I am Paul Edonga, I am a Founder and Executive Director of Save Beisa Oryx Community Foundation-SBOC, with a business arm for indigenous led conservation, Save Beisa Oryx Community Contractors PLC. In 2020, I pioneered an indigenous led conservation of endangered Beisa Oryx project funded by the IUCN African Wildlife Initiative in 2020-2022 in Nakuprat-Gotu Community Conservancy (NGCC) and neighboring protected areas of Isiolo-Samburu-Meru Conservation Areas (ISMCA). Beisa Oryx Oryx beisa was assessed by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species in 2018. Oryx beisa is listed as Endangered under criteria A2bd. Their numbers have declined by an estimated 52% (49-55%) from 34,000 individuals in the mid-1990s to less than 8000-9000, however with a decline greater than 50% over one generation (estimated at 10 years), and absence of a focused recovery mechanism since then to 2020s their population are estimated to be less than 3000 (Ogutu et al. 2015, SBOC 2022). The project catalysed the need for further conservation of the endangered angulate, it highlighted the urgent significance of saving this Angulates and other threatened Antelopes in the region, they are categorized species of high importance to the pastoralist and the ecosystem; from cultural, socio-economic to food chain equilibrium.
I then focused on bringing regional groups together to help the endangered Beisa oryx while empowering local pastoralist communities’ livelihoods, by establishing SBOC the Save Beisa Oryx Community initiative. An Increase in commercial poaching, loss of their habitat due to rampant substance charcoal burning and climate change implications compounded with high poverty levels of the local communities, this needed a mechanism. SBOC is a collaborative network of a growing grassroot alliances that work towards conserving endangered Beisa oryx and other antelopes. Currently it includes 48 indigenous community-based Self-Help Groups with a membership of more than 764 ambassadors, 120 rangers and scouts monitoring wildlife and dryland Acacia forests, 60 indigenous conservation leaders and volunteers across more than 1 million pastoralist IP&LC landscapes of ASALs in Kenya.
Kenya is of global significance to these species, who entirely occur and are confined to (Payne & Bro-Jørgensen, 2016, East 1998 1999). Kenya is estimated to host 2500 individuals, and more than 70% of these National population are found in ISMCA region (NRT, 2023). Nakuprat-Gotu Conservancy is reportedly to host 15% of these national population, the largest concentration to be found in one place of an estimated 800-900 individuals (IUCN Red list, 2018, Kiaren at al, 2021, SBOC, 2023). The SBOC regional report as shown, an average of 1018 was documented in 2022 and an estimated 1,216 in 2023 (SBOC, 2023).
SBOC is helping the Beisa oryx population grow with initiatives like community tree planting drive, joint landscape patrols, partners coordination meetings, citizen science data collection, species range evolutionary measurement analysis and regional knowledge dissemination. This is in partnership with KWS, KFS, National reserves/parks, Community Conservancies and the pastoral communities, for the first-time these as resulted to a 15% annual population increase of Beisa Oryx and updated regional conservation status (SBOC Annual reports 2022-2023 and IUCN SSC ASG Gnusletter 2023).
Highlights of Conservation Achievements
Personal
(1) 18 years of work experience with >10 years in conservation related work
(2) A member of IUCN SSC
(3) Member of IUCN SSC Antelope Specialist Group
(4) A member of Global WCS IP&LC advisory committee
(5) A citizen science, and species Ecological Evolutionary Researcher
Save Beisa Oryx Community Trust-SBOC
(1) Social Networks for Conservation, Community rights & Connectivity.
• Designed SBOC as a network of 48 SHGs with a membership of over 764 ambassadors
• Set SBOC Governance and leadership-Legally incorporated.
(2) Beisa Oryx & Antelopes Community Monitoring & Management
• An annual 15% increase of the endangered Beisa Oryx population.
• Established over 60 monitoring, learning and management sites for Beisa Oryx and other Antelopes.
• Employed 15 Community RAR Rangers and Trained 60 conservancies rangers and Conducted Joint patrols and landscape mapping with partners.
(3) Intervention during drought crisis
• Provided >5000 bales of hay and 1.5 million liters of water to Beisa Oryx, other wildlife and livestock.
• >40% of wildlife in NGC Conservancy benefited and >10,000 livestock and herders from the local communities benefited.
(4) Dryland Forest Catchment & Rangelands Restoration & management
• Mapped and identified 15 community dryland acacia forest catchments areas, employed and trained 15 Community Forest Management Scouts (CFMS).
• Planted >46,523 indigenous trees in partnership with local communities and >30,000ha of degraded rangelands & Acacia forests under recovery restoration.
(5) Social Development & Eco-enterprise
• Created jobs for 180 local community members, Reached >48,750 pastoralist with inclusive conservation education and awareness, Disbursed USD 119,658.12 as loans to women and youth groups. Directly and indirectly benefited 3,670 households.
• 190 youth and single mothers trained on vocational skills and 631 school children involved as wildlife Ambassadors.