NAMUNYAK WILDLIFE CONSERVATION TRUST

Background

Namunyak Wildlife Conservation Trust was established in 1995 and is located in the Mathews Range of northern Kenya in Wamba Division in Samburu East District. Namunyak (meaning “Place of Peace”) originally operated on the Sarara and Sabache Group Ranches that joined together to manage their land as one unit for conservation. The Trust has now expanded to include six group ranches, including the Ngiai West Group Ranch and the trust land area of Ndonyo Wasin. The responses by these new communities towards wildlife conservation have been immensely positive.

The mission of Namunyak is to promote wildlife conservation and the socio-economic development of the Samburu community through sustainable utilization of natural resources. Specific objectives include ensuring grassroots involvement in decision making of the Trust, improving environmental awareness in surrounding communities, augmenting physical security for wildlife, people and livestock in the area, maintaining and enhancing natural resources in the area,  and providing income to local communities through the establishment of sustainable enterprises.

Endangered Species Conservation

Namunyak serves as a critical wildlife refuge for many species and holds abundant populations of giraffe, gerenuk, leopard, African wild dog, impala lion, Greater Kudu, elephant and many bird species. Namunyak is also home to the rare De Brazza colobus monkey, the rare IUCN red-listed cycad encephalartos tegulaneus endemic only to Kitich, spectacular hartlaub - Kitich forests are a treasure trove of rare and often uncatalogued species.The area is particularly important for elephant as they move seasonally between the Mathews Range and the Mt. Kenya and Ngare Ndare Forests. Namunyak is in many ways the frontline for the protection of this species from poaching as elephants move to the northern frontiers of community conservation efforts in northern Kenya. Community scouts have intercepted several attempts at poaching for ivory within and outside the conservancy boundaries and contribute significantly to the conservation of elephant in northern Kenya through both anti-poaching and wildlife monitoring activities. To augment their activities even further, two permanent scout outposts are being built at Murit and Ndonyio Wuasin, and plans are underway to strengthen the scout force by increasing their numbers.

Business Development

Namunyak hosts two very successful luxury tented camp: Sarara Camp and Kitich Camp. Opened in 2005, the ten-bed Sarara Camp is managed through an external operator, Sarara Management Limited. Sarara Camp has been a vitally important part of Namunyak’s conservation and community development efforts. In 2009, revenue to the conservancy from Sarara Camp totaled more than $90,600. Kitich Camp has existed in one form or another since the 1960s, established as a rhino monitoring camp, and to support the local forest community. Kitich was taken over by Cheli & Peacock in 2009, refurbished and joined the Namunyak Wildlife Conservation Trust. Revenue to the conservancy from Kitich Camp is
anticipated to reach $30,000 by 2011. The tourism operation employs 80% of its staff from local communities and the conservancy receives income from the operation through conservation fees charged to guests on a per person per night basis. From this income, 60 percent is used to fund community projects (such as school bursaries or water projects) while 40 percent is used to fund annual operations costs of the Trust.
Recently, Kirisia Safaris, specialists in camel trekking safaris, entered the conservancy for the first time and prospects are good for continued business with them in the future. Sand grouse shooting is also conducted for the purposes of increasing the Conservancy’s revenue.

The Future of Namunyak Wildlife Conservation Trust

• Continue to engage and sensitise communities of the importance of wildlife conservation;
• Further enhance wildlife monitoring activities by increasing the number of scouts, as well as building permanent outposts in this regard;
• Develop management strategies for the Conservancy’s forests, in line with the Kenya Forest Act 2005;
• Continue to enhance tourism operations and community-based enterprises within the Conservancy
• The Namunyak Wildlife Conservation Trust is currently in advanced negotiations with the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) to be the first community conservancy in Kenya to host black rhinos. In accordance with KWS’s vision to ‘promote establishment of community rhino conservation through partnerships and the generation of goodwill from neighbourhoods to all rhino conservation areas’, Namunyak has been identified as one of the potential community rhino conservation. The conservancy surrounds the Mathew’s Range, an area where black rhino were still extant as recently as 2000. A rhino was poached in this area in 2000 and was the last confirmed report of rhino in the area. Re-introduction of black rhino into Namunyak will be preceded by a major investment into anti-poaching through increased staffing levels, training, equipment and infrastructure development and the leveraging of long-term support to this investment.