ASALs cover about 70% of the greater Horn of Africa and about 90% in Kenya (ASARECA, 2011). In Kenya, these lands are inhabited by about 70% of the national livestock herd and about fourteen million of the human population. Nearly 80% of the honey in Kenya is produced within the ASALs, making them very important but vulnerable ecosystem that needs to be conserved for the present and future generations. Water scarcity is a challenge due to the erratic rainfall experienced in these lands (GOK, 2004; GOK, 2012). Besides water scarcity, arid and semi-arid lands (ASALs) are faced with a number of environmental and anthropogenic issues that impact negatively on their production potential. Unsustainable wood extraction, charcoal production, and invasive plant species are such notable threats to biodiversity conservation including bees within the ASALs. Some of these anthropogenic activities significantly altered plant species abundance, composition and structure thereby negatively impacting on bee forage availability and other ecosystem services such as pollination. Further, these anthropogenic activities have direct effects that may include a reduction in the abundance of palatable plant species that constitute important forage for livestock, and medicines for the local communities.
Lake Bogoria National Reserve Landscape (LBNRL) is known locally, nationally and regionally for important wildlife species, including the flamingo and the greater kudu. The combination of landforms, biodiversity content, availability of water and forage makes this site important at community, national and global levels. The LBL being the surrounding of the National Reserve of international significance is at risk from degradation arising from unsustainable exploitation and management of resources due to poverty, poor land use, and poaching, overstocking and unsustainable farming systems. It is against this background that the Chepkoimet Bee Keepers Community Based Organization intends to amplify beekeeping and improve honey production accompanied with environmental conservation and enhancement of the social well-being.
The LBNR & LBNR PL and the Lake Bogoria National Reserve (LBNR) has been designated as an important bird area (by Birdlife international) with over 373 species of birds. Globally threatened bird species found at the lake and its terrestrial landscape includes; the grey-crowned crane, the lesser flamingo, Martial Eagle and the Egyptian vulture. The terrestrial zone of the reserve supports a number of mammals including Leopard, Cheetah, Impala, Dikdik, Olive Baboon, Grant’s gazelle, Bat-eared fox, Blue Duiker and Aadvark. All this depend on the LBL ecosystem for their existence.
Despite LBNR being a wetland of international importance is currently at risk from environmental degradation arising from unsustainable resource exploitation and ecologically negative catchment-wide processes such as unsustainable farming practices. The natural vegetation within the landscape serves provisioning, regulatory and environmental services. The vegetation in the catchment also serves as the sources of the fresh water for the rivers emptying to Lake Bogoria that assists in the survival of the lesser flamingos which forms the main attraction feature of the reserve. The rivers additionally serve as a source of water for domestic activities within the LBNR & LBNR PL. The freshwater as well serves as the drinking water for the wild animals within the landscape. What is not understood to many is that the vegetation and the water also serves as an ecosystem for the survival and production by the bees.
The interrelationship between bees and the other components of the LBNR & LBNR PL ecosystem is complex. The bees facilitate the pollination process apart from honey production. Therefore, enough effort and resources should be directed towards beekeeping and improvement of the production systems for improved sales, and other human wellbeing targets including improved household income and employment opportunities. The proposed project will also lead to improved hygiene and quality honey and beekeeping products such as wax and propolis. Involvement of communities in beekeeping will lead to reduced pressure on the existing natural resource base and thus aid in the conservation of the lake and the LBL in general. Such targeted efforts will increase the honey quality and quantity for the local communities, and enhance socio-economic development of the area.
The improved honey production systems within the LBNR & LBNR PL will not only lead to increased forest canopy for nectar production, but also improved water levels in the rivers for both domestic and wildlife activities, conserve other wild species of flora and fauna and address the issues of food security, nutrition and improved household livelihood. The residents will draw benefits from the bees and conserve forests for the anchorage of the hives thus reducing the over-reliance on the benefits accrued from the reserve. The efforts will address the dependence syndrome and counter the perceived lack of benefits by people living adjacent to the National Reserve which in most cases is the basis of conflicts between the management of LBNR and the adjacent communities who feel alienated in terms of sharing of revenues that accrue from both consumptive and non- consumptive utilization of the LBNR resources.
The development of a strategic intervention aimed at improving honey production within the landscape in order to mitigate the LBL wide environmental problems and also resolve emerging resource use conflicts amongst stakeholders will be paramount. The improved honey production system will promote sustainable livelihoods through the conservation of the vegetation and limited maintenance requirements. The system will also create new socio-economic opportunities while harnessing existing ones, and safeguard the conservation of the LBL.
Chepkoimet Beekeepers is proposing to implement the improved honey production within the Lake Bogoria Landscape at Loboi. The immediate environs of this reserve is occupied by Endorois, Tugen and the Illchamus communities which are an indigenous agro-pastoralist community with population of 10,816 people (GoK, 2009). The community within which the proposed project will be implemented relies on small scale crop farming, unimproved livestock production and sparse and uncoordinated beekeeping and honey production. There are numerous challenges facing this community including high level of adult illiteracy, socioeconomic and political marginalization, inadequate land tenure policies, vulnerability to climatic variations and competition with wildlife for natural resources. This has led to frequent and persistent famine and reduced economic opportunities. Beekeeping and honey production is dispersed at individual farms and the production is based on individual efforts. There is limited coordination in beekeeping and honey production.
The returns from this business are poor and hardly support households in meeting their basic needs. The proposed project will designate an area of about 10 acres within the community land and establish beehives for commercial beekeeping and honey production. There will also be a compartment for the storage of the harvested honey. The honey will be availed for other organizations with the capacity to process and market. This will assist in distribution and marketing of the honey to other areas where there is a ready market in the adjacent nearby counties such as Nakuru. This will amplify the demand hence lead to higher production, more returns and thus improving the living standards of the residents of the LBNR & LBNR PL. The villages where the project will be implemented includes Chelaba, Bogoria, Chepkoimet, and Kipkamat among others within Chelaba Sub-location.