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Yala Swamp, Siaya County, Kenya AN ASSESSMENT OF THE EFFECT OF IRRIGATION PROJECTS ON WETLANDS: YALA SWAMP, SIAYA COUNTY, KENYA By NYAKUNDI LYDIA KEMUNTO C50/88041/2016 DEPARTMENT OF GEOGRAPHY AND ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES A RESEARCH PROJECT SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF THE DEGREE OF MASTERS OF ARTS IN ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT, UNIVERSITY OF NAIROBI © 2018 DECLARATION I hereby declare that this project report is my original work and that it has not been submitted for examination in any institution of higher education for the award of any degree. …………………………………………. …………………………… Nyakundi Lydia Kemunto Date C50/88041/2016 This project report has been submitted for examination with the approval of the following university supervisors. ………………………………………….. ………………………........... Dr. Alice Odingo Date Department of Geography and Environmental studies, University of Nairobi. ………………………………………….. ………………………........... Dr. Mikalitsa S. Mukhovi Date Department of Geography and Environmental studies, University of Nairobi i DEDICATION To my parents Mr. Stanley Nyakundi And The Late Billiah Bitengo, My husband, Seth Odongo And My daughter Ariana Bitengo Who have been my source of inspiration, motivation and encouragement throughout this period ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First, my sincere gratitude to God for this far. Secondly to my supervisors Dr. Alice Odingo and Mikalitsa S. Mukhovi for their support, guidance, insights and comments throughout the research period. I wish to acknowledge The University of Nairobi, Department of Geography and Environmental Studies Lecturers for the skills and knowledge gained. I am equally grateful for the Environmental Planning and Management class particularly my classmates Dorothy Kyemboi, Maive Omoruli, Christine Ochieng and Clifford Oketch for their unwavering support and encouragement I also wish to acknowledge my research assistants, in particular Millicent Atieno who assisted me in data collection. I also acknowledge Yala community particularly the local administration and the village elders for their cooperation and participation in surveys, discussions, and interviews Finally a special thanks to my family for the unconditional support both financially, spiritually, academically and emotionally to be the best that I could ever be. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION............................................................................................................................ i DEDICATION............................................................................................................................... ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................................ iii LIST OF TABLES ...................................................................................................................... vii LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................................... viii LIST OF PLATES ....................................................................................................................... ix ABSTRACT................................................................................................................................... x ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS.................................................................................... xi CHAPTER ONE ........................................................................................................................... 1 INTRODUCTION......................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Background of the study ....................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Problem Statement ................................................................................................................ 3 1.3 Research questions ................................................................................................................ 4 1.4 Research objectives............................................................................................................... 4 1.4.1 Main Objective ............................................................................................................... 4 1.4.2 Specific objectives.......................................................................................................... 4 1.5 Hypotheses ............................................................................................................................ 4 1.6 Justification of the study ....................................................................................................... 5 1.7 Scope of the study and limitations ........................................................................................ 5 CHAPTER TWO .......................................................................................................................... 7 LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................................................................ 7 2.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 7 2.2 Global Diversity and Distribution of Wetlands..................................................................... 7 2.3 Wetland Services: Ecological and socio-economic Benefits ................................................ 8 2.3.1 Provisional services ........................................................................................................ 9 2.3.2 Regulating Services ........................................................................................................ 9 2.3.3 Supporting Services...................................................................................................... 10 2.3.4 Cultural Services........................................................................................................... 11 2.4 Effects of Irrigation Projects on Wetlands .......................................................................... 11 iv 2.5 Wetlands, irrigation projects and livelihoods...................................................................... 14 2.6 Regulative and Legislative Framework............................................................................... 16 2.6.1 International Policy and Legal Framework .................................................................. 16 2.6.2 Domestic Policy and Legal Framework ....................................................................... 17 2.7 Theoretical Framework: Sustainable Livelihood Approach ............................................... 18 2.8 Conceptual Framework: Ecosystem services and human well-being ................................. 20 CHAPTER THREE.................................................................................................................... 23 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY .............................................................................................. 23 3.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 23 3.2 Study Area........................................................................................................................... 23 3.2.1 Geographical location................................................................................................... 23 3.2.2 Climatic and hydrological characteristics..................................................................... 24 3.2.3 Demographic and socio-economic aspects................................................................... 24 3.3 The history and structure of Dominion Farms Limited....................................................... 26 3.4 Research Design.................................................................................................................. 27 3.5 Target Population ................................................................................................................ 28 3.6 Sampling technique............................................................................................................. 28 3.7 Reliability and Validity....................................................................................................... 29 3.8 Sources of Data ................................................................................................................... 30 3.8.1 Primary data.................................................................................................................. 30 3.8.2 Secondary data.............................................................................................................. 31 3.9 Data Analysis ...................................................................................................................... 32 CHAPTER FOUR....................................................................................................................... 33 RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS............................................................................................... 33 4.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 33 4.2 General characteristics of respondents................................................................................ 33 4.2.1 Gender .........................................................................................................................
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