Children are starving, cattle are dropping dead, crops are withered, lakes are empty, and still the rains haven’t come. Kenya is on the verge of a catastrophe of Biblical proportions. Read more … (Part one in a two part look at the crisis in Kenya. The next article will focus on how the drought is … Continue reading
Category Archives: Kenya
Africa / Biotechnology / Kenya
Kenyan scientists to support sub-Saharan African farmers
A group of veteran and upcoming women scientists in Kenya under AWARD (African Women in Agricultural Research and Department) programme have urged African leaders and US policy makers to put women at the centre of efforts to address hunger and poverty in sub-Saharan Africa. During the recent visit by US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton … Continue reading
Africa / Drought / Environment / Kenya
Lush land dries up, withering Kenya’s hopes
The sun somehow feels closer here, more intense, more personal. As Philip Lolua waits under a tree for a scoop of food, heat waves dance up from the desert floor, blurring the dead animal carcasses sprawled in front of him. A Devastating Drought Sweeps Across Kenya Children waited in Lokori for aid last month. Communities … Continue reading
Drought / East Africa / Food Security / ILRI / Kenya / Report
Why is it some households fall into poverty while others do not? Evidence from Kenya
This Discussion Paper by Nelson Mango, Patti Kristjanson, Maren Radeny, Abisalom Omolo and Michael Arunga of ILRI and Anirudh Krishna on Why is it some households fall into poverty at the same time others are escaping poverty? Evidence from Kenya was released on 11 August, 2009. It presents study carried out to evaluate how different … Continue reading
Masai Mara—a beauty in jeopardy
Famed the world over for its spectacular and breathtaking site of the migration of tens of thousands of wildebeests, the Maasai Mara’s impressive and unmatched reputation is fading fast. Maasai Mara National Reserve is losing animal species at a rate that is having scientists concerned, a new study now shows. Published in the May issue … Continue reading
Kenya seeks to grow beef export market
The Kenyan Government is making fresh attempts to establish livestock disease-free zones to expand the country’s beef export market. Livestock permanent secretary Kenneth Lusaka said his ministry was expecting some funding from both internal and external sources for the setting up of the zones. Read more. . . (The Daily Nation) Continue reading
They’re chipping cows in Kenya
Virtual City using Microsoft technology, it uses radio frequency identification (RFID) to keep track of cattle in Kenya, according to a Microsoft blog post. The tag goes in the cow’s stomach (no word on which one, or how it doesn’t end up coming out again) and keeps information on the cow’s origin, previous owners and … Continue reading
Africa / Climate Change / Drought / East Africa / ILRI / Indigenous Breeds / Kenya
Dry future for Kenyan farms
Life in Kenya’s famine-prone fringe areas will get worse with total crop failure within the next four decades, according to a new study. The study carried out by the International Livestock Research Institute says drought-tolerant maize and even the much more resilient millet will hardly survive hotter weather and rainfall shifts in the areas. It … Continue reading
East Africa / Kenya / Wildlife
Mara wildlife in serious decline
Wild grazing animals in Kenya’s Masai Mara National Reserve are steadily disappearing, a study has found. Numbers of giraffe, warthog, impala, topi and hartebeest fell by 50% or more between 1979 and 2002. The falls are linked to rapid growth of Maasai settlements around the reserve, say scientists from the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI). … Continue reading
Environment / Kenya / Wildlife
Giraffe numbers in Masai Mara down 95%
The giraffe population of Kenya’s famous Maasai Mara reserve has declined by up to 95% because of increased human settlement around the unfenced park, according to a new study. Scientists at the Nairobi-based International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) found that the numbers of giraffes, hartebeest, impala, warthogs, topis and waterbuck all fell “markedly and persistently” throughout … Continue reading
ILRI Clippings 