Fostering Livelihoods Resilience and Diversification

Supporting sustainable livelihood pathways for thriving communities

Livelihoods Diversification, Value Addition and Access to markets for pastoral products: Numerous and enormous pressure is being exerted on pastoralists and pastoralism inter alia Climate change, land fragmentation, privatization and enclosures and competing land uses among others. The need for diversification into sustainable livelihoods options is increasingly critical. ILEPA has implemented a number of interventions based on learnings and consultation with the community. These include Beekeeping for honey production, hay banking for cushioning in times of drought and gravity-fed irrigation for enhanced food security and incomes and access to water.

On the hay-banking the latest drought (2022/2023) was one of the worst in half-century. Pastoralists travelled the furthest ever and used the train for the first-time. Livestock herds were decimated with many households closing their livestock sheds/ inkangítie. In response to previous and current drought, ILEPA introduced pasture growth and banking to cushion pastoralists against such as extreme moments. Land-owners are encouraged to set aside a few acres of their land for hay production and construct simple silos for harvesting and storing hay, including the pastures times of plentiful rainfall.

Honey production and Beadwork was/is also promoted as a livelihood diversification option especially targeted at women. The pastoral rangelands are teaming with bee-life and land is available. Honey is the increasingly becoming the product for now and the future as humanity becomes increasingly more health conscious. ILEPA identified women group with its operation areas, trained them on the Beekeeping; provided modern beehives, harvesting and honey processing kits and as they say the rest is history. Women are transforming their lives and households building improved houses, paying schools fees for their kids and building their livestock herds. The honey sales has enhanced Maasai women agency.

Enhancing food security through gravity-fed irrigation schemes and improved access to Water Maji-moto in Narok South – With pressure mounting on pastoralism as the dominant livelihood production system on the southern rangelands the household food security is threatened. ILEPA in partnership with the community constructed irrigation canal and lined- and piped them to minimize water loss through seepage and evaporation, thereby increasing the number of irrigation parcels watered per day by 4 times ultimately leading improved food production. Water pans for livestock watering were also constructed. This simple appropriate technology simply scopes soil on the appropriate site to create a basin for surface run-off to collect.

In line with the thematic, ILEPA partners in the below projects:

The IMARA project

The IMARA project seeks to revitalize and preserve rangeland assets for the benefit of current and future generations through diversified livelihoods and improved natural resource management in Kenya’s Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASALs). ILEPA is implementing IMARA-World Vision projects in Narok South Sub-County to enhance the resilience of vulnerable households to climate-related shocks through sustainable livelihoods and better resource management.

Under the IMARA project, ILEPA has undertaken various impactful activities. These include water catchment protection at the Maji Moto community spring and scaling upand replicate beekeeping and value addition in two women’s groups in Nchaishi, Enkiu and Enkutoto. To mitigate drought stress in pastoral households, ILEPA has constructed two hay silos, each with a capacity of 20,000 bales.

Addressing water challenges, ILEPA has drilled two boreholes in Ilera Uni and Nchaishi Primary, installed a solar-powered surface pump at the Maji Moto hot springs to serve four institutions (Enkare-Nairowua Secondary and Primary, Enkiteng Lepa Academy, Maji Moto dispensary) and adjacent households, and installed a rainwater harvesting system at Ngoswani Mixed Secondary School, including two 10,000-liter storage tanks. The Ngoswani community has also been trained on the benefits of rainwater harvesting.

To ease congestion and improve water quality at the Maji Moto hot spring source, ILEPA has established two watering points away from the source. Additionally, the Maji Moto irrigation scheme that serves 214 households, covering approximately 400 acres, with the aim of diversifying livelihoods and improving food security and improved nutrition for the community.

BRISK, Biodiversity Conservation and Climate Change Resilience in the Southern Landscape

The African Wildlife Foundation (AWF), Indigenous Livelihoods Enhancement Partners (ILEPA), and Land Development and Governance Institute (LDGI) are implementing a Brisk  project to improve and conserve biodiversity resilience in Kenya’s Southern landscapes.

In Narok the project is being implemented in three administrative wards; Suswa, Mosiro and Maji Moto Naroosura , and prioritizes biodiversity restoration, water catchment conservation, and climate-resilient livelihoods. Key activities include riparian and wetland protection, tree planting, and the development of energy-efficient technologies.

Additionally, the project promotes conservation-friendly livestock production, pasture management, and livelihood diversification through initiatives like beekeeping, targeting women and youth. These efforts aim to strengthen ecosystem resilience and support community adaptation to climate change.

IN, Indigenous Navigator

IN, Indigenous Navigator is a comprehensive framework and set of tools designed by and for Indigenous Peoples to systematically monitor the recognition and implementation of their rights. It provides Indigenous organisations, communities, duty bearers, NGOs, and journalists with free access to tools and resources rooted in community-generated data. ILEPA has successfully piloted community projects informed by data from the Indigenous Navigator in four communities. These include a water pan in Enkutoto, a dispensary in Ololoipa’ngi, a maternity wing in Maji Moto, and an ongoing project to establish a dispensary with a maternity wing in the Keneti community.