Victims of human-wildlife conflict in Kajiado South are decrying the delay in compensation from the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS).
Led by their area Member of Parliament, Sakimpa Parashina, residents say the compensation process is too slow, with some waiting years for their claims to be approved and paid.
“You will find that claims made in 2018 have still not been paid, and in some cases, the victim was the breadwinner. It is unfair for compensation to take more than ten years. We want it to take no more than one year for it to be meaningful for the victims,” said the MP.
He further stated that KWS should carry out sensitisation forums on compensation, as many residents are unaware of where to report attacks and when.
“Our people should know how much is paid and when, whether for death, injury, or crop destruction. This will help reduce retaliatory killings of wildlife in response to the damage caused,” said Parashina.
Jeremiah Ngashngash, a village elder in Elang’ata Enkima, said hyenas and lions often kill their livestock, but KWS takes a long time to compensate them, even though the livestock are their main source of income.
“The compensation is often delayed and sometimes doesn’t even cover the market value of the livestock killed. While we’ve benefited from other KWS initiatives, like boreholes, we are requesting more compensation and the installation of solar lights to protect our livestock at night from wildlife,” he said.
He also suggested that KWS introduce a tree-planting initiative, as elephants have destroyed many of the trees in the area.
Simon Olashumpai, a resident of Kuku ward, stated they incur losses when they have to contact agricultural officers to assess and validate damages caused by wildlife.
“Some of our farms were destroyed years ago, and we are still waiting for payment. A hyena killed 20 goats in January last year, and we are still awaiting compensation, despite KWS promising timely payment. We urge them to act faster on compensation,” he lamented.
William Tajiri, a resident of Elang’ata Enkima, complained that elephants also destroy crops when they come searching for water near their bomas. He urged KWS to drill boreholes and build water pans for wildlife far from their bomas to reduce human-wildlife conflict.
– By Diana Meneto
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