Ruko Conservancy, Lake Baringo is an idea in its infancy.

The north eastern shore of Lake Baringo consists of an area of about 14000 hectares much of which is virgin bush. However it has always been an area of conflict with the Il Chamus (Njemps) and the Pokots competing for the grass during the dry season. Ross and Caro Withey, who run Samatian Island Lodge came up with the idea of turning the area into a conservancy a couple of years ago.

Leaders of the two tribes have now indeed agreed to turn the whole area into a conservancy and are at this moment engaged in the complex issues of formulating by laws, demarcating the boundaries and constructing a modus operandi for the future. In this respect they are being aided by a Government Agency, Aridlands. The Conservancy Board consists of ten members from each tribe.

There are hopes afoot that the six hundred or so people (300 Pokot and 300 Il Chamus) who are voluntarily agreeing to leave the area will be compensated in the not too distant future by income generated from tourism. But it is a race against time. The people who have been persuaded of the good sense of the idea, live a life of great hardship as it is and the present drought conditions are not helping (June 2008) The mathematics are such that if each of the members effected were to receive an annual dividend of $100 (6000 ksh), this would come to about 3.6 million ksh. Were this figure to be the usual 10% of takings from a lodge or campsite, that enterprise (or combination of enterprises) would have to bringing in 36 million ksh per annum. A lodge on Ruko would be an attractive scheme, and it strikes me that for this Conservancy really to benefit the Pokot and Njemps who have subscribed to the Conservancy, this lodge would ideally be 100% owned and run by those members themselves. With several years of training and a great deal of meticulous preparation this might well be an option. On the other hand a sympathetic and enthusiastic investor may be able to get things moving faster. It may be a good green field opportunity for someone with ambition and patience.

The AWF (Africa Wildlife Foundation) would be an obvious partner for such an undertaking as they provide excellent technical support and back up for any enterprise likely to rescue African Heartland Wilderness areas for the sake of wildlife.

On a couple of recent visits, I camped on the shore of the Lake near Komolion. I was greeted by a number of friendly Pokot people and over the course of the two days I stayed I never worried about my security or the safety of my things. On m first visit, I walked through the Conservancy area from North to South and back, as far as the Pokot settlement of Rukus, where I met some of the wardens who gave me a welcome and a nice cup of tea. It is worth mentioning that the Il Chamus people have already left the area, most of them having taken up residence on the island of Ol Kokwa on Lake Baringo, whereas the Pokot have not yet taken leave of the area. On my second visit I walked for almost eight hours, first to Rugus and then East to the Mountain of Kapal, behind which lies the interesting seasonal lake of Wayemineng, nearby which there was a considerable amount of land being cultivated by the Pokot, mostly with maize. Pokot groups were sleeping in the fields at night to protect their plantings from antelope and waterbuck. I then returned across the third line of my triangle to my base camp. Had I not had a GPS for this third leg, getting back would have been very difficult as going in a straight line was not an option.

I came across a number of other Pokot settlements on the way through and talked to a few people. Not all of them I must say were enthusiastic about leaving and there is an obvious need for more “settling in” time, before irrevocable steps are taken on the future use of this land.

Wildlife was limited to a few dikdik, vervet monkeys and one sighting of impala. There were a good number of birds (especially hornbill) and much evidence of hippo. I was especially taken by a vast riverine area between Komolion and Longicharo full of yellow acacias. The area was bereft of grass as the lake receded in the current drought conditions, but this may be due to the amount of livestock grazing taking place. The area is very similar to the one south of Kampi ya Samaki which regularly attracts zebras, though at Ruko it is far bigger and so must have excellent prospects for supporting large number of grazing wildlife. It is inspiring to hear of the present pans to bring giraffe and other grazing species from other parts of the country although apparently this plan is now on hold until further management structures have been put in place.

At presently a daytrip or a camping trip with the permission of the wardens might be possible. There is no other accommodation available. If you would like to visit you could start by contacting Richard (the Chairperson) 0721 967990 or David (the Project Manager) 0721 637163

Mark Archer