When two elephants fight

An online article says that there is a Swahili saying that goes: “When two elephants fight, the grass suffers; and, when the same two elephants make love, the grass also suffers.”

The saying is used to refer to the suffering of a feeble or helpless country when two superpowers engage in warfare or amity.

My question I: is it really Swahili?

Hi,

I googled 'When two elephants fight' + Swahili, and got 84 hits, including this comment from

www.project-syndicate.org/ article_print_text?mid=1168&lang

Because the thousand-year-old city of Mombasa historically had a superb natural harbor, it was fought over many times--by Arabs, the Portuguese, Zanzibaris, the Mazrui, the British, and others. There was a time when it was called "Mvita," the Isle of War. Even now, the Swahili dialect of Mombasa is called Ki-mvita, and its people coined the proverb "Ndovu wawili wakipigana, ziumiazo na nyasi" [When two elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers].

Best wishes, Clive