Nairobi: Experts in landscape space and management in the country have today converged for a four-day platform to discuss challenges threatening biodiversity loss. The over 150 participants meeting under the Kenya Landscapes Actors Platform (KenLap) observed the need for a long-term plan by players from various landscapes to share experiences and synergize on strategies that each is using to address matters landscapes.
According to Kenya News Agency, participants derived from government, development partners, researchers, communities, and farming households both national, international, and across borders are looking at the possibilities and strategies they will put forward to make sure that landscape gives them benefits considering degradation risks are worsening food insecurity. Speaking today at the meeting, Kenyan Agricultural and Livestock Research Organisation (KALRO) Chief Research Scientist Dr. Michael Okoti said the meeting plans to come up with a 10-year strategic plan that is supposed to have inpu
t from each and every stakeholder from the various landscapes within the country.
Dr. Okoti emphasized the need for a robust blueprint on the steps required to improve landscapes within the country. Despite the contribution of Kenya’s landscapes, the country faces several challenges, including the multiplicity of degradation drivers, which necessitate addressing more than one driver with different strategies. Unsustainable land practices, issues related to land rights and tenure, financial constraints due to the expensive nature of landscape management, and inadequate policy and legislation can also hinder sustainable landscapes.
Dr. Okoti highlighted the interconnectedness of landscapes, making it difficult to predict how actions will impact the entire ecosystem. He provided an example of the unsustainable management of agricultural landscapes in Western Kenya, which affects the aquatic landscapes in Lake Victoria. Soil erosion from cropping lands has resulted in soil thinning, negatively impacting soil or
ganic matter.