MAINTAINING THE PRODUCTION AND RESILIENCE OF PASTORAL HERDS IN THE FACE OF LAND SUBDIVISION

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MAINTAINING THE PRODUCTION AND RESILIENCE OF
PASTORAL HERDS IN THE FACE OF LAND SUBDIVISION

• DAVID WESTERN
• AFRICAN CONSERVATION CENTRE
• NAIROBI

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ABSTRACT

• Pastoral systems are highly productive and
  resilience in arid lands. Mobility to maximize
  livestock forage digestibility and minimize
  drought exposure, linked to social reciprocity,
  is the basis of production and survival. Pressure
  on the land due to population growth, immigration
  and farming are raising tensions. Government
  policy favors subdivision of pastoral lands in
  the interests of raising GNP, commercialization,
  social progress, controlling movements, and
  security. Yet land fragmentation and
  sedentarization typically lower livestock
  production, resilience and social reciprocity in
  arid lands, causing land degradation, greater
  vulnerability to environmental stresses and more
  conflict among landowners and with wildlife over
  grazing, water and drought refuges. Pastoralists
  are typically ambivalent over land subdivision,
  recognizing the benefits yet fearing the
  consequences of forced sedentarization.
  Increasingly, support for subdivision is more out
  of fear of losing out than conviction over its
  viability. The underpinnings of pastoral
  livestock production and resilience in arid lands
  should be recognized and incorporated into land
  tenure policy. New adaptive land policies are
  need to encourage landowner associations that
  close open access use yet retain the
  productivity, resilience and social reciprocity
  of pastoralism in the arid lands. The policies
  should encourage the establishment of land
  trusts, grassbanks, drought refuges, conservation
  easements and reciprocal grazing arrangements.
  The associations should be encouraged to
  establish their own drought strategies, supported
  by national strategies. Wildlife policies should
  encourage the establishment of profitable
  sanctuaries that can double as drought refuges
  for livestock.
• KEY WORDS Pastoralism, resilience, land
  subdivision, adaptive policies.

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PASTORAL SYSTEMS

• HIGHLY PRODUCTIVE
• DROUGHT HARDY
• DEPEND ON SOCIAL RECIPROCITY
• SUPPORT HIGH HUMAN DENSITY
• USE MOBILE ADAPTIVE STRATEGIES

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THE ECOLOGICAL BASIS OF PRODUCTION RESILIENCE

• MAXIMIZE FORAGE DIGESTIBILITY
• MINIMIZE DROUGHT EXPOSURE
• FOLLOW GRASS FLUSHES
• FALLBACK ON DROUGHT REFUGES
• USE SOCIAL NETWORKS

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ANIMAL PRODUCTION RELATED TO RAINFALL
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FORGAGE CONDITIONS IN AMBOSELI
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LIVESTOCK POPULATION CHANGE IN AMBOSELI
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PRESSURES FOR SUBDIVISION

• POPULATION GROWTH
• IMMIGRATION
• ARABLE FARMING
• FEAR OF LAND LOSS
• COMMERCIALIZATION
• GOVERNMENT SUB-DIVISION POLICY

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IMPLICATIONS OF FRAGMENTATION AND SEDENTARIZATION

• LOWER LIVESTOCK PRODUCTION
• LOSS OF DROUGHT RESILIENCE
• LOSS OF SOCIAL RECIPROCITY
• LAND DEGRADATION
• WILDLIFE COMPETITION POACHING
• DISPLACEMENT ENCROACHMENT
• HUMAN CONFLICT AND CLASHES
• EXAMPLES FROM MONGOLIA ARIZONA

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SUBDIVISION A NATIONAL PERSECTIVE

• RAISE GROSS NATIONAL PRODUCT
• COMMERCIALIZE THE ARID LANDS
• GOVERN THE UNGOVERNED
• ENSURE SOCIAL PROGRESS
• GALVANIZE POLITICAL SUPPORTERS
• CONTROL INSECURITY

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LAND SUBDIVISION A PASTORALISTS DILEMMA

• PRO SUBDIVISION
• SEEN AS A GOVERNMENT DECREE
• SUPPORTED BY KEY LEADERS
• OPPORTUNITY FOR DEVELOPMENT
• OFFERS LAND SECURITY
• DOUBTS ON SUBDIVISION
• LOSS OF PRODUCTIVITY, MOBILITY RESILIENCE
• LAND DEGRADATION
• LOSS OF DROUGHT REFUGES
• LOSS OF SOCIAL SAFETY NET
• LAND BUYOUTS
• MARGINALIZATION AND DISPLACEMENT BY ELITES

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ADAPTIVE LAND TENURE POLICIES

• RECOGNIZE CONSTRAINTS OF ARID LANDS
• QUANTIFY LINK BETWEEN MOBILITY, PRODUCTION AND
  RESILIENCE
• ENCOURAGE ADAPTIVE OWNERSHIP SOLUTIONS
• USE LANDOWNER ASSOCIATIONS AND TRUSTS TO CLOSE
  OPEN ACCESS IN COMMONS, YET RETAIN PRODUCTIVE AND
  RESILIENT HERDING STRATEGIES.
• ENCOURAGE NEW LAND MANGEMENT METHODS
• GRASSBANKS AND DROUGHT REFUGES
• CONSERVATION EASEMENTS
• LEASE AND RECIPROCAL GRAZING ARRANGEMENTS
• NATIONAL AND ASSOCIATIONAL DROUGHT STRATEGIES
• LOCAL AND NATIONAL MONITORING AND PLANNING
• WILDLIFE POLICIES TO BOOST PROFITABLE SANCTUARIES
  AND DOUBLE AS DROUGHT REFUGES

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TAKE-HOME BULLET POINTS

• PASTORALISM IS PRODUCTIVE AND RESILIENT DUE TO
  MOBILITY AND SOCIAL RECIPROCITY
• LAND SUBDIVSION WILL INCREASE PRESSURE ON HERDS
  AND PASTURE, CAUSING DEEPER CONFLICTS
• PASTORALISTS ARE AMBIVALENT, WANTING SECURE
  TENURE BUT FEARING THE CONSEQUENCES
• LAND POLICIES SHOULD ENCOURAGE FLEXIBILITY IN
  OWNER ASSOCIATIONS AND INNOVATIVE MANGEMENT
  ARRANGEMENTS TO MAINTAIN PRODUCTION AND RESILIENCE