Victims of human /wildlife conflict in Siaya county are set to receive compensation amounting to Sh17 million by the end of this Financial Year, Conservation Secretary at the State Department of Wildlife, Dr. John Kipkorir Chumo has said.
According to Dr. Chumo, the amount will be paid to 75 residents who have lost their loved ones or suffered crop and property damage due to wildlife attacks.
Speaking in Nyadorera, Siaya county while presiding over the Bamboo growing campaign for restoration of river Nzoia, Dr. Chumo said the National Government spends over one billion shillings annually to compensate victims of wildlife attacks. The campaign was sponsored by the Kenya Wildlife Research and Training Institute.
The official, who was flanked by, among others, the Chief Executive officer of the Wildlife Research and Training Institute Dr. Patrick Omondi, however, warned the public against retaliatory killing of wild animals and destruction of their habitats.
Dr. Chumo further called for patience amongst victims of wildlife attacks, saying that compensation often takes time due to government procedures that involves rigorous, multi-tiered bureaucratic processes. “It cannot be that you experience trouble today and get money tomorrow,” Dr. Chumo said.
He added: “here is the procedure – It starts here, goes to your local office, then to the county meeting, and finally it reaches Nairobi before the money is paid out.”
He called on the community to liaise with the Kenya Wildlife Services to deal with the vervet monkey menace in the area and attributed the rising audacity of the primates which have increasingly been invading homes to forage to environmental degradation.
“The monkeys are supposed to live in a specific place. But because we have destroyed the environment, that is why the monkey comes to eat with you right inside your houses,” he said adding “even a snake, do not kill it. Look for KWS; they will pick it up and return it to where it belongs.”
KWS Siaya Deputy Warden Byatt Shikanda blamed the human/wildlife conflict on interference of the wildlife habitats that has forced them to get out and look for food.
He narrated a recent incident at Lake Kanyaboli where a woman was attacked by a crocodile while drawing water. “Though community members managed to rescue her from the reptile’s jaws, the crocodile turned and attempted to attack even the rescuers,” he said.
“The primary driver behind these aggressive encounters is an acute food shortage in the lake, triggered by illegal and destructive fishing methods. We, the community, are practising poor methods of fishing. We are using poisonous herbs to take out all the fish,” he added.
by Philip Onyango
