On the 19th of March, researchers from the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU) and the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology (JOOUST) convened a policy dialogue on climate resilient development in Laikipia County in Nanyuki, Kenya. NMBU and JOOUST have been jointly conducting research in Laikipia North around the Mukogodo forest since 2017.
The event brought together policy-level actors, civil society representatives and researchers working on climate change, agriculture, conflicts, conservation and/or environmental-related issues in Laikipia County. This policy dialogue was an opportunity to take stock of current on-going climate change planning efforts at the county level, discuss research findings and to collaboratively map additional priorities for policy, research, and practice to support climate resilient development in the region.
Prof. Muok from JOOUST opened the meeting by emphasising the importance of creating such arenas to generate fruitful critical discussions in times of climate change, noting the opportunity to pick up from a previous policy workshop jointly organised in 2021.
State of climate change planning in Laikipia County
Laikipia County is a host to several pastoral and farming communities who rely on livestock and/or agricultural production. As climatic stressors are increasing, there is an urgent need to further integrate and advance climate change planning and actions. Increasing climatic risks interact with multiple challenges to shape vulnerability patterns such as disputed natural resource governance systems, unequal land access, insecurity, incidences of pest and diseases outbreaks and important social inequalities.
Mr Samuel Lemanyishoe, Chief Officer of Water, Environment and Natural Resources, Laikipia County Government, outlined some of the key environmental and climate imperatives in Laikipia. Mr Munda Edson, from the Governor’s office, then gave an update on the state of climate change planning in Laikipia. The Laikipia County Climate Change Act (2021) set for the establishment of a fund to facilitate the financing of climate change activities, programs, and projects in the county. The establishment of the County Climate Change Fund was welcomed as a mechanism to create, use, and access climate finance to plan for climate change at the county level.
There is now a climate change unit at the county government level with focal persons appointed per department. The financing locally led climate action program (FLOCCA), supported by the World Bank, is active in Laikipia with the setting up of climate change committees at the ward level. The committees are required to include representatives of diverse social groups, including persons with disabilities, women, youth and from community-based organisations.
Along with highlighting the legal frameworks developed, Mr Munda also pointed out some of the best practices currently being supported for climate resilient communities. These include different activities around rangeland restoration, notably the reseeding of rangelands, tree planting and the eradication of invasive plants. Other highlighted potential best practices include support for livestock marketing and migration, livelihood diversification and public awareness activities. Mr Munda also stressed the importance of accessing and sharing information, notably meteorological data.
Research findings from the Governing Climate Resilient Futures (JUSTCLIM) research project
Siri Eriksen and Edwige Marty (Norwegian University of life Sciences, NMBU) then presented key research findings from the JUSTCLIM research project. The project started officially in 2019 but built on previous research in the area from 2017. With case studies in Nepal, Nicaragua, and Kenya, the project aimed to probe on the inter-related gendered, social, political and environmental causes of poverty and conflicts in the face of climate change. In Laikipia, the research was conducted in and around the Mukogodo forest. Several rounds of qualitative individual and group interviews were conducted by the joint NMBU-JOOUST research team between 2017 and 2024.
Prof Eriksen started by presenting the evidence on climate change impacts globally and in Laikipia County specifically. Climate resilient development – the integration of climate change mitigation and adaptation measures to support sustainable development – emerged as critical within recent reports by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Dr Eriksen stressed that climate resilient development is the outcome of societal choices and struggles between various interests at different scales. Enabling climate resilient development requires integrated and holistic approaches that center social justice and equity. Opportunities for climate resilient development differ between groups and contexts and climate resilient development action looks different from place to place. Developing and implementing action to advance climate resilient development therefore requires inclusive and socially just interactions between diverse civil society, government, private sector and research actors, and in particular local populations.
Edwige Marty then emphasised the context of polycrises in Laikipia North, with droughts, insecurity incidences, COVID19, wildlife conflicts combining with a rising cost of living and continued low service access. Impacts are highlighly socially differentiated with labour roles, decision-making patterns, locations but also gender, age, (dis)abilities playing a role in shaping diverse experiences within communities.
The research also found conflicts dynamics to be more complex than being about climate-induced resource scarcity. Political and commercial interests, along with contested land governance systems, have reshaped insecurity incidences over time. In particular, there has been an increase in smaller and larger scale raids shoot-outs in recent months, while pasture conditions are currently adequate.
The interviews conducted also revealed that conservation initiatives emerge as central to how development, as well as adaptation to climate change, are currently being pursued by different actors. However, the support for conservation-based institutions and associated planning processes have shifted authority relations and decision-making power within communities. Elders’ roles within grazing committees have for instance diminished while young men are increasingly taking on security responsibilities and face increasing risks due to the insecurity in the region. While livestock movement continues to be critical for adaptation in the drylands, conservation initiatives tend to contribute to the territorialization of resource rights and exclusionary land access rights that create uneven patterns of benefits.
Finally, the research team highlighted the need to take into account hidden and unexpected sources of vulnerability within communities, including non-material aspects that shape differentiated experiences. In interviews, pastoralists often reflected a feeling of neglect and disconnect with other levels of decision-making. There is a continued lack of recognition of pastoralists as environmental stewards and valuable knowledge holders. Continued insecurity also causes stress, trauma, and increased suspicions. Climate measures, including adaptation planning, can exacerbate social inequalities and alter state-citizen relations as well as conflict dynamics.
Café tables exploring climate resilient development in Laikipia
The last part of the workshop aimed to open the space for more interactions between participants. A panel made of Mr Munda, Dr Eriksen, Dr Marty and Mr Harrison Kisio, chief of Mukogodo, answered questions from the audience and reflected on some of the themes raised during the first part. Questions were asked regarding the effectiveness of community barazas to engage with local communities and on what local responsibilities are in the face of global climate change. Participants also noted recurring difficulties in implementation at the local level.
The context of polycrises was also discussed, as well as the need for more long-term approaches that go beyond just bouncing back. A striking example highlighted the relief food being given during the 2020-2023 devastating drought which stopped once it rained while many pastoralists did not have any livestock left to graze on the regenerated pastures. Insecurity incidences then further thinned the herds.
Participants also highlighted the risks that some residents are continuously exposed to with limited adequate security responses from governmental agencies. More critical debates around conservation were also noted to be necessary, notably regarding the distributions of benefits and how inclusion processes unfold.
During the last part of the policy dialogue, participants split into four groups to brainstorm around four key prevailing issues which shape conditions for climate resilient development in Laikipia: land ownership contestations, inclusive governance efforts, ecosystem stewardship debates and finally, conflict dynamics. The brainstorm generated not only discussions on challenges, but also suggestions on how to enable climate resilient development:
Resources
- Muok, B.O., Mosberg, M., Eriksen, S.E.H. and Ong'ech, D.O., 2021. The politics of forest governance in a changing climate: Political reforms, conflict and socio-environmental changes in Laikipia, Kenya. Forest Policy and Economics, 132, p.102590.
- Governing Climate Resilient Futures (JUSTCLIM) research project
Contacts:
Siri Eriksen, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, siri.eriksen@nmbu.no
Benard Muok, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology, bmuok@yahoo.com
Edwige Marty, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, edwige.philippine.marty@nmbu.no
Martin Omondi, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology, omondimartin5@gmail.com