Residents of Isiolo North, Tigania East, Tigania West and Lunga Lunga constituencies have sought the intervention of MPs to address human-wildlife conflict.
In a petition to the National Assembly, the residents want the Ministry of Water to construct water pans for wildlife and dams for farmers who live nearby parks and game reserves.
“Liaise with the Ministry of Environment and Forestry to visit the affected areas,” they said.
The petitioners said they are pastoralists and subsistence farmers who have suffered fatalities and injuries caused or inflicted by the animals.
“We have witnessed, in the last two seasons, enormous herds of wild game in our farms and homesteads. Elephants have destroyed crops, water pipes, storage tanks and homestead structures,” they said.
They further appealed to MPs to empower Kenya Wildlife Service to do community projects for villagers around parks and reserves for the communities to embrace wildlife conservation.
“Support KWS in building more stations near the communities, mainly on elephant corridors, for easy reporting and quick emergency response,” the petition said.
The residents further asked MPs to pass legislation that will shorten the compensation period.
“If attacks affect the breadwinner, KWS should promptly compensate the affected family within at least six months; if jumbos destroy water points, water pumps and solar panels, compensation should be at least one month,” they proposed.
The petitioners further lamented that Kenya Wildlife Service stations in some areas are too far away for affected villagers to book the occurrences.
“In some areas, chiefs, agricultural and livestock officers are not cooperative in assisting the villagers despite being essential stakeholders in the compensation process,” the petition said.
They added that roaming elephants have forced them to escort their children to school daily.
The petitioners added that the compensation process is tiresome, costly and takes too long.
