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Effects of protected areas on welfare of local households: the case of Maasai Mara National Reserve in Kenya

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Aug 07, 2020 version files 112.09 KB

Abstract

  1. Protected areas are vital for biodiversity conservation although some have been criticized for not providing adequate socio-economic benefits to local people. However, empirical studies on socio-economic impacts of protected areas that control for confounding factors are rare.
  2. Here, we assessed the potential impacts of Maasai Mara National Reserve in South-Western Kenya on welfare (indicated by levels of income, consumption, and assets) of, and poverty incidence among 423 randomly selected local households. We used descriptive statistics to summarize demographic and socio-economic statuses of the households. Then, we estimated effects of the protected area on welfare of the households using ordinary least - squares regression model and entropy balancing.
  3. The protected area did not have any significant effect on welfare of, and poverty levels among the households. Households that lived within a 5 km radius of the protected area boundary incurred significantly higher crop destruction and livestock depredation losses than households that lived 5 - 25 km from the boundary. Nevertheless, majority of the households held positive views about the protected area due to direct and indirect benefits that they had already gained or expected to gain from it in the future.
  4. These results suggest that interventions are needed to reduce losses caused by wildlife in the protected area and improve its social and economic benefits to the local households.