A Space Where People and Wildlife Thrive

The Maasai Mara is a world-renowned destination for wildlife tourism. Kenya’s “big five” wildlife species—lion, elephant, buffalo, leopard and rhino—are all found here.

But the best wildlife viewing is not only in the national reserve operated by the Narok County government. The land around the reserve is largely conserved through 24 community conservancies offering habitat for the wildlife that makes Maasai Mara so iconic, while still providing a home for the people who have lived in this region for generations.

About 65% of Kenya’s wildlife lives outside of government-protected areas, like the Maasai Mara national reserve. That’s one reason why community conservancies are imperative for wildlife to survive and thrive.

In 2016, The Nature Conservancy and the Maasai Mara Wildlife Conservancies Association (MMWCA), one of the landscape conservancies association under Kenya Wildlife Conservancies Association (KWCA), partnered to support the community in establishing Pardamat with public funding.

Pardamat Conservation Area is a block of land in the former Koiyaki group ranch initially set aside for settlement purposes. According to a 2001 land use zoning map, landowners from three nearby conservancies (Mara North, Olare Orok, Motorogi and Naboisho) could settle in Pardamat. Landowners were allocated land in either of the conservancies and a certain percentage in Pardamat for settlement, allowing their other land parcels to be prioritized for wildlife habitat and tourism. Landowners are compensated by the conservation area with profits brought in from revenue-generating operations, like tourism.

Despite a high human settlement compared to the adjacent conservancies, Padamat has remained a wildlife area with elephants and other species using it as a transit area or to access pasture and water, particularly during the tight times. Wildebeest, giraffes and wild dogs wander its lush habitat, which stays green during the dry season thanks to its many natural springs. Locals call it a “maternity ward” for elephants, because so many elephants come here to give birth and nurse their young.

Fencing

A big barrier, literally, to wildlife conservation in Maasai Mara is fencing. Landowners use fences to mark their property borders, contain their livestock, and keep wildlife and neighbors’ livestock out. The fences restrict wildlife movement, which can force animals and humans into situations that lead to conflict.

"Because of the fences, we realized that, you know, human wildlife conflicts were getting very high,” said Sasine. “More often than not, you find elephants in places where they're not supposed to be because they cannot access their habitat.” The barriers can aggravate animals; they may become rogue and attack people.

That’s what led Pardamat, in partnership with TNC, to compensate landowners to take down their fences. Conservationists make the case to landowners that fences are expensive to maintain and do not guarantee protection from wildlife nor a sustainable supply of grass, and landowners learn and understand they are better off accepting compensation. To date, 473 kilometers of fences have been brought down through this program.

There are still challenges to living with wildlife, as the Maasai have known for generations. But now, there are more benefits to living with wildlife in Pardamat. The conservation area ensures that there are grass banks available for grazing during the dry season, provides training for jobs, scholarships and other opportunities for young people, especially in tourism. And landowners benefit from allowing wildlife to use their land, in the form of a monthly lease in unfenced or land parcels where fences have been removed.

“We want to see a community that is transformed, whose livelihoods are transformed by the conservation that we are doing,” Sasine said. “That's the ultimate goal, to ensure that whatever we do here in terms of conservation means a positive change in the lives of the people that are hosting this wildlife.” 

Among these are 20 conservancy rangers who work with the community to minimize conflicts between people and wildlife. This reduces the need for government to compensate for loss and frees more resources for development work.

To expand these benefits, a community-run tourism college has been established nearby at Endoinyo Erinka to give youth skills to access jobs in conservation and tourism. Roads have improved and schools in the area have been rebuilt with funds from conservation and tourism partners, and the largest airstrip in the area was recently constructed. Prospects for new camps that offer cultural immersion experiences are under design, and while sustainability remains in question, the Pardamat model as a dual-use pastoral and wildlife conservancy demonstrates how coexistence between people and wildlife can be achieved in Africa’s savannas, offering lessons to similar areas.