LAIKIPIA COUNTY, KENYA (June 23, 2015) – Loisaba is an unfenced 56,000-acre private ranch in central Kenya’s Laikipia County. It helps to support Kenya’s second largest elephant population, and generates revenue through carefully managed livestock and ecotourism operations. Faced with the threat of Loisaba being sold to developers, The Nature Conservancy and Space for Giants facilitated securing the property to keep it intact and preserve the many benefits it provides for neighboring communities, wildlife, and all Kenyans.
“By protecting Loisaba, we can enhance natural resource management and scale up existing enterprises on the property,” said Charles Oluchina, Director of Africa Field Programs, The Nature Conservancy. “Loisaba has the potential to earn a profit, making it a self-sustaining engine for peace, community development, and wildlife conservation. This is an innovative example of how Africa can both preserve its heritage and create economic opportunities for its people.”
© Loisaba Conservancy
Loisaba also provides refuge for Kenya’s only stable lion population, and an abundance of other wildlife including Grevy zebra, wild dogs, leopard, and cheetah. Loisaba sits in an elephant migratory pathway 100 kilometers north of Mount Kenya, and the Ewaso N’giro and N’gare Narok Rivers form two of the property’s boundaries.
“Securing Loisaba is a critical move to protect elephants in this landscape. As pressure grows, securing large tracts of land is a vital strategy for elephant conservation here.”” Max Graham, Founder & CEO, Space for Giants.
For the past 18 years, Loisaba has been managed sustainably to conserve wildlife habitat and has created over 200 jobs, developed schools and healthcare clinics, and provided managed grazing access for local communities of Samburu and Mukogodo Maasia. These benefits were threatened when the previous owner needed to sell Loisaba Ranch and had offers from land developers. Subdividing this large, intact parcel would lead to decreased habitat and significantly compromise landscape connectivity and associated migrations for elephants and other wildlife as well as decreased economic and development opportunities for local communities.
The Nature Conservancy facilitated a real estate transaction to secure the property and protect the benefits it provides to neighboring communities, and wildlife, and all Kenyans.
Through this transaction, The Nature Conservancy granted $9 million (USD) to the private seller to transfer the property to the holding of the newly established Loisaba Community Trust. It is a Kenyan trust registered under the Trustees (Perpetual Succession) Act in Kenya. The property is now named Loisaba Conservancy.
By working together, The Nature Conservancy, Space for Giants, Northern Rangelands Trust ( 2 Kenyan conservation NGOs), Loisaba Community Conservation Foundation, and Elewana/Cheli & Peacock (the tourism operator), the Loisaba Conservancy will maintain and improve: grazing access for neighboring communities, jobs in ecotourism and ranching, revenues reinvested into neighboring communities (schools, healthcare clinics), and the property’s conservation value including protecting a major elephant migration corridor. These neighbors include Naibunga Community Conservancy, Kirimon, Nalare, and members of P&D Settlement Scheme to the north and west.
“Our hope is to also create additional community conservancies in the area surrounding Loisaba as a means to secure grazing lands for local people and provide improved governance and grassroots decision-making,” said Tom Silvester, Loisaba Conservancy Manager. “We are working closely with Northern Rangelands Trust to expand their proven model of community conservation. The Nature Conservancy brings us these relationships. The future potential to scale up our impact is very exciting.”
The Loisaba Community Trust board of directors and advisory council will include representatives from The Nature Conservancy, Space for Giants, Northern Rangelands Trust, local government and neighboring communities. Loisaba’s Manager and other staff have kept their same roles and responsibilities, ensuring no disruption in the resources and services important to local communities.
Loisaba provides an opportunity to bring local communities, government, private enterprise and NGOs together to build a model for community development and conservation programs that can be replicated in other parts of Kenya and throughout Africa.
The Loisaba Conservancy provides a living demonstration of the benefits of conservation, and will motivate neighbors on communal lands to enact and sustain wise policies for using their own resources. From Loisaba, the partners are already facilitating learning exchanges among nearby communities to share grazing practices that increase the health of grasslands and reduce the consequences of drought.
Visit Loisaba – Loisaba is outstandingly beautiful, its abundant wildlife is truly wild and its accommodation is comfortable beyond measure. Whether sleeping under the undisturbed African night sky on our unique Star Beds, rafting down the majestic Ewaso Ngiro and Ng’are Narok Rivers, or watching Africa’s best wildlife, a visit to Loisaba is unforgettable. Tour operator Elewana/Cheli & Peacock has over 30 years of tourism experience in Africa. Elewana is a collection of 14 of the best boutique properties in East Africa and Loisaba now joins their elite ranks. Cheli & Peacock a company founded by Stefano Cheli and Liz Peacock in 1985 built and managed 6 famous properties, Elsa’s Kopje, Tortilis Camp, Lewa Safari Camp, Elephant Pepper Camp, Joys Camp and Kitich Camp in the Mathews Mountains.
