From banditry to bounty: How conservation agriculture has transformed Laikipia
With sounds of guns, war songs and bloodshed dominating her life since childhood, Cheyech Pkyach, a resident of Mukutan in Laikipia County, had resigned to whatever fate held for her; and thought she would never experience peace.
Growing up in Laikipia West, she experienced first-hand bandit attacks and retaliation battles that took her father's life and left her younger brother maimed.
For a long time, the county has been plagued by bandit attacks and cattle rusting, with the main dispute being access to and use of pastures.
But not anymore.
Ms Pkyach says the management of a private conservancy and local communities are turning the tide. The guns have gone silent, and there are no more bloodbaths. Livestock are gradually getting replaced by orchards and indigenous trees, which promote beekeeping activities, thanks to initiatives under conservation agriculture practices.
The initiatives, which include beekeeping, avocado farming and cattle fattening, were started in 2020 by Mukutan Conservancy to empower the local communities, and they are now bearing fruit.
Residents have embraced environmental conservation, ending years of massive destruction of forest cover.
The conservation efforts have revived dying rivers and streams, including the magical Mukutan Gorge, hot springs, and waterfalls.
Cattle fattening at Mukutan Conservancy.
Embracing conservation and regenerative agriculture has restored peace among warring communities neighbouring Mukutan Conservancy, an area that has been witnessing bloodshed as locals fight for pastures.
The region was a battlefield between ranchers and invading pastoralists from Laikipia, Samburu and Baringo counties.
“We are happy with the diversification from pastoralism to environmental conservation and farming. We still keep cattle, but in a different way. We engage in farming activities to complement livestock keeping. We no longer raid forests to burn charcoal or get firewood. With the Mukutan conservancy-community partnership, we appreciate that environment conservation and protection of natural resources within the conservancy is for our benefit,” said Ms John Ekuwom, a resident.
Mr Ekuwom added: “We are now friends with Mukutan Conservancy, which has introduced new livestock farming methods that are more profitable. The conservancy has set aside grazing fields for our cattle during prolonged drought and it also fattens our cows so they can fetch better prices,” added Mr Ekuwon.
Last year, under the cattle fattening programme, Mr Ekuwom sold a bull at Sh80,000, which he would previously have sold at Sh30, 000.
The conservancy also focuses on peace building and sustainable grazing through a dedicated grass bank, which provides a safe, controlled grazing space, reducing pressure on local lands and minimising conflict over grazing resources.
“By employing more than 120 herders, the programme provides economic opportunities. Further, the conflicts are now a thing of the past since we have access to grazing fields. We can take our children to school without fear of attacks,” explained the herder.
Under the grass bank, the grazing area is reserved for the community to herd their livestock during drought.
In 2022, the conservancy introduced Steers Fattening Programme, which involves feeding cattle a high-energy, protein-rich ration to increase their live weight and improve their carcass grade. The programme, which was officially launched in 2023, started with 700 cows that earned farmers Sh40 million. This year, the cows were increased to 2, 000 cows.
“We introduced the community cattle programme to address the challenges of overgrazing and limited economic resources. We aimed to offer a sustainable solution to local herders amid climate change and unpredictable weather patterns. This initiative allows the community to participate in structured grazing and livestock fattening. By focusing on smaller, healthier herds rather than large numbers, Mukutan promotes sustainable income and resource management, fostering resilience against environmental pressures,” explained Sveva Gallmann, director-Mukutan Conservancy.
“By providing a protected, consistent grazing space, Mukutan reduces environmental stress and maintains biodiversity. This model ensures that both the community and the environment benefit in the long term, fostering sustainable coexistence where economic stability and biodiversity conservation go hand-in-hand,” adds the director.
The other concept of conservation agriculture embraced by the community is avocado farming. Mukutan Conservancy has 100 hectares of fruit trees, while 20, 000 Hass avocado seedlings are distributed to local farmers annually. A seedbed has been established at the conservancy, with a projected target of 80 avocado trees per farmer progressively.
“Avocado farming is a climate change mitigation measure as well as a sustainable way of economically empowering the community. The farmers are trained in avocado farming at the conservancy with a follow-up visit by our experts. This programme is implemented hand in hand with beekeeping under the Wild Honey Programme currently benefiting 981 community members, including women and youth,” explained the director.
She added that under Mukutan’s beekeeping project, 1,000 modern beehives have been distributed to locals, with projected annual earnings of Sh15 million.
“We offer apiary training and market access agreements, ensuring a steady market for honey and other bee products,” explained Ms Gallmann.
