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Local communities should also benefit from
wildlife
THE EAST AFRICAN
Saturday, September 8, 2001
John Mbaria's article titled "Just who owns wildlife in Kenya?" raised some pertinent issues. He argued that wildlife conservation had offered very little to ordinary people. They were daily exposed to danger from wild animals. He also mentioned that to reintroduce hunting would affect little the neglect of the communities around the parks.
Whereas I agree with Mbaria's arguments, I think he deliberately ignored some noble activities being done by individuals and conservation groups out to change this scenario.
Ever heard of Conservation of Resources through Enterprise (Core)? Its objectives include assisting communities around conservation sites to co-manage wildlife resources. It does this by exposing them to conservation issues to put them in a better position to manage wildlife.
The organisation has experimented with private conservation ranches, such as Lewa and Il N'gwesi. The success of these attempts gives prominence to the Maasai Mara Conservancy. The Trans Mara communities may benefit from the new arrangement.
As for who owns wildlife in Kenya, going by Raymond Bonner's book, /At the Hand of Man,/ it can comfortably be stated that the Western-based conservation groups and the Government own wildlife. The Kenyans around the parks are left out. The poor locals only watch as millions are raked out of wildlife and most of what he gets is the "elephant trample".
Who is to blame? The Kenya wildlife policies. They tend to view Kenyans as a danger to wildlife. Why shouldn't Kenya trust its own people with conservation? Could it be because of the millions in donor funding for wildlife conservation? The local Maasai or Samburu is not out to exterminate all the wildlife in sight. All he wants is to earn a living; he wants to be part of the team.
To this end, I am happy with what Core is doing. But I am sad that the Government and its policy-makers have never come up with a sustainable conservation strategy to promote communities around the parks.
The Government ought to explore possibilities of the local communities co-managing the wild resources as a way to enhance their incomes while ensuring animal safety. This can be done through a wildlife property rights review.
If the communities around the parks get the rights (or a percentage) to own wildlife, the scenario may change. The Government should borrow a leaf from the local private conservancies and seek ways of empowering communities on wildlife conservation sites to be part of conservation efforts.
It is wrong for the Government, through the Kenya Wild Service, to assume that people around parks are out to harm wildlife. If their alienation from the wildlife resources is stopped, they will go to great lengths to protect them. But, as it is now, the communities see only danger and
death.
SHIKUKU SHIKWATI, Nairobi
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