April 2010 The good news is … Payments for biodiversity conservation in rangelands can protect the environment and generate real ﬁnancial incentives for landowners to provide environmental services. And the not so good news is … References Homewood K., Kristjanson, P, and Chevenix Trench, P. 2009. Staying Maasai? Livelihoods, conservation and development in East African Rangelands, New York, Springer. Ogutu, J.O., Piepho, H-P, Dublin, H.T., Bhola, N., and Reid, R.S. 2009. Dynamics of Mara –Serengeti ungulates in relation to land use changes. Journal of Zoology, 278: 1-14 Payments for biodiversity conservation in the Masai Mara: What impacts on pastoral livelihoods? Claire Bedelian, Graduate Fellow, PLE Theme, ILRI PhD Student, University College London Email: [email protected] Payments for biodiversity conservation in rangelands may not be compatible with other livelihood activities: This research is helping to assess the trade-offs for pastoral livelihoods versus biodiversity conservation to aid in designing effective conservation payments. Case study - The Olare Orok Conservancy (OOC) Set up in 2006, the OOC is a partnership between 154 Maasai landowners and 4 tourism investors. The OOC directly borders the Masai Mara National Reserve and now provides 20,000 acres of wildlife only habitat as settlements and livestock have been removed. Each landowner receives KSH15,000 per month based on a 150 acre plot. No livestock grazing is currently allowed. Introduction •People, livestock and wildlife are competing for space in the Masai Mara. •The Masai Mara has experienced serious declines in wildlife in the last 20 years (Ogutu et al., 2009). •Few Maasai benefit from conservation incomes (Homewood et al., 2009). •There is increasing privatisation of the rangelands - Koyiaki Group Ranch, adjacent to the Masai Mara National Reserve is now fully subdivided. New payments for conservation •A fixed monthly payment is made to Maasai landowners who move off their land and leave it undeveloped in terms of settlement and agriculture. •Livestock grazing is prohibited or limited. •A conservancy is set up for wildlife conservation and tourism. •Payment is administered through tourism partners who have exclusive rights to high-end eco-tourism facilities within the conservancy. Study area – Masai Mara The Masai Mara National Reserve is situated on the border of Kenya/Tanzania Map showing new conservancies adjacent to the Masai Mara National Reserve Methods •Questionnaire to assess the contribution of conservation payments to overall household income, and to compare member and non-member households. •Semi-structured interviews to explore Maasai perception of conservation payments, and to investigate conservancy institutional and partnership arrangements. •Time series mapping of Maasai settlements to investigate changes in number and distribution of settlements in relation to conservancies. Findings...in progress... The good... •Payments can bring substantial returns to landowners. •Payment system removes previous distributional and corruption issues. •Payments discourage the development and onward sale of land. The bad... •Tends to benefit the elite as based on (prime) land ownership. •Constrains livestock grazing and mobility. •Neighbouring non- members lose out on both payment and grazing areas. And the unknown... •The nature of the partnership between the community and tourism partners. •The effect of payments on wildlife distribution and abundance. •The long term vision as people and livestock are moved out into increasingly confined and crowded spaces. To be continued...

Payments for biodiversity conservation in the Masai Mara: What impacts on pastoral livelihoods?

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Page 1: Payments for biodiversity conservation in the Masai Mara: What impacts on pastoral livelihoods?

April 2010

The good news is …

Payments for biodiversity conservation in rangelands can protect the environment and generate real financial incentives for landowners to provide environmental services.

And the not so good news is …

References Homewood K., Kristjanson, P, and Chevenix Trench, P. 2009. Staying Maasai? Livelihoods, conservation and development in East African Rangelands, New York, Springer. Ogutu, J.O., Piepho, H-P, Dublin, H.T., Bhola, N., and Reid, R.S. 2009. Dynamics of Mara –Serengeti ungulates in relation to land use changes. Journal of Zoology, 278: 1-14

Payments for biodiversity conservation in the Masai Mara: What impacts on pastoral

livelihoods? Claire Bedelian, Graduate Fellow, PLE Theme, ILRI

PhD Student, University College London Email: [email protected]

Payments for biodiversity conservation in rangelands may not be compatible with other livelihood activities: This research is helping to assess the trade-offs for pastoral livelihoods versus biodiversity conservation to aid in designing effective conservation payments.

Case study - The Olare Orok Conservancy (OOC) Set up in 2006, the OOC is a partnership between 154 Maasai landowners and 4 tourism investors. The OOC directly borders the Masai Mara National Reserve and now provides 20,000 acres of wildlife only habitat as settlements and livestock have been removed. Each landowner receives KSH15,000 per month based on a 150 acre plot. No livestock grazing is currently allowed.

Introduction • People, livestock and wildlife are competing for space in the Masai Mara. • The Masai Mara has experienced serious declines in wildlife in the last 20 years (Ogutu et al., 2009). • Few Maasai benefit from conservation incomes (Homewood et al., 2009). • There is increasing privatisation of the rangelands - Koyiaki Group Ranch, adjacent to the Masai Mara National Reserve is now fully subdivided.

New payments for conservation • A fixed monthly payment is made to Maasai landowners who move off their land and leave it undeveloped in terms of settlement and agriculture. • Livestock grazing is prohibited or limited. • A conservancy is set up for wildlife conservation and tourism. • Payment is administered through tourism partners who have exclusive rights to high-end eco-tourism facilities within the conservancy.

Study area – Masai Mara

The Masai Mara National Reserve is situated on the border of Kenya/Tanzania

Map showing new conservancies adjacent to the Masai Mara National Reserve

Methods • Questionnaire to assess the contribution of conservation payments to overall household income, and to compare member and non-member households. • Semi-structured interviews to explore Maasai perception of conservation payments, and to investigate conservancy institutional and partnership arrangements. • Time series mapping of Maasai settlements to investigate changes in number and distribution of settlements in relation to conservancies.

Findings...in progress... The good... • Payments can bring substantial returns to landowners. • Payment system removes previous distributional and corruption issues. • Payments discourage the development and onward sale of land.

The bad... • Tends to benefit the elite as based on (prime) land ownership. • Constrains livestock grazing and mobility. • Neighbouring non-members lose out on both payment and grazing areas.

And the unknown... • The nature of the partnership between the community and tourism partners. • The effect of payments on wildlife distribution and abundance. • The long term vision as people and livestock are moved out into increasingly confined and crowded spaces.

To be continued...