Dear our readers.

I was requested by one our readers to have an idea of what Garissa might look like.  Here it is, located almost 380 kilometers north east of Nairobi  with an estimated popualtion of 200,000 people in the main town. it is fast developing area with multiculatural society, but  mainly inhabited by pastoral Somalis. The mean daily temperature rangers from 29-35 degeress centigardes and it is actually quite hot  and dusty for visitors. The sanctuary is located only 3 kilometers from the main town and one can easily visit while in Garissa. Accomodation is relatively good as one can stay in Nomad resort, Hidig hotel or almond resort all within the town. Y ou are all welcome.

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Today Paula collected my check for Ksh 60,000 (about $1,000) which was given to me by the AFEW (African Fund for Endangered Wildlife) Giraffe Center in Langata, Nairobi. The funds are to help pay the costs of our community scouts as well as some legal costs.

This post is to thank AFEW for believing in the Garissa Giraffe Sanctuary.

Here are some of the tenants of the Giraffe Center

The newest baby - only one year old already 10 feet tall!

Daisy 2 - at a strange angle

She is massive, 17 years old, her head is always in the sky!

This is one of the few places in Kenya where you can meet the animals close up. Based right on the edge of Nairobi the giraffe are free to come and go as they please! They attract hundreds of thousands of people each year, especially children - school kids go free and have the use of a wonderful education center.

Kenyans love giraffes which are the subject of wooden and metal art works

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Imagine challenging a lion physically: Look at this picture of how a lion has damaged the thigh ( deep cut) of this man. Garissa and Wajir districts in Kenya have become a battle zone in the recent past between marauding lions and helpless pastoralist. Early this year , nine family members have been seriously injured in Biyamadow in Wajir. They attained serious injuries ranging from severe skull damage, deep cuts to skin scratches as shown by the above picture which i took in Garissa general hospital. This particular man  who have been at the hospital for a week  told me that they had to fight the rogue lions for almost four hours in broad day light just to rescue one of their goats.  According to the victims, lion’s attacks have been on the increase mainly due to prolonged droughts, trade on lions cubs and perhaps due to reduced water sources. Other similar incidents have been reported in Liboi, Modogashe, Bananey and Damajalley in the two districts.

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Greeting to all the friends of the giraffe sanctuary. I am glad to inform you that we finally  purchased the computer which we seriously needed for our work. I would like to say thank you for all those who contributed towards this machine that will help save many giraffes in the arids areas of kenya.

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North eastern, the third largest province in Kenya, is mainly characterized by arid climatic conditions with an erratic rainfall of less than 250mm a year. The area is mainly inhabited by Somalis, who rear livestock as their main economic activity.
Garissa district, the headquarters of the region represents one of the most degraded ecosystems threatened by desertification, biodiversity loss, deforestation and fuel wood shortages. the reasons include the prolonged shifta wars, livestock- wildlife conflict and the influxes of refugees and their livestock from the neighboring Somalia.
However, the vast district is historically home for large mammals including elephants, the endangered rhinos, buffaloes and finally the big cats. Older people still vividly remember how they had some rough time with these animals. Other than the big cats (Lions, Leopards, Cheetahs) most of these animals have disappeared, thanks to the illigal trade in trophies (tusks and horns) in the 70s. However, due to recent improvement in security in the province,elephants have reportedly returned to garissa which used to be a migratory corridor connecting the Tsavo and Kora ecosystems to the grater Somalia ecosystem.
Specific sightings have been reported in Bura division of Garissa district in past two years. According to the area Kenya Wildlife Service Honorary Warden Mr. Hassan Sheikh Ali, who recently encountered a breeding herd of 14, with their calves in Jambele area, south of Garissa, the elephants have invaded farms in the area and destroyed mango trees.
The animals have also been seen in Modika, Balambala, Balich and Bananey, in north of the district.The big question is how will these elephants be accommodated by the local pastoralists/ farmers who have not had to deal with any since late 70s, when elephant poaching was at its peak?
Historical corridors and water access points have been blocked in the recent past, and this could be a source of new battle between the destructive beast and the people. Too many people in Garissa view the return of elephants as a disaster in the making and they may not be supportive of the government conservations goals.
Ali A Hussein

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Dear frieinds. This post is just to inform you that Tana river is the only source of water around garissa district in kenya greatly defining population distribution pattern. The 440-mile Tana River is the longest river in Kenya, rising in the Aberdare Mountains to the west of Nyeri. Initially it runs east before turning south round the Mount Kenya massif. The river then turns into the Masinga and Kiambere Reservoirs created by the Kindaruma dams. Below the dam the river turns north and flows the north-south boundary between the Meru and North Kitui and Bisanadi, Kora and Rahole National Reserves providing the much needed water support to all these dryland biodiversity pockets. In the reserves the river turns east, and then south east. It passes through the towns of Garissa, Hola and Garsen before entering the Indian Ocean at Ungwana Bay. The sanctuary is located along the eastern side of the river near garissa and the giraffes acess it through marked watering corridors. However due emerging river bank farming along the flood plains of the River farmers continue to block these ancestral routes for accessing the river by expandings their farmlamds. Nevertheless, in collaboration with government agencies we are trying to reach out to these farmers not to block the access points. Efforts are also underway to sensitise the farmers to tolerate the presence of wildlife around their farmlands.

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14 dedicated scouts selected from all the neighbouring communties and one honary worden run the affairs of the sanctuary on daily basis. The support of the wider communty can not be ignored also as they share with us good part of their time in managing the sanctuary. The scouts work on volunteer basis since the sanctuary is not yet generating any form of income and has not recieved any donor support for the welfare of these dedicated young men.

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i am writing once again to welcome readers to this intresting blog for the giraffes. it is quite hot here, the rains having delayed. The giraffes are still doing well though affected by poaching and encroachment from the local communities. the sanctuary requires immediate technical and finacial support to establish its carrying capacity and its potential for ecotourism developmnt. The sanctuary is basically community driven conservation efforts to protect and benefit from resident giraffes affected by the armed conflict from the neighbouring somali republic.We appeal to intrested patneres to help us conserve and secure the future for this giraffes.

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Dear readers, my name is Abdulahi Hussein from Garissa in North Eastern Kenya. This blog is about the protection and conservation of reticulated giraffes affected by armed conflicts in this remote part of Kenya. I work with a local community that has decided to create a sanctuary for about 30 giraffes in 1991, today there are over 500! Below is a picture of the community gathering at a local school for a meeting about the giraffe sanctuary. You can see how much interest the project has created.

The government has recognized the efforts of the local people by appointing one of us as an honorary warden. Below is a picture of Mr. Hassan Afey, the honorary warden who manages 14 volunteer scouts.

I am writing this blog to help raise awareness and funds to support the work of these dedicated young men. These men were trained by an Italian NGO called Terra Nuova and are very active and enthusiastic about their work which includes removing snares for trapping animals.

This picture is Mr. Alberto Rognoni from Terra Nova during the start up of this project. Unfortunately the project with Terra Nova ended and we now have to raise funds to keep it going. Below is a picture of me talking to members of the community to raise awareness about this project. We are standing on the banks of the Tana River, Kenya’s largest river that arises from Mount Kenya. I am the guy on the left.

I hope you will enjoy this blog and support our efforts.

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