Mitangani residents in Ganze subcounty, Kilifi, are worried after herders from Northeastern counties invaded the area for pasture and water.
The residents want the government to regulate the inter-county movement of livestock.
They fear the little remaining pasture and water will be depleted rendering their livestock vulnerable to the ongoing drought.
Jumaa Kitsao, a farmer, said the current pasture is not enough for the locals to graze their animals.
“Currently there are over 500 camels and 2000 cattle from Garissa, Wajir and Isiolo counties. We are not sure if their animals are vaccinated," Kitsao said.
"Our animals do not have enough pasture. Government should drive these animals away from this region for the safety of our livestock."
Last year, residents lost thousands of livestock due to drought. All the water sources in the area dried up forcing some farmers to sell their emaciated cattle for Sh2000.
Safari Katana expressed fears that water sources will dry up before the next rain season.
He said three months ago they were fetching water from 20 kilometres away.
“We depend on these water pans for both domestic and livestock use. The foreign herders have water pumps which they use for their animals to drink and some water pans are already drying up,” Katana said.
The movement of livestock from other counties to the ranching zones in Ganze subcounty has been a source of many conflicts.
Residents have reported several cases of assault and damage to crops.
They accuse administrators and the ranch directors for leasing the pasture to the foreign herders who later graze into people’s farms.
“These herders once they lease some area anything green they see is food for their animals and that is a recipe for chaos,” Katana said.
In some instances, residents are denied access to some water sources with the foreign herders claiming to have paid for the sources.
Last year locals started bushfires to chase away the herders.
Ganze MP Teddy Mwambire urged the county government to control the cross border movement of animals to stop the spread of diseases.
“Last year several animals died due to lack of pasture while others due to diseases. I am sure these foreign herds were vaccinated since the county has designated entry points to monitor that,” Mwambire said.
