Kaya forests, located in Kenya?s Coastal landscape are sacred forests of the Mijikenda community and are peculiar multi-functional socio-ecological production landscapes that provide direct and indirect benefits for human wellbeing. Protection of the Kayas remains deeply entrenched in traditional Mijikenda culture, and their integrity are safeguarded by a council of elders who employ a system of taboos and traditional rules to protect them. The Kaya forests are increasingly being degraded mainly as a result of population growth, overdependence on natural resources by local communities and cultural erosion brought about by modern education and religion. The weak enforcement of laws governing the conservation of these forests coupled with the loss of cultural values that have traditionally been used to conserve the forests presents conservation challenges that require urgent holistic intervention. This project aims to promote ecotourism and cultivation of high value traditional food crops for preservation of cultural heritage, livelihood improvement and food and nutrition security. The project will establish an ecotourism enterprise within the Rabai cultural village which is situated adjacent to Kaya Mudzi Muvya and sensitize farmers on the importance of high value traditional crops in enhancing food security and adaptation to climate change. To achieve this, the project will operationalize an existing community seed bank which was constructed through support of Kenya forestry Research Institute (KEFRI) for preservation of traditional crops and build capacity of local field extension officers, farmers? groups and Kaya elders to sustainably grow traditional food crops for household use and income generation.The project activities will be linked with on-going interventions by KEFRI in restoration of degraded sites in Kaya Mudzi Muvya.
Kaya forests have traditionally been preserved by Mijikenda community in the Kenyan Coast as sacred sites. Kaya Mudzi Muvya, located in Kilifi County, 30km South East of Mombasa City is rich in natural resources and is surrounded by important cultural and historical heritage sites such as Dr. Kraph Museum and the first Christian church in Kenya. Despite these resources, local communities are characterized by high levels of poverty, with up to 70-80% of the residents living below the poverty line. The local population is heavily dependent on the provisions of natural ecosystems such as Kaya forests for survival; the forests support sectors such as biomass energy, food, shelter, herbal medicine, ecotourism industry, and agricultural productivity. Kaya forests also have spiritual and aesthetic values, and support the preservation of indigenous knowledge systems, a key component that enhances community adaptation to climate change. The rapid population growth and overdependence on natural resources, as well as the erosion of cultural values by local communities have caused extensive degradation of these forests. The main challenges in addressing these threats are the high poverty levels, unemployment, weak enforcement of forest protection laws and the erosion of cultural values and beliefs used to protect the forests and enhance
sustainable agricultural practices. Erosion of traditional knowledge has therefore resulted to loss of germplasm for traditional crop varieties further threatening food and nutrition security. Inadequate awareness by modern farmers on the value of traditional food crops has further resulted to their neglect. The local communities also have inadequate technical and leadership skills for sustainable management of nature based enterprises which can reduce over-reliance on the forest. The proposed project will address these challenges by developing ecotourism in Rabai cultural village and the adjacent kaya Mudzi Muvya as a sustainable nature based enterprise. This will be accompanied by training to build community capacity to successfully manage the ecotourism enterprise. The project will also promote cultivation of high value traditional food crops for food and nutrition security. The main traditional crops targeted for promotion are cowpeas, traditional vegetables, cassava, sweet potatoes, sorghum and millet. Re-introduction of traditional germplasm which is more resilient to the impacts of climate change is expected to contribute to enhanced food and nutrition security. This will be achieved through operationalization of an existing traditional seed bank within the Rabai cultural village for storage, preservation and distribution of traditional seed varieties. It is expected that ecotourism will provide income to members of Rabai cultural village hence provide direct economic incentives for local community to conserve kaya forests. Smart farming which will target farmers living adjacent to Kaya Mudzi Muvya is expected to improve food and nutrition security among members of the local community. This is expected to reduce the pressure of over-dependence on the adjacent kaya forests as a means of survival. This is based on the fact that poverty has largely driven destruction of kaya forests as communities seek for alternative ways of survival in the wake of climatic changes which have contributed to low agricultural productivity. This project will thus contribute to landscape outcomes 1, 2 and 3 of the sacred Mijkenda kayas on enhanced conservation of kaya forests and biodiversity, enhanced/diversified livelihood options and adoption of sustainable land management practices respectively.