Community Empowerment in the Conservation of Threatened Hippotrugus equines in Yala Area, Kenya

15 Jun 2010 Siaya, Kenya, Africa Mammals

Allai Orimba

The proposed project intends to establish sustainable utilization of the natural resource and provide linkages between conservation of Roan antelope through grass-root involvement.

Roan Antelope in Rest.

Roan Antelope in Rest.

The proposed project is to provide a long-term protection of threatened Roan Antelope (Hippotragus equines) that has drastically declined in number throughout the country due to primarily; poaching, illegal hunting, habitat degradation, human encroachment, burning tsetse fly infested areas which habitats for the antelope and climate change factors (Kenya Wildlife Report 2006).Therefore, a multifaceted approach from various stakeholders would be employed for the project to achieve its objectives; firstly the project will demonstrate intervention on a social level; the potential of engaging in awareness creation to schools and targeted communities, Environment education through strategies information dissemination;, ecotourism that creates entrepreneurial innovations and participatory sustainable rural development by involving all actors and stakeholders. This will trigger project sustainability with an eco-system approach that secures grass-root community livelihoods (Benun and Njoroge 1999) and increase growth of awareness amongst school children who are good ambassador of change.

Roan.

Roan.

Secondly, the project will provide for population increase amongst the individual antelope species in Yala area through an enhanced local knowledge and awareness that will be supported by policies and regulation to user groups’ activities. Thirdly, there will be provision of an evaluated and potential information on factors and indicators linking management of the site and species presence in the area, cohesive measures for conservation and livelihoods improvement, prioritized uses of natural resource and an established sustainable eco-tourism initiative focused on equitable distribution of local communities whose population is estimated to be 100,000 in the 2015. More so, this model would provide many opportunities for replication in other areas along the lake region.

Group discussion- capacity building.

Group discussion- capacity building.

Lastly, through this project tangible changes will be felt, which shall include; a changed community members attitude towards wildlife, specifically roan antelopes. Increased population of roan antelope in the area, enhanced agro-forestry and sound natural resources management, increased households income, proper infrastructure and improved regional and global networks amongst others.

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