Historically, classic safari destinations have been all about nature. Tourists tend to swerve its towns and cities, and, and the continent's human history largely intangible. They are the guardians of the precious wildlife, as well as being as intrinsic a part of a Kenyan holiday as the creatures themselves.
Our Kenya Holidays. Read 3 reviews. Read 1 review. Read 18 reviews. Read 2 reviews. Read 5 reviews. Kenya and Tanzania classic tailor made holiday Explore Kenya and Tanzania's most treasured national parks. See all our Kenya Holidays Give us a call. Conservancies: the future of tourism? Traditionally, land was set aside as a national park such as Amboseli or as a wildlife reserve such as the Masai Mara. Local communities were evicted from the land, which could not be used for grazing or for other resources such as fishing, or harvesting food or firewood.
In wildlife terms, this was a success — and in tourism terms too, as the wildlife that high-paying tourists came to see was now protected. However, in recent years a third way has emerged, permitting the coexistence of local people and wildlife. Conservancies have begun to spring up across the country, particularly in areas surrounding the Masai Mara Game Reserve — where an abundance of wildlife can be found.
The conservancy is created when a group of landowners comes together to collectively manage their small parcels of land as a bigger area. Each landowner maintains their individual title, but decisions are made collectively. Land use agreements maintain limited grazing rights, and — crucially — the landowners can lease their land to safari companies, who can establish lodges or camps on the land with agreed visitor fees.
The advantages of the conservancies are huge: Tourists gain an insight into local lifestyles — most commonly the Maasai who own many of the conservancies. The Maasai are able to stay on their land — and generate a sustainable income. The landowners recognise the value of protecting the wildlife as they gain income from it directly. They will therefore do what they can to stop poachers — unlike other communities living on the border of protected areas, who gain no direct benefits from the presence of wildlife.
In some cases there is more wildlife to be found in the conservancies than in the parks and reserves. Activities such as bushwalks and nighttime game drives are permitted in the conservancies — but not in the other protected areas. There is a distinct lack of transparency regarding national park and game reserve fees, which are paid to KWS and local councils.
The fees and lease money paid to the conservancies is directly reinvested in the land and the community. Conservancies have much fewer visitors — and beds — per square kilometre than the Masai Mara Game Reserve, for example. This creates a much more personalised experience for tourists, and avoids the overexploitation that is happening in other protected areas, where lodges and camps are springing up at an alarming rate. Kenya developed the seven-pillar wildlife strategy that aims at involving communities in tourism development and wildlife protection, Kenyan tourism being a nature-based tourism.
They will freely share information to enhance wider knowledge dissemination. Further, all actions will be geared towards up lifting and protecting the human dignity of the Kenyan people as well as the visitors Inclusiveness and equity; The stakeholders are an important component of the tourism sector. Justice, fairness and equity will guide the interactions between stakeholders. Inclusiveness will be constantly used as the guiding beacon in these interactions. However, perhaps the largest impact that ecotourism can make is in how it can help to impact the environment.
As a result, any new tourism development in the area should not have any negative environmental impact on the local environment and if anything, should have a positive impact.
Local infrastructure is improved as water and sanitation facilities, roads, buses, taxis and airports are provided for tourists. Tourists see beautiful landscapes, wildlife such as elephants and plants. They can also be educated about the dangers to fragile ecosystems in the modern world. The Kenyan government loves tourism - foreign currency spent by tourists can be invested in improving local education, health and other services 5.
Tourism creates jobs for local people in Kenya and people can learn new skills in tourism services and construction 6.
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