GAZETTE NOTICE NO. 14811

IN EXERCISE of the powers conferred by section 44 (3) of the Wildlife Conservation and Management Act, 2013, the Cabinet Secretary for Tourism and Wildlife gazettes the Plan in the Schedule hereto: THE KENYA GAZETTE 15th November, 2024 SCHEDULE The ILRI Kapiti Wildlife Conservancy–Conservation Management Plan 2022-2026 (hereinafter referred to as “the Plan”) defines the goals, objectives, and actions that ILRI (The International Livestock Research Institute) Kapiti Conservancy (hereinafter referred to as “the Conservancy”) has designed to address livestock research, environmental and climate change research, integrated rangeland management for research, wildlife research, grazing management for livestock and wildlife, intensive rangeland management, hay and fodder management, wildlife management, tourism development, partnerships, and operations management and security. The Conservancy’s goals, management programmes and plan implementation strategy are summarized in the following sections. 1. OVERALL GOAL The central goal of land management activities at the conservancy is to conduct research on livestock production and the environment in rangelands, including research on livestock grazing and fodder production; animal health, welfare, genetics and productivity, and the interactions of livestock production practices with environmental quality in terms of conservation of biodiversity, livestock-wildlife coexistence, measurement of greenhouse gas emissions, and the dynamics and resilience of rangeland ecosystems. 2. MANAGEMENT GOALS (a) Quality rangeland habitats: To provide and maintain high- quality rangeland habitats in the conservancy for environmental and conservation research and for conservation of biodiversity. (b) Restoration of habitats: To improve the quality of rangeland habitats as appropriate through restoration of portions of the rangeland, including through restorative livestock grazing, targeted livestock grazing, and intensive restoration efforts such as reduction or removal of encroaching shrubs and management of natural regeneration. (c) Habitat connectivity: To provide and maintain connectivity for key wildlife species with other parcels of park and non-park lands in the area. The conservancy strives to increase large- scale connectivity and resilience of rangeland ecosystems beyond the scale of the Athi-Kapiti Plains ecosystem. 3. LAND USES AND ZONES The primary land use in the conservancy is to undertake research on livestock production and the environment in rangelands. The secondary land use is conservation of carnivore species and migratory wildlife species, as well as the rangeland ecosystems. The mixed-use zone is used for operational facilities, agricultural crop research and forage research. 4. MANAGEMENT PROGRAMMES The plan has ten management programmes that address research and conservation in the conservancy. These programmes are summarised in the following sections. 4.1 Livestock Research The main objective of the Livestock Research programme is to ensure facilitation of research on animal health, genetics, feed and forages to improve livestock health and productivity in Kenya and globally. The research contributes to the preservation and improvement of the quality of genetics in important breeds indigenous to Kenya. 4.2 Environmental and Climate Change Research The Environmental and Climate Change Research programme’s goal is to estimate greenhouse gas emissions at continental scale for policy and programmatic use by national governments and civil societies. The programme also seeks to determine the impact of the grazing management system on soil fertility and carbon flux as well as testing the effectiveness of different techniques for rangeland restoration. 4.3 Integrated Rangeland Management for Research The integrated management of rangelands is conducted mainly for the purpose of research on livestock production and the environment in rangelands. It includes livestock grazing management, intensive rangeland restoration, haymaking and fodder cultivation, and wildlife management. The programme also seeks to conserve biodiversity within the conservancy and the greater Athi-Kapiti Plains ecosystem. 4.4 Wildlife Research The Wildlife Research programme goals are to; provide an understanding of zoonotic disease transmission through identification of pathogens and pathogen hotspots, establish research on microbiomes in various wildlife species and their potential role in disease resistance, assess the antimicrobial resistance at the wildlife- livestock ecosystem interface and evaluate the role of waterholes in transmission of pathogens between livestock and wildlife. 4.5 Grazing Management for Livestock and Wildlife The purpose of the Grazing Management for Livestock and Wildlife programme is to ensure that appropriate stocking for healthy livestock and wildlife and the conservation of rangelands is carried out so as to prevent degradation of the ecosystem. To achieve this purpose, the programme will focus on improving pasture and controlling invasive and unwanted species. 4.6 Intensive Rangeland Management The overall goal of the Intensive Rangeland Management programme is to test the effectiveness of different techniques for rangeland restoration. This will be achieved through mapping of areas affected by unwanted species, conducting manual clearing, prescribed burning, use of herbicides and targeted browsing. 4.7 Hay and Fodder Management The Hay and Fodder Management programme’s primary objective is to establish fodder stock for drought periods through setting up new haymaking zones and conducting fodder research. The second objective focuses on providing quality fodder to the local community by establishing larger areas to cultivate fodder species for harvesting and sale. 4.8 Wildlife Management The Wildlife Management programme’s aim is to promote the free movement of wildlife and to reduce human-wildlife conflicts through monitoring and tracking wildlife movements. To achieve this aim, wildlife migratory routes will be established on ILRI Kapiti wildlife conservancy and the wider Athi-Kapiti Plains ecosystem. Wildlife population monitoring will also be undertaken to inform management actions. 4.9 Partnerships The Partnerships programme seeks to develop positive and collaborative relations with neighbouring properties surrounding the conservancy to allow free movement of wildlife between these properties. The programme also aims at strengthening relationships with the wider local community and engaging them in collaborative efforts thus providing employment opportunities. The programme focuses on providing grazing leases for pastoralists during severe droughts thus playing a role in enabling pastoral communities to preserve their livestock. The partnership programme also seeks to promote productive interactions with stakeholders within the greater Machakos and Nairobi through provision of high-quality breeding stock to increase sustainable livestock production in the regions. 4.10 Operations Management and Security The Operations Management and Security programme aims at providing an enabling environment for research and management activities in the conservancy. The conservancy will collaborate with Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) to trains its scouts in security operations. Key research areas that require special security operations include protection of areas where research activities take place, wildlife monitoring, protection of wildlife from poaching and documentation of wildlife-human conflicts to facilitate compensation for losses. 5. PLAN IMPLEMENTATION, MONITORING AND EVALUATION The conservancy will report regularly on the progress of the plan implementation. ILRI scientists will report on the progress and outcomes of their research projects regularly and publish their findings in scientific journals. The conservancy management will hold monitoring and evaluation meetings annually to establish the progress 15th November, 2024 THE KENYA GAZETTE made according to the targets as set in the implementation matrix. The review process will be carried out to include lessons learnt during the preceding year and planning on action points to achieve better outcomes. An annual compliance report will be prepared by the Kapiti Plains Estate Limited Board and submitted to KWS. The Plan is deposited at the offices of the Director-General, Kenya Wildlife Service along Langata Road and the Managing Director, ILRI Kapiti Wildlife Conservancy whose addresses are provided below: The Director-General, Kenya Wildlife Service, P.O. Box 40241–00200, Nairobi. Tel: (254) 020 6000800/6002345 E-mail: kws@kws.go.ke The Managing Director, ILRI Kapiti Conservancy, P.O. Box 1594–90100, Machakos. Tel: +254204223000/+254204223001 E-mail: kapiticonservancy@cgiar.org Dated the 15th November, 2024. REBECCA MIANO, Cabinet Secretary for Tourism and Wildlife.