Arabuko Sokoke

This small national park in Kilifi district, having only 6Km2, is a small part of the largest stretch of indigenous coastal forest that survives in East Africa.
The Arabuko Sokoke forest having 358Km2, is situated North of Kilifi to Gedi, South of Malindi, and inland toward the town of Jilore. The forest protects the landscape that previously covered all the strip near the shore line of the Indian ocean. This jewel of nature has been announced the second most important forest in Africa for bird conservation, and is presently under consideration for the rank of World Heritage site.

The good things in this forest were already recognized during the colonial days, when the place was declared Reserve of the Crown. It was further protected as a forest reserve in 1977, and a small part was ranked National park in 1991, purposely to protect two scarce mammal species bordering extinction, the Adeis duiker and the yellow-rumped elephant shrew, as well as six bird species.

In 1991, when the park was gazetted, indigenous people were greatly not satisfied because the forest was a hindrance to the agricultural rehabilitation of the land resources, which could probably be of great importance to the region’s damaged economy.
A research showed that 96% of the native people was not happy with the presence of the forest and a 54% supported its removal. Land hunger, inadequacy of resources and crop raid by the wildlife, created a threat to the future of a world unique atmosphere.

Since then, the decisions undertaken have made the Arabuko Sokoke forest one outstanding yardstick of suitable growth. With an aim of balancing the use of forest resources and conservation, the forest Department and Kenya wildlife service came in to launch the Arabuko Sokoke Forest Management Team (ASFMT). The aim of this group is to stop the abuse of forest stretches for shortsighted uses on behalf of indigenous communities, trying to achieve at the same time, a role of the forest as a booster of the area’s economy. On the other side, the Kipepeo Butterfly Farm project has re-launched domestic economy in a way that, in the year 1998, a new a showed that 84% of the natives were in support of forest conservation.

Together with the nearby Mida creek, Arabuko Sokoke hosts a wide biological diversity, with many rare species of birds, butterflies, amphibians and plants. The trees in the area have originally provided the indigenous communities with firewood, medicines, poles, timber and carving wood.

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Written by admin · Filed Under national-parks