KIPSAINA CRANES AND WETLANDS CONSERVATION GROUP (KENYA)

1. KIPSAINA CRANES AND WETLANDS CONSERVATION GROUP(KENYA) Community Dorf Knowledge Fair 9th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity(COP9) MAURICE WANJALA

2. INTRODUCTION • The Kipsaina Cranes and Wetlands Conservation Group (KCWCG) was formed in 1990 by Mr. Maurice Wanjala, a local pastor and youth group leader. The group motto is ‘touch one, touch all’. The group strives to promote and actively participate in a variety of innovative programmes to conserve wildlife and wetlands. • The group is officially registered CBO in Kenya which is at present working within western Kenya covering the catchment to the shores of Lake Victoria. • The coordinator and the co-ordination office of KCWCG are based in Kipsaina in the Trans-Nzoia district within Kitale town in Western Kenya. • The organization is run on volunteer basis accommodating members of the community and other stakeholders. The organization has also ‘point people’ from other CBO,s in the region. Others include teachers who run school conservation clubs. • The main goal of the organization is to assist in rehabilitation and conservation of the wetland areas of western part of Kenya which are rich in biodiversity

3. OBJECTIVES • To ease pressure on wetlands from surrounding densely populated community by assisting community to improve their livelihood and reduce poverty • To build the capacity of community on conservation measures • To increase environmental awareness of the communities • To rehabilitate the habitats for endangered crested cranes, De brazza Monkey and Sitatunga • To promote indigenous knowledge on conservation • To promote environmentally friendly conservation technologies • To promote wetland based ecotourism

4. AREA OF OPERATION

5. VALUES AND FUNCTIONS • Fish farming • Handcrafts material • Traditional medicines • Food supply • Grazing • Building materials • Flood control • Water quality improvement • Water storage • Fuelwood

6. THREATS • OVERGRAZING • DRAINAGE • OVERHARVESTING • FIRE • POLLUTION

7. COMMUNITY INITIATIVES • Community involvement in application of wetlands wise use principles • Youth participation • Networking of CBo’s in the region • Income generating activities • Ecotourism • Research

8. ACTIVITIES • Awareness creation • Crane, Debrazza and Sitatunga monitoring • Wetlands based ecotourism • Fish farming • Beekeeping • Organic farming (Compositing) • Promotion of energy saving Jikos (stoves) • Handcrafts • Wetlands edge-horticulture • Tree nursery and planting • Control of invasive wetland species

9. ACHIEVEMENT • Trained community in energy saving technology, improved water and soil management techniques • Established wetlands edge agriculture that has reduced pressure on drainage of wetlands and increased food security • Established income generating activities such as fish farming, agro forestry practices that have helped to reduce poverty • The organization has rehabilitated five Kilometres of Kipsaina swamp through the effort of the local community. The swamp has regenerated and the endangered crested cranes have come back and there are several nesting pairs once more living in the their natural habitat • The organization has increased the awareness of the community through school programmes that has seen 32 environmental clubs strengthened in schools and community empowered to adopt activities that promote wise use of wetlands • Youth groups have been formed in Kipsaina and are involved in raising tree seedlings which they sell to farmers to plant on the river banks and farms to combat soil erosion, annually they raise over 1000,000 seedlings • Based on its achievement the organization has increased its area of influence to other districts in the region through networking. A total of 60 CBO’s and 52 schools are now actively involved and applying Kipsaina conservation model. The new partners are being provided with alternative form of income and knowledge on wise use of wetlands • The organization has established large tree nursery and has distributed over 300000 indigenous trees in the region • The organization has successfully implemented community cranes and wetlands conservation programme in the Lake Basin. • Involved in various wetlands research • Developed film documentary by BBC world service on group activities which is being used as model to promote community involvement in conservation • The group is promoting ecotourism through tour guide and sale of curios

10. WAYFORWARD • Scaling up conservations activities to cover bigger area of Lake Victoria Basin • Networking with other Environmental CBO’s • Promote Wetlands based Ecotourism • Establish and equip community wetland resources centre • Improve quality of wetland products

11. WETLANDS VALUES AND FUNCTIONS

12. SITATUNGA

13. ACTIVITIES Tree nursery Members planting indigenous trees Animal grazing in wetlands Crested Crane Birds