REAPING FROM KENYA’S DRY LANDS

In Kenya, dry lands cover more than 80% of the country, supporting 20% of the total population, 50% of the country’s livestock and 65% of its wildlife. These dry lands normally experience low annual precipitation and high levels of water evaporation while maintaining strong ecological resilience posing significant challenges to development, dry lands have unique natural potential that could be tapped to alleviate poverty.

The region however has great potential that can be of great importance not only to the locals but the country as a whole. This includes livestock and livestock products; hides and skins, meat, milk, ghee, bones, hooves, horns, which are raw materials for the leather industry in the country; nature-based products such as Aloe, Gum, beeswax herbal products, herbal tea, honey, tree dyes, fragrance, wild sisal, wild fruits; Minerals like asbestos, gold, quartz crystals, green and red garnet and the recent oil discovery in Turkana.

Livestock production in the Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASAL) areas supply more than 40 % of the country’s total livestock demand and export to middle East countries potential  millions sustenance and income for pastoralists and employment opportunities.

The Jubilee government is committed to develop ASALs taking cognizance of the fact that 80% of Kenyan ASAL, hosting about ten million people majority of whom were women.

The Livestock industry contributes about Sh150 billion annually to the economy; the government will partner with the private sector to improve it. Moreover, livestock production and the dairy sector is a major economic and social activity which constitutes a significant part of the rural economy accounting for 14 per cent of the agricultural GDP.

The ASAL regions have some of the best forage trees, shrubs and herbs that support production of high quality honey.  Bee keeping is estimated to contribute significantly to improved livelihoods of most rural communities in Kenya. It contributes close to 4.3 billion Kenya Shillings from honey production alone, which is estimated at 25,000 Metric tonnes annually. Most dry lands also have several herbs and high value trees that are in use locally for medicine.

Export market

Some areas have potential for dry land farming, especially areas that border Turkana river where farmers have irrigated their land to provide fruits, vegetables, cereals and cash crops both for subsistence and market.

Dry lands have a huge potential for cultural tourism and ecotourism, which could be tapped to supplement incomes acquired from livestock keeping. Many of the people in these areas are endowed with unique traditional skills for handicrafts production that have a ready market among millions of tourists visiting East Africa. There are also opportunities in the export market.

For maximum benefit from this region we must overcome the challenges of lack of storage, cooling, production and agro processing facilities, poor transport and communication infrastructure and lack of market information and empower the locals through entrepreneurial skills to be able to transform their lives and become self-sufficient.

Value addition through construction of abattoirs will enable livestock keepers  to sell processed meat products rather than live animals as done traditionally therefore increase their earnings.

The opening up of the Northern Kenya, which comprises a big portion of the ASAL region in Kenya through the LAPPSET project will provide essential infrastructure required to achieve economic development to benefit the locals.

Use of appropriate technologies and value addition of the ASAL products will assure quality products and increase export earnings thereby increasing the land use of this region and its contribution to the national economy cake.

Most importantly, creating awareness on the great potential that this region holds will go a long way into sustainable use of these resources, together with instilling knowledge on how to utilize Science and Technology skills to exploit the great potential that this region offers for sustainable development.