The challenges of rehabilitating denuded patches of a semi-arid environment in Kenya

Land degradation is a major problem in the semi-arid environments of Sub-Saharan Africa. Fighting land degradation is essential to ensure the sustainable and long-term productivity of the habited semiarid lands. In Kenya, grass reseeding technology has been used to combat land degradation. However, despite the use of locally adapted perennial grass species namely Cenchrus ciliaris (African foxtail grass), Eragrostis superba (Maasai love grass) and Enteropogon macrostachyus (Bush rye) failure still abound. Therefore, more land is still being degraded. The aim of this study was to determine the main factors which contribute to failures in rehabilitating denuded patches in semi-arid lands of Kenya. A questionnaire was administered to capture farmer perceptions on failures on rangeland rehabilitation using grass reseeding technology. Rainfall data was collected during the study period. Moreover, rehabilitation trials using the three grasses were done under natural rainfall. Results from this study show that climatic factors mainly low amounts of rainfall to be the main contributor to rehabilitation failures. 92% of the respondents asserted that reseeding fails because of low rainfall amounts received in the area. The study area received a total of 324 mm of rainfall which was low compared to the average annual mean of 600mm. Reseeded trial plots also failed to establish due to the low amounts of rainfall received. This showed how low rainfall is unreliable for reseeding. Other factors namely destruction by the grazing animals, pests and rodents, flush floods, poor sowing time, poor seed quality, lack of enough seed and weeds also contribute to rehabilitation failures in semi-arid lands of Keny

Dry matter yields and hydrological properties of three perennial grasses of a semi-arid environment in East Africa

Enteropogon macrostachyus (Bush rye), Cenchrus ciliaris L. (African foxtail grass) and Eragrostis superba Peyr (Maasai love grass) are important perennial rangeland grasses in Kenya. They provide an important source of forage for domestic livestock and wild ungulates. These grasses have been used extensively to rehabilitate denuded patches in semi-arid environment of Kenya. This study investigated the dry matter yields and hydrological properties of the three grasses under simulated rainfall at three phenological stages; early growth, elongation and reproduction. Laboratory seed viability tests were also done. Hydrological properties of the three grasses were estimated using a Kamphorst rainfall simulator. Results showed that there was a significant difference (p > 0.05) in dry matter yields and soil hydrological properties at the different grass phenological stages. Generally, all the three grasses improved the soil hydrological properties with an increase in grass stubble height. C. ciliaris gave the best soil hydrological properties followed by E. macrostachyus and E. superba, respectively. E. macrostachyus recorded the highest seed viability percentage. C. ciliaris and E. superba were ranked second and third, respectively. C. ciliaris yielded the highest biomass production at the reproductive stage followed by E. superba and E. macrostachyus, respectively. Key words: Cenchrus ciliaris, Enteropogon macrostachyus, Eragrostis superba, rangeland

Beaten but not down! Exploring resilience among female sex workers (FSWs) in Nairobi, Kenya

Background: In Kenya sex work is illegal and those engaged in the trade are stigmatized and marginalized. We explored how female sex workers in Nairobi, Kenya, utilize different resources to navigate the negative consequences of the work they do. Methods: Qualitative data were collected in October 2019 from 40 FSWs who were randomly sampled from 1003 women enrolled in the Maisha Fiti study, a 3-year longitudinal mixed-methods study exploring the relationship between HIV risk and violence and mental health. All interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed and translated. Data were thematically coded and analyzed using Nvivo 12. Results: Participants’ age range was 18–45 years. Before entry into sex work, all but one had at least one child. Providing for the children was expressed as the main reason the women joined sex work. All the women grew up in adverse circumstances such as poor financial backgrounds and some reported sexual and physical abuse as children. They also continued to experience adversity in their adulthood including intimate partner violence as well as violence at the workplace. All the participants were noted to have utilised the resources they have to build resilience and cope with these adversities while remaining hopeful for the future. Motherhood was mentioned by most as the reason they have remained resilient. Coming together in groups and engaging with HIV prevention and treatment services were noted as important factors too in building resilience. Conclusion: Despite the adverse experiences throughout the lives of FSWs, resilience was a key theme that emerged from this study. A holistic approach is needed in addressing the health needs of female sex workers. Encouraging FSWs to come together and advocating together for their needs is a key resource from which resilience and forbearance can grow. Upstream prevention through strengthening of education systems and supporting girls to stay in school and complete their secondary and/or tertiary education would help them gain training and skills, providing them with options for income generation during their adult lives

Gender differentiated preferences for a community-based conservation initiative

Community-based conservation (CBC) aims to benefit local people as well as to achieve conservation goals, but has been criticised for taking a simplistic view of "community" and failing to recognise differences in the preferences and motivations of community members. We explore this heterogeneity in the context of Kenya's conservancies, focussing on the livelihood preferences of men and women living adjacent to the Maasai Mara National Reserve. Using a discrete choice experiment we quantify the preferences of local community members for key components of their livelihoods and conservancy design, differentiating between men and women and existing conservancy members and non-members. While Maasai preference for pastoralism remains strong, non-livestock-based livelihood activities are also highly valued and there was substantial differentiation in preferences between individuals. Involvement with conservancies was generally perceived to be positive, but only if households were able to retain some land for other purposes. Women placed greater value on conservancy membership, but substantially less value on wage income, while existing conservancy members valued both conservancy membership and livestock more highly than did non-members. Our findings suggest that conservancies can make a positive contribution to livelihoods, but care must be taken to ensure that they do not unintentionally disadvantage any groups. We argue that conservation should pay greater attention to individuallevel differences in preferences when designing interventions in order to achieve fairer and more sustainable outcomes for members of local communities

The value of pastoralism in Kenya: Application of total economic value approach

Abstract The value of pastoralism practiced in Kenya is not well appreciated, even though it is said to be enormous. The available statistics tend to underestimate this value from the point of view of its contribution to the local and national economies, due to the inadequacy of data and application of inappropriate valuation methodologies. This study analysed the contribution of pastoralism to Kenya’s national economy, using the total economic value (TEV) approach and by considering the traditional and non-traditional pastoral values. Secondary data were collected on livestock population, herd composition and structure, honey, beeswax, firewood, fishing and tourism. The findings of this study show that Kenya’s pastoral sector has an economic worth of US$1.13 billion with the livestock sector and non-livestock sector accounting for 92$1.04 billion) and 8% (US$0.0903 billion), respectively. The annual national pastoral livestock offtake was valued at US$0.189 billion, while annual meat offtake was estimated at 154,968 tonnes, valued at US$0.389 billion. The national annual meat consumption was estimated at 553,200 tonnes, of which pastoral meat contributed 154,968 tonnes or 28%. The TEV approach integrates the many aspects of economic value contributed by pastoral systems, including market and non-market goods and services that are usually not accounted for. An accurate estimate of the contribution of pastoral production can be instrumental in lobbying for enhanced investment in the pastoral areas to boost environmentally sound development

Land-Use Change and Livestock Production Challenges in an Integrated System: The Masai-Mara Ecosystem, Kenya

Participatory rural appraisal techniques and a survey of 100 households were used to evaluate livestock production, and pastoral development of the Maasai in Mara. It was observed that patterns of land-use have principally changed from nomadic pastoralism to sedentary pastoralism, agropastoralism, and, in some cases, pure cultivation. These trends have adversely affected livestock production and the productive capacity of the Mara ecosystem. Diminishing grazing area occasioned by expanding cropping patterns has negatively impacted on vegetation resources and the biodiversity of the ecosystem. It has also increased the intensity of conflict over diminishing land resources. Because the production system is largely subsistence with a strong livestock base, it is further undermined by, among other factors, animal diseases, water scarcity, land individualisation, poor marketing infrastructure, and livestock/wildlife conflicts. Based on the findings of the present study, development approaches need to emphasise integrated livestock and wildlife utilisation, land tenure reforms that embody livestock mobility as a key strategy of optimising the use of transient forage resources, disease control, and development of livestock marketing

The Economic Contribution of Copyright-Based Industries in Tanzania

The main objective of this study was to quantify the economic contribution of copyright-based industries in Tanzania by estimating their value-added contribution to GDP, share of national employment, and revenue generated from foreign trade. In addition, the study aimed at providing material to assist in the formulation of adequately informed policies in order to improve the operation of the creative sector in the country. The WIPO Guide (2003) was used as a methodological basis for this research. The Guide classifies the copyrightbased industries into core, interdependent, partial, and non-dedicated support industries (NDSIs). The study depended mainly on secondary data covering the years 2006-07 to 2009-10. The main sources of these data were government departments and other related organizations, including the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA), Business Registration and Licensing Agency (BRELA) and the Copyright Society of Tanzania (COSOTA), which is the only collective management organization (CMO) that also serves as a copyright office

Influence of Settlements on Land use and Vegetation in the Rangelands of Northeastern Ethiopia: Application of Aerial Photographic Technique

Population pressure through settlements and encroachment of cultivation into pastoral prime grazing lands in and semi-and areas of Africa have resulted in the reduction of natural vegetation cover, in turn transforming land use systems This study was carried out to investigate changes in vegetation resources in relation to land use changes due to population pressure and the effect of time, in north-eastern Ethiopia. The methods employed involved the interpretation of aerial photographs, taken at two points in time 1964 and 1994 - and field survey. Results revealed that significant change, have occurred in land use and vegetation types over the 30 years Changes in land use, mainly in the form of flood recession cultivation, have apparently caused changes in vegetation structure. Based on these findings, it is recommended that research and development should strive to protect the existing grazing lands from settlements and encroaching cultivator

Determinants of Household Vulnerability to Food Insecurity: A Case Study of Semi-Arid Districts in Malawi

This paper looks at household vulnerability to food insecurity and its determinants in two semiarid districts in Malawi. A randomly selected sample of 200 households was interviewed. The descriptive statistics revealed that female-headed households were more vulnerable to food insecurity than male-headed households because of low access to resources for food production and purchases. A two-stage least squares regression analysis showed that amongst the main determinants of household vulnerability were income, household size, land size and access to climate information. The findings imply that policies should promote diversification of livelihoods and equal opportunities and rights to access resources. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Lt