Moyale District
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
SAMBURU DISTRICT SHORT RAINS ASSESSMENT FEBRUARY 2008 Assessment Team Alphonce Musili Ministry Of Livestock & Fisheries Development Lameck Abrahams MOW&I Philip Ndung’u OP - MSSP Longit Naktari World Food Programme DSG Technical Samburu District Christine Adiema World Food Programme Isiolo/Samburu Barbara Leseni World Food Programme Isiolo/Samburu TABLE OF CONTENTS 1 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................. 1 1.1 District Background Information................................................................................... 1 1.2 History of Relief Operations........................................................................................... 2 1.3 Summary of Recommendations...................................................................................... 2 2 DISTRICT FOOD SECURITY SITUATION........................................................................ 3 2.1 Overall Food Security Situation...................................................................................... 3 2.2 Impact of Shocks and Hazards on Food Security ........................................................... 3 2.2.1 Rainfall.................................................................................................................... 3 2.2.2 Crop Production and Prices .................................................................................... 4 2.2.3 Livestock Production and Prices............................................................................. 5 2.3 Water and Sanitation....................................................................................................... 7 2.3.1 Health and Nutrition ............................................................................................... 8 2.3.2 Education ................................................................................................................ 9 2.3.3 Coping Mechanisms................................................................................................ 9 2.3.4 Divisional Food Security Ranking.......................................................................... 9 2.4 Ongoing Interventions .................................................................................................. 10 3 RECOMMENDATIONS...................................................................................................... 10 3.1 Food Interventions ........................................................................................................ 10 3.2 Non – Food Interventions ............................................................................................. 11 4 ANNEX................................................................................................................................. 12 4.1 Annex I.............................................................................................................................. 12 4.2 Annex II ........................................................................................................................ 13 4.3 Annex III:...................................................................................................................... 14 Disclaimer: The recommendations of the Regional Assessment Teams are tentative and subject to the approval of the ii Kenya Food Security Steering Group (KFSSG). 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 District Background Information Samburu district is one of the 31districts in the rift valley province with area coverage of approximately 21000 sq km. The district is divided into six administrative divisions (Kirisia, Lorroki, Waso, Wamba, Baragoi and Nyiro). The district population is estimated at 170,680 with high densities in Kirisia, Lorroki, and Baragoi Divisions. About eighty five percent of the district is rangeland lowland while the rest is highland where rain fed agriculture is practiced. Rainfall is scarce and unreliable averaging 750 mm in the highlands to 250 mm in the lowlands. The main crops grown are maize, beans, sorghum and cowpeas. Livestock industry is the single most important industry in the district. Pastoral, Agro-pastoral and Formal employment/Business/Petty trade are the three main Livelihood zones in the district. 85% of the population depends on pastoralism (cattle, camels, sheep and goat keeping). 8% of the population practice Agro-Pastoralism and are found in Kirisia and parts of Lorroki divisions. The rest of the population is engaged in formal employment, business or petty trade and are found in major town centers like Maralal, Baragoi, Wamba and Archer’s post. Livestock body conditions in the district are generally good with pasture and browse being of high nutrition though accessibility has been impeded by the prevailing insecurity in Kirisia, Lorroki and Marti plains. The trekking distances to water sources for livestock is 7 kms in Baragoi, Nyiro, Wamba and Waso divisions whilst in Kirisia and Lorroki, the distance is at 4kms.Sources of water are mainly boreholes, shallow wells, lagas, dams and pans which are not very reliable except for boreholes. Currently the district is facing an outbreak of Peste Des Petit Ruminant (PPR) which was first reported in Baragoi and Wamba divisions ranging between 10 – 60% mortality rates. The disease mainly affects both sheep and goats though it’s highly visible in goats with high mortality. The short rains were negligible in the district with only 3.7% of arable lands under cultivation. This was attributed to the insecurity in the area (Kirisia and Lorroki) that forced people to abandon their homes. Food security in the district was further complicated by the unavailability of certified seeds, fertilizers and pesticides. This is attributed to the fact that there are only seven Stockists in the district who stock inadequate crop inputs during the start of the rainy season. All the above factors have contributed to the general decline in the amount of food. The district is experiencing a deficit of 14,970MT.Currently the district is sourcing much of its food supplies from neighboring districts i.e. Nyandaru, Laikipia, Nyahururu and Nakuru. The learning in primary schools in the insecurity affected areas have been disrupted and some schools in Lorroki and Baragoi divisions have closed. Around 500 pupils were affected and relocated to other schools .This issue has caused strain on scarce resources in the admitting schools. The district has 73 boreholes, 61 dams, 4 sand dams, 5 lagas, 64 wells, 7 rock catchments, 29 springs and 36 roof catchments. At the moment 19 boreholes are non operational and as such, the district is undertaking water tankering to institutions in Baragoi and Nyiro divisions. The water stress is expected to increase especially if the long rains fail to fall on time. Disclaimer: The recommendations of the Regional Assessment Teams are tentative and subject to the approval of the 1 Kenya Food Security Steering Group (KFSSG). The nutrition status of children under five has improved as compared to the year 2006 although there is a high prevalence of malaria, diarrhea, upper respiratory tract infections and HIV/AIDS. Malaria incidences continue to increase in the lowlands since the onset of the wet season late October. The ailments were mainly countered at the household level through medical assistance sought from health centers and dispensaries, private clinics and use of local herbs/ concoctions. Insecurity in the district has been intermittent especially in Baragoi, Lorroki plains and Samburu/Laikipia border. This has caused a lot of tension and outward migration of both human and livestock as these areas are dry grazing zones for the pastoralists. However in Marti, the prolonged dry spell has caused the communities to settle in areas where security is ensured. 1.2 History of Relief Operations The EMOP commenced in Samburu in late 2004 targeting 77,370 beneficiaries under the general food distribution. The target was gradually reduced to 22,119 beneficiaries in response to the recovery status after the Short Rains Assessment in 2005. It is at this point (the only point in the recent EMOP) that Food for Assets (FFA) was employed along side general food distribution (GFD) as an exit strategy. The number of beneficiaries has gradually been halved since then to date. Other than the usual inevitable challenges contributing to missing commodities in food baskets over the cycle, delays in implementing recommendations by KFSSG at district level has caused distributions to lag by a month or so after Long Rains and Short Rains assessment. Supplementary feeding commenced in April 2007 and has gone a long way in alleviating incidences of malnutrition among children under five years and pregnant and lactating mothers in the District. (Annex table I) 1.3 Summary of Recommendations Promote peace building initiatives and security efforts Carry out a district wide PPR vaccination campaign Promote range reseeding and provision of appropriate grass seeds. Improvement of livestock markets in the district through formation of marketing associations. Monitoring of resurgence of crop disease and pests. Timely provision of certified seeds, fertilizers and pesticides to farmers. . Promote community sensitization on HIV/AIDS and provision of care to the affected. Constant control of livestock and wildlife menace to crops. Construction of sub - surface dams along the lagga beds. Installation of standby gen - sets to avoid stress on the existing borehole pumping sets. Encourage