The Rotary Club of Athi River has birthed a new club to address human-wildlife conflict in Athi Kapiti Conservancy.
Speaking during the Rotary Club of Athi- Kapiti charter on Friday, the newly founded club’s Charter president Sylvia Njambi said the new formation was out of a need analysis and public outcry on the increased human-wildlife conflict within the conservancy.
“We are about climate adaptability and human-wildlife conflict advocacy and intervention. Our purpose is to ensure communities that live around us are well since the urban migration is coming to the Athi Kapiti conservancy,” Njambi said.
Njambi spoke to the Star during the new club’s official launch at a Nairobi hotel.
Athi Kapiti Conservancy is part of a larger ecosystem that spans across six counties in Kenya, including Kajiado, Kiambu, Kitui, Nairobi, Machakos, and Makueni.
This region is crucial for wildlife conservation, serving as a dispersal area for Nairobi National Park and a wildlife corridor linking to Amboseli National Park.
Athi-Kapiti ecosystem covers approximately 6,510 square kilometers, with a significant portion dedicated to private conservancies and ranches.
The Athi Kapiti Wildlife Conservancies Association (AKWCA) promotes sustainable development, safeguarding people and biodiversity in the ecosystem.
The ecosystem is home to a diverse range of wildlife, including the Big Five (lion, leopard, buffalo, and rhino), cheetahs, hyenas, zebras, wildebeests, and various bird species.
Nairobi National Park and Ol Donyo Sabuk National Park are two protected areas within the Athi-Kapiti landscape.
Njambi said they had heard of children being eaten by hyenas who left the wild since there was no food in the conservancy.
“From 2007 to-date, wildlife migration doesn’t take place as it used to. It has declined by 70 per cent, that’s why we want to be that change in the community whereby we offer solution to human-wildlife conflict,” Njambi said.
She said they were involved in awareness creation, needed change, and helping boy and girl child as well as schools, women and men in the community for a better society.
“There is a lot of drought in these areas. We are looking for innovative partners who can be able to help us with the change we want to bring so as to adapt with the climate,” Njambi said.
Njambi said before the club got chattered, they gathered stories through ‘hadithi hadithi’ forums where elders told stories of the land. The stories were documented and made part of the need analysis.
She said communities, together with Community-Based Organisations were able to tell them what their needs are.
“First is to understand their needs by doing the needs assessment and through partnerships, peace building, literacy, and community development,” Njambi said.
Njambi said there were 30 members in the Rotary Club of Athi-Kapiti and called for more volunteers of like-minded to join them so as to give back to the community together.
Chatter president-elect Mona Ombogo said the story of Rotary Club of Athi-Kapiti came about after their mother club, Rotary Club of Athi River, participated in a noble project.
“We formed it after having an event with our mother club, the Rotary Club of Athi River. In that specific project, we had a gentleman who was running from Watamu to Busia to raise awareness for alternative sources of energy in schools, since schools are the major users of firewood.
We did this event, and it touched us as a club. We got him from Watamu to Athi River before he proceeded to Busia,” Ombogo said.
Ombogo said they collected lots of stories from Watamu to Athi River.
“We later came together and birthed the Rotary Club of Athi-Kapiti with a sole focus on environment, conservation, and communities within those conservancies. We will give our Chatter president Njambi, full support to make these objectives successful,” she said.
She said they were already in partnerships with the Kenya Wildlife Service and Athi Kapiti Wildlife Conservancy Association in the project.
Rotarian Mutheu Kasanga said the Athi Kapiti plain runs all the way from Juja to Thika, Kajiado, Mtito Andei, Emali and Amboseli ecosystem.
“It’s an important ecosystem, hence the need to protect and conserve it as well as communities around the conservancy. Other than that, I think bringing the environment, which critical part of what President William Ruto is championing, possibly one of the biggest, the tree planting initiative across the country,” Mutheu said.
“We are happy here as Rotarians to contribute to that. As an educator, this is something dear to us, the education system and everything that we are bringing children to do,” Mutheu said.
