hope this is helpful.

Welcome to Fodors Deb. >>My best advice is to ask your trip coordinator before your trip what he/she recommends<<

Just a bit too late - when topping threads it is usually helpful to note the dates. This one is more than two years old and the trip was in May of 2013 . . .

Thanks. Yes, I'm aware of the date of the original question, but I googled for suggestions on gifts for Kenya local people, and came up with this thread, so maybe other people will as well.