Unsustainable Farming

The Maasai are pastoral by tradition and do not farm. Thanks to this attitude they have always lived in great harmony with the wildlife. Today, there is pressure on the Maasai to lease their land to other tribes as a source of income. Thus, in the last few years, numerous small farms have appeared near the spring which has been the traditional source of local water and along the rivers that flow into the Kuku Group Ranch from Mt. Kilimanjaro. These small farms produce little and are not sustainable in the long term. As recent introductions to the ecosystem, they have created great conflict with the wildlife. Farming is doable only in good rainy years, but when crops fail, farmers are obliged by their dire circumstances to become poachers for game meat. Even in the good rainy years wild animals are killed, because they are seen as crop raiders.

MWCT would like to see the areas where the farms are located to become protected wetlands. This would mean eliminating all farming in these areas. As with the Simba Project, MWCT is proposing to employ local Maasai as game scouts if they agree not to farm. Thus, the families are compensated in lieu of farming. In the end, this is a much better solution for the families because of having a steady income rather than to be at the mercy of unsustainable farming.