• The team proposed that the scheme be funded through the national budget, conservation and tourism levies and donations from corporate entities.
• It shall be referred to as The Human-Wildlife Conflict Compensation Scheme.
Image: FILE
A task force formed to streamline a 2013 wildlife law has recommended that claims arising from human-wildlife conflict be settled by an insurance scheme.
The team proposed that the scheme be funded through the national budget, conservation and tourism levies and donations from corporate entities.
It shall be referred to as The Human-Wildlife Conflict Compensation Scheme.
Tourism CS Najib Balala received the task force report on Wednesday at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre.
Balala said human-wildlife conflict is an issue of concern affecting communities living in wildlife-adjacent environments.
“Managing the conflict has not been easy and the country requires a new approach,” Balala said.
The CS said the government has a huge backlog of unpaid human-wildlife conflict compensation claims.
“This challenge was brought about by complicated and less efficient human-wildlife conflicts claims administration as well as loopholes in the verification of claims,” he said.
The Wildlife Conservation and Management Act of 2013 provides for the establishment of an insurance scheme to compensate victims of human-wildlife conflict.
The Act also proposes other modes of intervention for mitigating human-wildlife conflicts as well as compensating victims.
Balala said the new approach incorporates the insurance sector to undertake human-wildlife conflicts claims administration process and payments to affected persons.
The CS said snakebite-related deaths and injuries are serious components of conflict and contribute about 60 per cent of the claims submitted to the government.
Balala said his ministry is working closely with the Ministry of Health to ensure rural dispensaries are equipped with anti-venoms to save lives.
“In addition, community education and awareness will be enhanced to ensure that cases of human-wildlife conflict are minimised,” he said.
Tourism ministry shared out Sh569 million to victims of human-wildlife conflict in December 2019.
Victims were compensated in three instalments of 30 per cent of the total claim and the final chunk paid once.
The cash approved by the National Assembly was shared among 4,752 out of 13,125 victims whose claims have been verified. The total cash to be paid in compensation is Sh1.553 billion.
Currently, family members of human-wildlife conflict victims get Sh5 million compensation in case of death. Victims are paid up to Sh3 million if the injuries cause permanent disability.
For other injuries, the victims are entitled to Sh2 million upon approval by the committee.
Owners of crops, property or livestock destroyed by wildlife get payouts of equivalent value; those not satisfied may appeal to the National Environment Tribunal or Environment and Land Court.
The Tourism ministry will work with the Parliamentary Committee for Environment and Natural Resources, the Treasury and the Insurance Regulatory Authority to come up with an agreed approach and premium for the new model.
Balala says he hopes the issue of compensation for human-wildlife conflict will be resolved to acceptable levels in the country.
During the fact-finding mission, the task force communities told the team that they wanted a faster and efficient compensation payment.
They also wanted faster response to reported incidents, especially injuries for the victims to be taken to the hospital to save lives and for the families to be consoled.
The task force found out that small and site-specific human-wildlife consolation schemes occur around the country.
This includes Big Life’s Predator Compensation Scheme in Mbirikani Group Ranch, Kajiado county; Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust wildlife pays programme in Kuku Group Ranch in Kajiado County.
Others are livestock insurance Scheme in Borana Conservancy in Laikipia county, and the Maasai Mara livestock consolation scheme in Narok county.
The new scheme identifies human death and injury, crop destruction, livestock predation and property damage as products to be covered by the insurance scheme.
The human-wildlife conflict compensation claim will be initiated through a USSD/APP application by the victim or through the chief/assistant chief.
Once the claim is reported, all stakeholders will be notified simultaneously.
These include the insurance, community verification officers, and government representatives.
Death and injury claims have a notification period of 48 hours while crop destruction, livestock predation and property damages have a 24 hours notification period.
The compensation process has a turn-around period of 90 days.
Financial incentives; physical barriers (fences, trenches, predator-proof boma, deterrents such as noise and lighting); active management (translocation and hot spot mapping) community education kitting rapid response teams are some of the conflicts management and mitigation measures.
The governance structure has been designed to encourage a claims verification process that is simple, efficient and effective.
The task force called for the amendment of WCMA, 2013 to reflect the insurance product design, claim process and product pricing as indicated in their report.
The Act should also provide for an appeal process and arbitration through the Insurance Regulatory Authority.
The roles of community wildlife conservation committees will also be refined.
Technology will be adopted in the claims process.