A Section of Kajiado residents has opposed a proposal to transfer Amboseli National Park to the county government of Kajiado.
The residents warned that the park generates more than Kes1.8 billion in revenue and will only benefit the Maa Community, locking out other Kenyans from its proceeds.
During a public participation forum at Magharibi Hall, they said that if transferred, the Amboseli National Park will have a revenue shortfall, which will affect the financing of other projects across the country.
Amboseli is classified as a premium park alongside Nakuru National Park and is the second highest revenue generator among National Parks after Nakuru National Park.
Currently, the park generates revenue that is taken to the national treasury.
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Out of the Amount, Kes 20 million is channeled to support the community in Kajiado yearly through Community Social Responsibility(CSR) initiatives.
In August Last year, during a meeting, the Maa Community, which includes the Masai from Kajiado, Samburu, and Narok, persuaded President William Ruto to transfer the park to the county government.
The president then declared that the Park should now be transferred to the Kajiado county government, which would hold it in trust for the people of Kajiado.
According to a committee spearheading public participation forums, the process of transfer will involve converting the land from public land held by the national government to community land held by the Kajiado county government on behalf of the Community.
Speaking during the public participation forum, Philip Chunge, a resident of Kakamega, said that a national natural resource should not be given to a county government.
He warned that county governments cannot manage a national park of that magnitude since the counties have been struggling with mismanagement of funds crippling critical devolved sectors like the health sector.
“How can we entrust them with a whole national park that attracts tourists in the country,” he noted.
Another resident, Phemy Andati, warned that the Kajiado county government will formulate policies to govern the Amboseli National Park that might favor the Maa community at the expense of other Kenyans nationwide.
“Other County governments will start struggling and scrambling for their own natural resources of which it will not be fair and it will not be good for the country,” she disclosed.
The Park covers 392 Kilometers squared in Kajiado at the foot of Mt. Kilimanjaro and is currently managed by the Kenya Wildlife Service(KWS)
