M. M. Nyangito

Drought Adaptation and Coping Strategies Among the Turkana Pastoralists of Northern Kenya

This study highlights drought characteristics and the many responses to drought stresses employed by Turkana pastoralists of northwestern Kenya. Multiple data sources, including socioeconomic interviews with 302 households, focus group discussions, and informal interviews with pastoralists were used to capture various aspects of drought and drought adaptation and coping practices. Standardized precipitation index derived from long-term rainfall data obtained from the Kenya Meteorological Service was used to quantify different degrees of drought intensity between 1950 and 2012. Results revealed that extreme drought events were increasingly frequent, and have impacted negatively on pastoral livelihoods. In order to adapt to or cope with climatic anomalies, households are using a variety of strategies. In addition to the traditional short-term coping mechanisms, the long-term adaptation strategies used include diversification of livelihood sources; livestock mobility to track forage and water resources; diversification of herd composition to benefit from the varied drought and disease tolerance, as well as fecundity of diverse livestock species; and sending children to school for formal education as a long term investment expected to pay back through income from employment. Policies and development interventions that reduce risks, diminish livelihood constraints, and expand opportunities for increased household resilience to drought are critical complements to the existing pastoral strategies.

Measuring household vulnerability to climate-induced stresses in pastoral rangelands of Kenya: Implications for resilience programming

This study uses statistical and econometric tools to measure households’ vulnerability in pastoral rangelands of Kenya. It considered 27 socio-economic and biophysical indicators obtained from 302 households’ in-depth interviews to reflect climate vulnerability components: adaptive capacity, exposure and sensitivity. The theoretical framework used combines exposure and sensitivity to produce potential impact, which was then compared with adaptive capacity in order to generate an overall measure of vulnerability. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to develop weights for different indicators and produce a household vulnerability index (HVI) so as to classify households according to their level of vulnerability. In order to understand the determinants of vulnerability to climate-induced stresses, an ordered probit model was employed with predictor variables. The results show that 27% of households were highly vulnerable, 44% were moderately vulnerable and 29% of households were less vulnerable to climate-induced stresses. Factor estimates of the probit model further revealed that the main determinants of pastoral vulnerability are sex of household head, age of household head, number of dependents, marital status, social linkages, access to extension services and early warning information, complementary source of income, herd size and diversity, herd structure, herd mobility, distance to markets, employment status, coping strategies and access to credit. Therefore, policies that address these determinants of vulnerability with emphasis on womens empowerment, education and income diversifications are likely to enhance resilience of pastoral households.

Determinants of perceptions of climate change and adaptation among Turkana pastoralists in northwestern Kenya

There is a growing concern that climate variability and change, combined with other environmental, social and political pressures, may overwhelm resilience of pastoral systems if local adaptation strategies are not strengthened. Understanding pastoralists’ perception of and response to climatic change is necessary for sustainable adaptation strategies. Systematic and purposive sampling techniques were used to select 302 households in Turkana County of northwestern Kenya. Descriptive statistics and Heckman probit model were used to analyse the data obtained from the households interviews. The results show that majority of households’ perceive rise in temperatures and rainfall variability over the past three decades. Pastoralists’ perception of climate change was significantly (p<.05) associated with gender of the household head, livestock ownership, herd size and access to extension services. Heckmans sample selectivity probit model revealed that factors influencing pastoralists choices of climate change adaptation include gender and education level of the household head, household size, wealth in terms of livestock ownership, distance to markets, access to credit and extension services. We conclude that as a prerequisite for long-term commitment to households climate resilience, policies and programmes should aim at improving these factors.

Tracing innovation pathways in the management of natural and social capital on Laikipia Maasai Group Ranches, Kenya

Group ranches (GRs) were established in Kenya in the 1960s and 1970s; their objectives included the increase of pastoral land productivity and the control of land degradation. Since their establishment, GRs have evolved and new trends have emerged in resource management with significant impact on socio-ecological systems (SESs). Little is known about these changes on the GRs in Laikipia County. The central thesis for this study was that GR-level-driven and/or collective action innovations are socio-ecologically more resilient compared to household/individual-level strategies. This study investigated emerging innovations, their drivers and perceived and felt impacts, using Il Motiok GR as a case study. Tools used included semi-structured interviews, key informant interviews, focus group discussions and second order cybernetics. Qualitative analysis using SPSS software was done. The results showed that emerging innovations could be divided into either household/individual- or community-level-driven processes. Some of the innovations in natural capital management included the trading of grazing rights, expansion of traditional enclosures, adoption of ‘new’ livestock species and/or breeds, and crop cultivation. Household-level-driven innovations were influenced by wealth status, age and level of education. Economic returns and to some extent the greater good influenced community-driven initiatives. Formal groupings such as self-help groups and business associations were replacing declining traditional social networks based on clans and age sets/groups. Climate change, development agencies, cultural and technological change and neighbourhood social learning are perceived as having inspired the innovations. Innovations that fragmented natural and social capital were inclined to limit socio-ecological resilience. Implementation of new interventions among communities must factor in the possibilities of transformation and/or emergence of new innovations beyond those initially conceptualised as implementation progresses. Supportive policies that recognise the increasing complexity of common property use are needed to address emerging ‘new’ land use changes. Furthermore, there is need to nurture emergent promising innovations and stop those considered detrimental to the sustainability of SESs.

Nutritional contents of Balanites aegyptiaca and its contribution to human diet

Wild edible plants are used as food and energy sources. However, their uses are not as the potential inherent in the resources. Balanites aegyptiaca is a multipurpose species in semiarid areas including Ethiopia. Hence, quantitative nutrition study in specific habitat is essential for sustainable use of the species. Composite fruits sample of B. aegyptiaca was collected from six areas of east Shewa, Ethiopia for nutrient analysis following standard laboratory procedure. The results reveal that the fruits are rich in P, Ca, Fe, Zn, Cu, Na, K, Mg and Mn. The nutritional content varied (P<0.05) across land uses. Mean calculated energy value of lipids ranged from 0.09-027 kcal 4.2-7.68 for B. aegyptiaca and the total energy from carbohydrate was 342.2-354.24 kcal. Therefore, the fruit of B. aegyptiaca is promising in terms of nutrient content to human’s diet diversification. It is a valuable species particularly during dry season for coping and adapting to climate variability/change. In spite of the promising potential, the nutritional contribution of this species to the people’s diet remained underutilized. Therefore, the utilization of B. aegyptiaca is justified to be considered for integration in dryland agrobiodiversity systems and nutrition research to enhance the contribution to the diet of people and enhance its sustainable utilization.

Climate variability; enhancing adaptive utilization of browse trees for improved livestock production among agro-pastoralists communities in Southern Zambia

Agro-pastoralists whose sources of livelihood depend on rain-fed agriculture are very vulnerable to ecological disturbance due to increasing climate variability. They are unable to adequately feed their animals in times of extreme weather conditions of floods and droughts thereby causing a disruption in their major source of livelihood. This study analyzed the feeding strategies employed by agropastoralists in Southern Zambia and important browse species used in extreme weather conditions, in order to improve their utilization for improved livestock production. The major feeding strategies during droughts include browse utilization, dambo grazing, grazing along streams and supplementary feeding. While during floods, upland grazing and browse grazing were the main strategies. However, most of the agro-pastoralists do not practice pasture management and fodder conservation for their animals. Of the 21 tree browse species identified by the agro-pastoralists, 18 species were found to be important during droughts and 8 during floods. Most of the agro-pastoralists neither knew how to plant these browse species nor how to manage them for better and sustainable use in feeding their animals. Therefore, the agro-pastoralists in the study area need to take up management and feed conservation measures for their animals. Deliberate effort should be made to teach the agro-pastoralists how to plant and manage the important browse species that are suitable in extreme weather conditions. This will enhance productive use of the browse species for improved animal feeding to ensure food security among the pastoralists.

Range Use and Trophic Interactions by Agropastoral Herds in Southeastern Kenya

Abstract Habitat utilization patterns and feeding interaction of free ranging agropastoral herds were investigated in two cycles of four consecutive grazing periods, in a semiarid environment, southeastern Kenya. The bites count and herd locations per area methods were used. During the dry season, areas of concentrated drainage; river valleys, bottomlands and ephemeral drainage ways absorbed a greater feeding load, taking 57.1 to 60% of the grazing time by the animals. In contrast, areas of limited moisture concentration, the open sandy/clay plains, were mainly exploited in the wet season and accounted for 52.6 to 55.6% of the grazing time. The trophic interaction patterns indicated that goats and cattle had a seasonal mean diet overlap index of less than 0.5 for all forage classes. Sheep and cattle, and sheep and goats had a seasonal mean diet overlap index of greater than 0.5 on grass and forbs, and browse and forbs, respectively. This indicated that during periods of resource scarcity, sheep and cattle or sheep and goats could become competitive feeders for same feed resources. Grazing management strategies aimed at even distribution of grazing pressure and enhancing complementary trophic interactions could be central to sustainable livestock production in such environments.