rufiji environment management project - Coastal Forests of Kenya ...

REMP Technical Report 40: Rangeland Resources in Rufjiji
particularly on sustainable livestock production.
Among the rules that could be included is the implementation of the District directives in demarcating
areas for cultivation, fishing, wildlife management areas, biodiversity protection areas (birds, butterfly
etc potential habitats for research and tourism) and grazing areas. Users of these areas need to establish
by-laws to reinforce the effectiveness and seriousness of the agreement. For crop cultivators
recommended farming practices to be employed while considering sustainable use of resources.
Similarly, immigrating pastoralists and agropastoralists should adhere to the principles of range
management, while the District Council through their departments should provide education and
technical support required during implementation of the directives.
3.13 Options For Consideration
• Establishment of District Range management Task force (DRTF) to evaluate and monitor range
utilization trend. Probably, if there is a similar department (e.g Environment Management
Team), it can be given this responsibility. The emphasis should be keeping the livestock
numbers to the agreed stocking rates. They should work hand in hand with village government
in enforcing village by-laws on sustainable utilization of grasslands, wildlife and watershed
protection.
• Villages, and village governments to control wild fires.
• With environmental consideration in mind livestock disease control should be given a priority
through regular dipping, vaccination for viral diseases and provision of prophylactic drugs for
trypanosomiasis
• Identification of poisonous plants and their possible suppression/eradication
• Bush or shrub/trees can selectively be controlled manually through pastoralist self help
programs. Burning can effectively control shrubs/trees, but should be controlled by skilled
range managers from DALDOs office or Natural Resource department. Environmental impact
must be properly considered before any vegetation management measures are planned.
• For proper livestock distribution, livestock handling facilities need to be installed or built.
These include; dips, charcos, stock routes and veterinary services to be made available close to
livestock keepers.
• The District Council to initiate the livestock keepers registry and to supervise and make sure
that, every village has its own registry showing names, livestock numbers, area immigrated
from and information on the immigrants.
• Villages to conduct census annually and should be reported to District Council at least before
budget period for the district. That means, levies will be collected BUT some money must be
ploughed back for the Livestock development activities.
• Villages should have committees to monitor and supervise the sustainable use of rangelands.
• Pastoralists should be ready to reduce livestock numbers when advised especially when
numbers exceeds the ecological holding capacity and this should be clearly shown in the
agreement or by laws
• At National level there should be coordination between regions and districts where animals are
migrating to and from. This should go hand in hand with thorough animal vaccination.
• The involvement of immigrating livestock keepers more closely and fully, in development
interventions. Within the District range/livestock development should be based on a better
understanding of the production potential of the areas and fully involve the villages and other
users in an development interventions. In this case, improvement in livestock husbandry
practices and management of rangelands resources.
• Vegetation maps need to be established that will guide the District Council for planning,
implementing and analyzing the results of subsequent rangelands surveys (as a necessary early
element of rangelands inventory). Rangeland Management decisions require an understanding
of vegetation dynamics (changes). With such information District Councils and villages should
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