The Ministry of Tourism and Wildlife will fast-track the unveiling of the Nyandarua County Wildlife Compensation Committee.
Tourism and Wildlife Cabinet Secretary Rebecca Miano has promised to unveil the committee soon to aid in processing many claims lodged by residents who are victims of human-wildlife conflict.
“I will soon unveil the committee so that it can process the claims for payment,” the CS said on Friday while presiding over a tree planting ceremony at Iriani Primary School on the shores of Lake Olbolosat in Ndaragwa Constituency, Nyandarua County.
The Cabinet Secretary lauded the residents for living peacefully with the animals, particularly the large population of hippos in Lake Olbolosat.
Ms. Miano was responding to an appeal by the County Commissioner (CC) Abdirisack Jaldesa, who had called for the gazetting of the County Compensation Committee members to fasttrack payments of claims lodged by victims of human-wildlife conflict.
Jaldesa, who is supposed to be the chairman of the County Compensation Committee, noted that there are many victims of human-wildlife conflict in Nyandarua County who need compensation.
“Nyandarua is also home to hippos and other animals, and once in a while they harm people. Recently a buffalo killed a man, and hippos have often killed livestock in homes,” Jaldesa had informed the CS.
During the event, the County Executive for Water, Environment, Natural Resources, and Climate Change, Wachira Mugo, called for the gazettement of Lake Olbolosat as a national reserve to enable the county to have the mandate of its conservation.
Mugo said gazetting the lake will accord the Nyandarua Government a mandate to set aside money for its conservation and develop necessary infrastructure to turn the water mass into an attraction for tourists.
“As a wetland, the Lake is under the national government, and the County government cannot spend public money on it because that would attract the ire of the Controller of Budget,” noted Mugo.
However, the CEC noted that the lake was gazetted as a wetland by the national government through NEMA in 2018.
Mugo further revealed the Governor has allocated Sh7.5 million from the World Bank for conservation of the lake.
He observed that the money will be used for conservation of the lake through self-help groups and the local community as a way of minimising attacks on people by hippos that migrate to local dams when the lake dries up.
By Kimani Tirus
