Health Program Update - April Efforts

We apologize, as it has been a while since we have updated on the MWCT Health Program! We can assure you that the team is still working incredibly hard to improve and increase the access to adequate health services across the Group Ranch!

For the month of April, the outreaches continued into the community of Kuku. Two outreaches were held, assisting a total of 82 patients over the two days!

CHV assisting in distributing medication at the Kuku Outreach

On April 27, Sam (an MWCT nurse stationed at the Iltilal Health Centre), organized a supplementary immunization outreach targeting all children less than five years that have not completed their immunization schedule as per the Kenya Expanded Program on Immunization (KEPI). A total of 46 children were immunized on this outreach!

Community Health Volunteers (CHV) have been busy at the Iltilal Health Centre. During the month of April they gathered at the facility to receive new household registers to be orientated on log booking and the procedures of recording household health data in the community.

Iltilal Community Health Volunteers

The Community Health Volunteers in Olorika attended their quarterly forum in April. MWCT organized this forum and lunch for the CHVs, a total of 20 attended the event. Dr. Gabriel addressed the CHVs present on MWCT's aims and goals in environment, conservation, and health promotion.

And finally, in line with the MWCT health goal of supporting the delivery of quality healthcare to the community; 50 doses of intravenous ceftriaxone (broad spectrum antibiotic) and 50 tubes of eye ointment for the treatment of conjunctivities were purchased for the Iltilal Health Centre.

The efforts of the MWCT Health Team are spreading farther and wider everyday! Visit www.maasaiwilderness.org for more information!

Education Program Update - Fulfilling Community Dreams through Education

Improving access to education within the 280 000 acre Kuku Group Ranch and increasing education opportunities and the ability for growth, development, creativity of hundreds of students represents one of the many goals of the Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust.

The exteriors of the brand new library at Iltilal Primary School

Across the Group Ranch, 19 primary schools and 1 secondary school are supported - with a total of 7000 students enrolled, 50 certified teachers, and 10 support staff employed. The launch of a brand new exciting library project at Iltilal Primary School has allowed for education to blossom further into the region. Iltilal Primary School currently has 860 pupils, ranging from nursery school to class 8.

Although its not completely set up yet... it is looking amazing!

This thrilling new project, funded, constructed, and implemented by the Field Marsham Foundation,  is set to have its' grand opening at the beginning of July. The Field Marsham Foundation seeks to communicate the message of "Knowledge Empowering Youth", more specifically by implementing turn-key libraries to schools through their Library Program.

The initial construction of our new library began in October, and it is not approaching its' final steps of completion over the coming months. This library is the first of its' kind for the Field Marsham Foundation. Books were selected carefully and with detail to truly reflect what Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust means. The library is majorly focused on conservation, wildlife, and the environment. Outstanding!

Each library the foundation implements calls for a Library Council. This council is comprised of student representatives from each class from Class 5-8. The Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust has hired a librarian, who will be based at the library full-time.

The library council working alongside Niccola Milnes (Programs Manager for the Field Marsham Foundation)

The library is organized in an "untraditional" way compared to many other libraries. It is organized into categories such as "African Animals, Geography, Children from Different Cultures, Funny" and even resources for the teachers to utilize.

When speaking to the new Library Council whilst they were in the process of labelling a portion of the 2000 brand new books, we asked them what they most excited for when the new library opened - "we will have the opportunity to learn more with all of these books". The horizons will be expanded beyond imaginable with the tremendous resources located within this facility.

Shelves of Knowledge!

 MWCT is extremely excited and thankful about this project. Stay tuned to the blog for more progress on the new library and its' grand opening in July!

Education Program Update - Kuku Group Ranch Education Day

Annually, Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trusts hosts a Kuku Group Ranch Education Day. This day celebration is hosted in order to congratulate the school that emerges the best in the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) examinations. Elangata Enkima School was the best school in the 2013 KCPE examinations within Kuku Group Ranch!

Students of Elangta Enkima

The ceremony took place last weekend, and was attended by all education stakeholders including, but not limited to: District Education Officers, Member of County Assembly, Government Chiefs, Group Ranch Official, MWCT Officers, Head Teachers from 20 schools in Kuku Group Ranch, Parents, Pupils. 

Elangata Enkima has an enrolment of 934 pupils (470 boys and 464 girls) and has 15 teachers employed. MWCT introduced an academic trophy 4 years ago to promote academic competition within Kuku Group Ranch so as to improve academic performance.

Guests of Honor seated at the celebration

The trophy was first won by Iltilal Primary School, followed by Olorika Primary School in 2011 and 2012. The performance of the top school has improved every year since the introduction of the trophy!

MWCT Eduction Director Titus Muia

Elangata Enkima was also the best school in Loitokitok Central Division and the second best public school in the entire Loitokitok District! Definitely a reason to celebrate!

Awarding of the plaque and trophy by MWCT President Samson Parashina

The Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust sends a very heartfelt congratulations to Elangata Enkima School! We are always recognizing that, along with a healthy, sustaining environment necessary for traditional Maasai pastoralist culture and livelihood, one of the top priorities will always be Education. 

Many reasons to celebrate!

Why the Lion Collars?

Recently, Namunyak and her group were around the lava fields close to the Iltilal Village. MWCT Conservation Team is well aware of a regular cattle route passing very close to where her location was. The team sent out the Simba Scouts to go inform these regular herders in the area to herd their livestock away from where Namunyak and her group were. 

Our team wanted to ensure that all precautions were taken to avoid Namunyak and the other lions predating on the livestock, as it may lead to conflict with the community, potentially resulting in a lion hunt. The herders were extremely thankful of this warning from our staff. The Simba Scouts also helped the herders to herd the cows away so that they could graze in a different area where it was safe. 

Many may not truly understand the importance of a lion collar. But this story explains one of the main reasons why they are crucially important. There are many many reasons for collaring a lion, but especially in community land where human-lion conflict is high, it is a very useful tool that can be used to protect the lions. With the collars you can track them and also study their behaviour/movement in relation to human settlements. This information can then be used to mitigate conflict and avoid the lions being killed, such as was done above. Once you understand the behaviour and movement of lions in community land, you can identify high risk areas that herdsmen can avoid. 

Lion Project Update - Namunyak Sighting!

On Thursday April 17, the MWCT Conservation Team had an amazing interaction with Namunyak (collared in December 2013), and her companions. She was seen with two other grown females, and three cubs. 

Namunyak looking very healthy - she has gained a little bit of weight since the collaring!

It was pouring rain, and the lions seemed very relaxed and at ease. They were also yawning quite frequently, so we think they must have had a late night out hunting! Enjoy the photos and a short video below!

The three cubs and one of the adult females

Being quite photogenic! 

Namunyak lounging

Numunyak and a yawning cub

A very sleepy Namunyak! 

MWCT President in New York

Last week, Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust President, Samson Parashina, returned from a 10 day journey to the United States. Organized by the Kenya Tourism board, Samson travelled along with a group of others for the purposes of spreading a specific message of Kenya, tourism, and conservation, to the USA.

MWCT President - Samson Parashina

Samson was a Community Ambassador on this journey to the USA, representing the Maasai community of Kenya (the Southern region). Others in the group included: a second Community Ambassador representing the Turkana (Northern) region of Kenya, there was a representative from the Kenya Wildlife Service, and there were a few representatives from the Kenya Tourism Board.

The representatives from Kenya at US News & World Report

Together with all of the individual presentations given, the message that this group wanted to provide to its' audience emphasized that visitors to these particular communities in Kenya (Maasai and Turkana were the specific examples), are making a tremendously positive impact on both the communities, and the environment. Samson shared the many success stories of the Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust (Wildlife Pays Program, tourism partnership with Campi ya Kanzi, the Simba Scout Program, the Maasai Olympics) and how tourism, and visitors has allowed this organization to succeed and flourish within the community.

In front of Fordham University

Whilst in the US, Samson had the opportunity to share this message to: The UNDP (United Nations Development Program) in New York, Fordham Law School in New York, 70+ Journalists from in and around the New York area, National Geographic Traveller, The US News/World Report, the Smithsonian Magazine, and many many more.

At National Geographic Traveller

This journey was not only essential for establishing a positive image for tourism in Kenya the particular regions represented; but also to fully communicate that conservation and tourism CAN and WILL work together. Samson emphasized this passionately on his journey, through examples of what has happened, and what is currently going on here right now, on Kuku Group Ranch.

Conservation Program Update - Wildlife Pays Success Story

Although many people come to spend and visit a significant amount of time in Maasai land, many do not understand the importance and value of livestock herds as well as the value of living in the traditional Maasai way.

Recently, our Conservation Program became aware of a scenario in which 5 grown cow calves were killed near Olpukai swamp by lions in the daylight, with the herders present and nearby. Two lions were involved in the killing (one of the male collared lions and his companions), and the herders were standing very nearby, but unfortunately could not herd the calves away quickly enough to save them.

Olpukai Swamp - location of the incident

Historically and traditionally, the reaction would have resulted in a direct killing in retaliation, or a pursue of a lion hunt of these two lions. However, it is very clear that there is some major success to report in this story. The Wildlife Pays program with MWCT seeks to teach the Maasai that by not killing lions, by saving them in the ecosystem, that they will receive benefits. Through this program, with any loss of livestock due to predation with no negligence on the side of the herder and the boma (boma being a certain size, and herder acting appropriately) a compensation is paid to the owner of the affected livestock.

Livestock and wildlife grazing and living simultaneously at the swamp

To many Maasai, livestock is the sole source of income for the entire family. In this scenario, 5 cows is worth a compensation payment of 100 000 KSH. For this family to have a loss of five animals it was a very large detriment, despite the repayment. It is a large success for the Wildlife Pays program to know that the Maasai are compliant in not killing these lions, as they are aware of the negative consequences of a lion killing on themselves and their community,  as well as the potential economic compensation they may receive.