Y ALA S WAMP C OMPLEX , K ENYA
LEONARD AKWANY, E C O F IN D ER K E NY A
R E V IE W E D B Y : J E N N Y M E R R IM A N , R O S IE T R E V E L Y AN
P RELIMINARY
WORK
This study was done at Yala wetland in Kenya, located on the north-eastern shoreline of Lake Victoria
(between 00° 02’S and 34° 1E, 34° 7S) and an altitude of 1150m above sea level. Yala wetland covers
17,500 ha and is comprised of three freshwater satellite lakes (Kanyaboli, Sare and Namboyo). Lake
Kanyaboli was gazetted on September 2010 as a national reserve and covers an area of 41.42 Km2.
There are also a small park, a private farm and scattered homesteads in the area. The land tenure
system is a combination of trust land and private land.
Figure 1. Yala wetland location, Source: Ecofinder Kenya (2014)
Suggested citation: Akwany, L. (2015) YALA SWAMP COMPLEX, KENYA. Accepted TESSA case study.
Available at [http://www.birdlife.org/worldwide/science/assessing-ecosystem-services-tessa]
Figure 2. Yala wetland land context, Source: Ecofinder Kenya (2014)
The habitat in the area includes papyrus plants in the swamp, planted and cultivated goods, three
freshwater lakes, and a mixture of settlements and vegetation.
Suggested citation: Akwany, L. (2015) YALA SWAMP COMPLEX, KENYA. Accepted TESSA case study.
Available at [http://www.birdlife.org/worldwide/science/assessing-ecosystem-services-tessa]
Figure 3. Yala wetland habitat, Source: Ecofinder Kenya (2014)
Suggested citation: Akwany, L. (2015) YALA SWAMP COMPLEX, KENYA. Accepted TESSA case study.
Available at [http://www.birdlife.org/worldwide/science/assessing-ecosystem-services-tessa]
R APID
APPRAISAL
The rapid appraisal assisted in the identification of key ecosystem services relevant to the current state
and also helped to identify Lake Kanyaboli National Reserve as representative of the alternative state.
The stakeholders consulted included representatives from the local community, county government and
national government officials, members from NGOs, CSOs and research institutions. The Yala wetland
is an Important Bird and Biodiversity Area and supports the livelihoods of many people who directly or
indirectly depend on the ecosystem services provided in this area. The ecosystem services provided by
the wetland are global climate regulation, water-related services, harvested wild goods, cultivated
goods, nature-based recreation. Other ecosystem services that were identified by the rapid appraisal
that TESSA could not measure were ceremonial and spiritual services, cultural and Indigenous
Knowledge services, and flooding control services.
I DENT IFYING
PLAUSIBLE ALTERNAT IVE STATE
The alternative state was a vision of a better managed Yala wetland, with the Lake Kanyaboli National
Reserve selected as the comparison site to provide representative data. Lake Kanyaboli provides
important ecosystem services such as water provision, crop production, fish harvesting, wild goods, fire
wood, recreational services and global climate regulation (carbon storage). The direct beneficiaries
from these services are the local community - farmers, fish traders, papyrus harvesters and tour guides.
The local government benefits from the revenue collection from tourism and trade. The Kenya Wildlife
Service in collaboration with the Siaya and Busia county governments are currently working on
enhancing the sustainable use of resources in the area in order to improve conservation practices while
also looking after the socio-economic well-being of the local community.
Figure 4. Lake Kanyaboli National Reserve, Kenya. Source: Leonard Akwany, Ecofinder (2014)
The main challenge of identifying the alternative state was the establishment of boundaries because the
comparison site was located within the Yala Wetland Complex. The two sites were under different
management regimes; one of commercial agriculture and one of conservation and local smallholder
farming. However, determining the boundaries of the commercial agriculture section was not clear and
we had to rely on our observations to conduct the assessment.
Suggested citation: Akwany, L. (2015) YALA SWAMP COMPLEX, KENYA. Accepted TESSA case study.
Available at [http://www.birdlife.org/worldwide/science/assessing-ecosystem-services-tessa]
M ETHODS
SELECT ION
The services assessed were harvested wild goods and cultivated goods through surveys that were
distributed in sixteen villages within the area of study. Three hundred questionnaires were distributed
and two hundred and sixty-nine were collected and used for analysis.
A NALYSIS
AND COMMUNIC AT ION
Wild goods are harvested to clear land for crop production. Harvesters use the fodder and papyrus
collected to make mats, thatch their homes and make furniture. Thus, harvesting of wild goods (fodder
and papyrus) is higher in the current state than the alternative state. Satellite studies of papyrus land
cover in the region have shown that the coverage of natural papyrus has reduced by over 50% (Owino
& Ryan, 2007)1, which suggests that the rate of harvest under the current state is unsustainable.
a.
Harvested wild goods
4.5
4
3.5
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
Fodder
Papyrus
current state
Fodder
Papyrus
alternative state
Figure 5. Average wild goods harvested per day per household (in kg)
It was interesting to find that the costs of labour for harvesting wild goods are higher than the actual
revenue from these goods. The net value of wild harvested goods is negative as show on figure 6
1
Owino, A.O. & Ryan, P.G. (2007) Recent papyrus swamp habitat loss and conservation
implications in western Kenya Wetlands Ecology and Management 15 (1), 1-12
Suggested citation: Akwany, L. (2015) YALA SWAMP COMPLEX, KENYA. Accepted TESSA case study.
Available at [http://www.birdlife.org/worldwide/science/assessing-ecosystem-services-tessa]
below. This finding could be partly explained by cultural reasons - this is a traditional activity that
people have always done, or perhaps there are no other alternatives.
current state
alternative state
0
-500
Fodder
Papyrus
Fodder
Papyrus
-1000
-1500
-2000
-2500
-3000
-3500
-4000
-4500
-5000
Figure 6. Annual net value of harvested wild goods per household (in KSh)
There is higher net value in the current state for cultivated goods (figure 7). However, there are
negative values in the current state that relate to the high costs of hiring labour to uproot the papyrus
reeds, clear the land and guard farms from wild animals. There would be negative values in the
alternative state as well, which would be related to the high labour and transport costs, and the low
returns from cultivated goods (figure 8). The Yala wetland region is a fertile ground for crop
production. However, the area needs to be better managed to enable sustainable food production.
Suggested citation: Akwany, L. (2015) YALA SWAMP COMPLEX, KENYA. Accepted TESSA case study.
Available at [http://www.birdlife.org/worldwide/science/assessing-ecosystem-services-tessa]
400
350
300
250
200
150
100
50
0
current state
alternative state
Figure 7. Annual average quantity of cultivated crops per household (in kg)
4000
3500
3000
2500
2000
1500
1000
500
0
-500
-1000
-1500
Current State
Alternative State
Figure 8. Annual net value of cultivated goods per household (in Ksh)
Suggested citation: Akwany, L. (2015) YALA SWAMP COMPLEX, KENYA. Accepted TESSA case study.
Available at [http://www.birdlife.org/worldwide/science/assessing-ecosystem-services-tessa]
The results from the assessment were shared with stakeholders in the programme launch, at forums and
workshops. We also organised drama and puppetry presentations for grass-root communities and local
user groups, and we are planning to share our final report in our website (www.ecofinderkenya.org).
The target public included the local community (fish traders and farmers), county government
representatives, national government representatives, NGOs and CSOs representatives, and member of
staff from private companies.
TESSA facilitated the engagement of a variety of organizations on the issues facing the swamp and the
ecosystem services provided. Advocacy messages were also developed to include Yala wetland
complex in local development planning and budget allocation. We tapped on thematic issues generated
from the assessment and successfully fundraised for two projects to be funded by PREPARED (USAID
project) and the MACARTHUR Foundation. We also tapped on nature-based recreation services by
training naturalists as tourist guides to provide lessons on basic swamp ecology and history.
USEFUL ADV ICE FOR NE W TESSA USERS
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Effective engagement of stakeholders is paramount for the work to be useful
Familiarize yourself with the toolkit through preliminary training and field testing
Use community service and volunteers to reduce the costs of implementing the toolkit
Suggested citation: Akwany, L. (2015) YALA SWAMP COMPLEX, KENYA. Accepted TESSA case study.
Available at [http://www.birdlife.org/worldwide/science/assessing-ecosystem-services-tessa]