Community Enteprises

The goal of the KWS community enterprise development is to develop the capacity of communities and private landowners to establish and manage economically viable nature based enterprises within targeted landscapes of Kenya. Communities who interact with and host wildlife on their lands are our key stakeholders. It is therefore imperative that good and working partnerships are developed with them. We do so through our education and awareness programs, corporate social responsibility (provision of water, health and education facilities), community enterprise initiatives and human wildlife conflict mitigation measures. Communities need wildlife conservation education and awareness programs. Most people look at economics when making a choice on land use. They compare what they would get say from farming wheat against wildlife conservation. With our conservation education and awareness creation, we make them see the bigger picture that even though wheat may bring in quicker and higher returns at the short span, there are factors that make it unattractive as a form of land use in a wildlife area. For instance, elephants or zebras can invade such a crop overnight and clear it out causing the farmer substantial loss and therefore ventures that accommodate wildlife are more attractive in such an area.

KWS new strategic approach is to engage these communities to adopt more sustainable land uses practices in these historically wildlife dominant areas.

• The process entails identifying the partner community, involving them in the development of the project proposal through such methods like participatory rural appraisal exercises, establishment of community conflict resolution committees, capacity building (e.g. training of scouts), conducting community exchange visits, study tours and education & awareness creation workshops/meetings.
• Our community enterprise department, headed by an assistant director handles this by encouraging local communities to engage in wildlife related enterprises aimed at improving their wellbeing.
• Our target is communities and individuals who either interact with or host wildlife on their lands. Not all wildlife in Kenya is confined to protected areas. Wildlife also moves within the areas they habituate (protected & non – protected) from time to time in the course of a year (seasonal migration) due to biological needs such as breeding or in search of feed and water resources. It is at such times that it comes into conflict with people especially over competition for these resources. The conflicts are heightened by the lack of implementation of a land use policy thus providing healthy grounds for human encroachment into wildlife areas and the practicing of incompatible land uses. This interferes with wildlife dispersal and migratory (corridors) areas.
   

KEY STRATEGIC FOCAL AREAS 

The KWS key focal areas for the Community Enterprise strategic approach will focus on the following areas. It is envisaged that by KWS implementing activities in these areas, significant results and impact in sustainable community wildlife conservation and management will be achieved.

1. Education and awareness creation for the establishment of nature based businesses;
2. Sustainable tourism products through strategic partnerships;
3. Resources and financial sustainability for community based wildlife businesses;
4. Technical assistance and capacity building; and
5. Lobby and influence Infrastructure development

A Strategic Plan 2012-2017 spells out in detail how the above activities and results will be implemented and achieved