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Kenya’s precious park within Nairobi City that lures large numbers of tourists to the country annually is under threat by land grabbers.
Conservationists warn that if Nairobi National Park is not well protected and conserved, we may as well be killing the goose that lays the golden egg.
The park, which was established in 1946, is the oldest of all national parks in the country and is famously known for its black rhino sanctuary.
Additionally, it is the only park within a city in the whole world.
It is home to a wide variety of wildlife such as lions, cheetahs, hyenas, giraffes, buffaloes, zebras and wildebeest, among others.
The park has thus assumed a major role as a foundation of protecting our natural heritage and hence needs our protection from potentially irreversible ecological damages.
The reality of Nairobi’s rapid development (it was recently slated as one of the fastest growing regions on the continent), with infrastructure and buildings coming up every day, is that the park stares at the reality of an impending ecosystem imbalance.
Animal territory
Many conservationists warn that if nothing much is done to control the sprouting of buildings and infrastructure, which apply pressure on the park, there is a likelihood that it will soon be no more, with some anticipating that this could happen as soon as in 20 years.
The park is home to over 400 species, including the already endangered black rhino, and these iconic species need space within to feed, mate or migrate.
The animals’ territory is, however, shrinking as a result of development.
In the event that the remaining ecological wildlife corridors are not maintained, a considerable lot of the park’s animals are likely to disappear.
Besides interfering with the animals’ way of life, the gradual encroachment of the park is making it difficult for park rangers and officials to protect the animals, thus giving poachers a field day while at the same time increasing cases of human-wildlife conflict.