Pastoralists in arid counties now embrace farming amid climate shocks

For decades, the lack of pasture contributed to rampant conflicts and deaths in Samburu, Laikipia, and other parts of the Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (Asals) as pastoralists would migrate with their animals during drought and invade farms and ranches.

The situation was worsened by the harsh effects of climate change, which include prolonged drought, floods, and loss of livestock, among other challenges.

Samburu County was severely affected by the 2016/2017 drought, which caused high livestock and wildlife mortality, migration of most livestock, and the encroachment of ranches. It was on this basis that the National Drought Management Authority (NDMA), with European Union (EU) funding, supported an integrated project within the livestock value chain. This included the promotion of fodder production, the construction and equipping of a dairy processing plant, and the construction of a livestock sale yard.

The intervention targeted the Loosuk Hay Farmers Self Help Group, a registered group of agro-pastoralist farmers in Loosuk Ward, Samburu West Sub-county, with a membership of 30 farmers. Gideon Lesmeridana, a member of the Loosuk Hay Group, praised the NDMA for introducing hay farming to them. From an initial 3-acre plantation of Cenchrus ciliaris grass, Lesmeridana has since expanded to 15 acres, increasing production from 1,000 to over 3,000 bales.

“This initiative solved our problems because our cows no longer lack fodder, and we were motivated to continue with livestock keeping,” he says. He explains that residents suffered when they had no pasture, as they would migrate to Laikipia County, resulting in conflict between them and ranchers. “We encroached on people’s land, and our cows were harmed or stolen. We knew we were in the wrong because we had invaded their land,” he recalls.

For Daniel Lemalasia, life as a pastoralist was hard when they depended solely on natural pasture. Pastoralists would sometimes travel over 120 kilometres to Wamba, Baragoi, Marsabit, and other areas in search of pasture. “Since we started hay farming, we no longer have to travel far in search of pasture, and we have also reduced the number of cattle,” he adds. In the process, children were affected. Some dropped out of school, and families struggled to get their daily milk supply for domestic consumption and sale. Lemalasia explains that, in the past, he could only sell milk when there was pasture and the cows were nearby. He missed the vital resource whenever he took the cows far away for grazing.

“We stopped selling milk until the cows returned from migration. Since we started hay farming, we now sell milk year-round,” he says. The area chief, Philip Lerno, says the County Government provided farmers with a tractor for ploughing, while the NDMA supplied them with a baler and facilitated exchange visits to teach them farming.

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“We had a problem with storage space because hay needs to be stored in a cool and dry place, so we approached the NDMA, which constructed a storage facility for us,” he says. In addition to the hay baler, NDMA’s support to the Loosuk Hay Farmers Self Help Group included training members on pasture production, providing pasture seeds, and constructing a hay store with a 5,000-bale capacity.

“NDMA also supported the construction of the Lolmolog livestock sale yard to improve livestock marketing in Suguta Marmar Ward, serving a large catchment area that includes five sub-locations: Logorate, Lolmolog, Longewan, Nasur, and Loosuk. This area has an estimated 2,027 households, over 12,000 cattle, 6,600 goats, and 10,000 sheep,” says Samburu County Drought Coordinator Alex Leseketeti.