Conservation Program Update: A New Partnership for Land Restoration!

The Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust is pleased to announce its' new partnership with the Naga Foundation; a Dutch non-profit organization with the goal of re-greening degraded lands on a large scale using rainwater harvesting techniques and conservation methods to then later have an effect on local climate conditions. Together with the Naga Foundation, MWCT will be working collaboratively on a 15 acre grass seed bank project in the community of Moilo on Kuku Group Ranch!

The heavily degraded and overgrazed landscape in the area of Moilo

The project will not only seek to commence further large scale land restoration that is crucially needed in this heavily degraded area of the Tsavo-Amboseli ecosystem, but will act to demonstrate to the local community that the benefits of restoring land and grasses can provide sustained benefits for communities and their livestock.

MWCT President, Samson, speaks to the community members of Moilo and introduces the project

This grass seed bank project will provide sustainable ecological and social benefits to the community of Moilo in the form of rangeland improvement contributing to the health of their livestock, and continued community engagement in the project in the form of empowerment of women and employment.

Community members give their approval and acceptance of the proposed project idea!

To commence this exciting project, a series of meetings were hosted with the community of Moilo and its' leadership together with the staff of MWCT. The project was happily accepted by all community leaders and members!

Women and children gather together to hear about the initiation of new project

MWCT was happy to host a Naga Foundation team representative to visit the project site area, interact with the community and Group Ranch leadership, and officially initiative the movements forward with the project!

We look forward to update you more as this exciting partnership and project progresses!

Kuku Group Ranch Chairman addresses the community of Moilo in the prescence of MWCT staff and the Naga Foundation

MWCT Community Outreach Coordinator and Naga Representative speak to the community of Moilo and its' leadership! 

Conservation Program Update: Grass Seed Bank Project Update

The Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust, together in partnership with donor A New Course, are establishing a grass bank for seed production near Kuku village, in the centre of Kuku Group Ranch. Currently, a team of local Maasai are in the works of preparing the fertile land by carefully ploughing the open areas, not to disturb the existing flora. The installation of the structural components, posts and stakes, for the solar fence to enclose the grass seed bank has been completed, supervised by a craftsman employed by MWCT.

The location (red point) of the 43 acre Grass Seed Bank near Kuku village on Kuku Group Ranch

A community meeting was held to inform the community about the grass seed project and it's potential benefits. The community members of Kuku greatly welcomed the project and participated in the site selection for the 43 acre grass seed bank.

Local community members assist in constructing the solar fence of the grass seed bank. Commitment and hard work is required from a number of community members to ensure a smooth initiation of the project

All of the required equipment has arrived at the site and is installed. The infrastructure for the fence has been fully installed, and the wiring for the fence will be completed once the land has been fully prepared in the coming weeks.

The gate for the grass seed bank ready to be installed

15 women from the local women's group are to be educated on the creation and management of grass banks for seed production in the next week. First, the women will be active in preparing the terrain and filling the existing erosion gullies with rocks and dead plant material. After this, the purchased Horse-tail grass (Chloris roxburghiana), Buffel grass (Cenchrus ciliaris) and Masai love-grass (Eragrotis superba) seeds will be sown in the areas before the next rains in March - May 2015.

Installed corner posts for the grass bank

This project will not only directly benefit the women groups through generating an income from selling seeds and harvesting grass, but it will also create awareness for the protection and restoration of rangelands and contribute to MWCT's greater ecosystem restoration and rangeland management program. This model has the potential to be replaced on a broader scale in the ecosystem and the produced seeds can be used to reclaim heavily degraded grasslands.

\We look forward to continuing to update you on the progress of meetings, preparations, and developments of this very exciting project!

The land is ready and eager to be ploughed!

Conservation Program Update - Rangeland Management Plan

The MWCT conservation team recently conducted a rangeland baseline survey in Kuku Group Ranch to assess grass cover.  Results of the survey showed that most of Kuku Group Ranch suffers from low grass cover and overgrazing.  MWCT will combat this problem by developing a participatory rangeland management plan in partnership with the local Maasai community.  This plan will aim to  prevent overgrazing, to reduce erosion, and to increase productivity of semi-arid land.

Rangeland baseline survey results: This map of Kuku Group Ranch shows the percentage of grass cover in the different rangeland survey plots. The number indicated above each pie chart is the measured percentage of grass cover in that specific plot.

Richard Hatfield and John Oitaos of Natural Capital East Africa are collaborating with MWCT to develop the rangeland management plan.  In mid-October, Richard, John, and the MWCT conservation team held a three-day workshop to lay out the details of the plan to the community.

John Oitaos from Natural Capital East Africa taught Kuku community members
about the different mechanisms of a holistic grazing management plan.

MWCT is also setting up a grass seed bank near the town of Kuku to reintroduce grass to an overgrazed area and to produce grass seed that can be sown in other areas.  A Maasai women’s group will be engaged to manage the area and to harvest and sell the seeds.  In this way, the project will empower local women, build their capacity in the community, and provide them with income through grass seed sales.  Because animal husbandry is essential to the Maasai way of life, MWCT is partnering with the community to improve rangeland management and to secure a healthy future for the pastoralist community.

The contrasting rangeland conditions on Kuku Group Ranch: Overgrazed rangeland in Samai (left)
and the healthy rangeland in the Chyulu Hills (right).