Homa Bay: A section of residents of Homa Bay County have decried delays by the Kenya Wildlife Service in compensating them for losses from wildlife invasions. The residents called for a review of the existing legal and regulatory frameworks to fast-track payment of claims arising from wildlife losses. Homa Bay Bunge la Wananchi Speaker Walter Opiyo said invasions by hippos and hyenas had led to heavy losses of crops and livestock.

According to Kenya News Agency, the residents were contributing during a public participation exercise for the review of the Wildlife Conservation and Management Act (Cap 376) held in Homa Bay town. Opiyo expressed concerns that some residents were keeping hyenas as pets and urged the KWS to investigate the suspects. “We have suffered heavy losses from livestock attacks by hyenas, and when we call the authorities to trap the animals, they are never found because it is believed ‘their owners’ hide them,” Opiyo claimed.

A civil society official, Oloo Gor, urged the KWS to enhance the marketing of the Ruma National Park, noting that it was the home of the rare Roan Antelope yet the tourist numbers to the park were dismal. He also urged the government to improve the road infrastructure in the park and the surrounding areas to make it attractive. Oloo urged the KWS to engage in corporate social responsibility projects for the communities living around the Ruma Park, especially by drilling boreholes and improving schools’ infrastructure.

The Director of Administration State Department for Wildlife Service Vincent Ongere said the envisaged review of the Wildlife Conservation and Management Law seeks to harmonize it with the National Wildlife Policy 2020, the National Wildlife Strategy 2030, and other relevant policies. He said the review aims at providing legal clarity and certainty in the governance of the wildlife sector and enhance economic opportunities linked to wildlife.