FIELD NOTE / CONSERVATION
Water for the dry season.
Boreholes and dams keep wildlife and livestock alive through the long dry months.
The Serengeti ecosystem is maintained by three rivers: the Mbalageti, the Grumeti and the Mara. Two are seasonal. The third is under pressure.
A falling river
The Mara is perennial, and it is vital to the ecosystem during a drought. Its flow has fallen by 68% since 1972, partly because of deforestation in its catchment in Kenya and water extraction for irrigation.
Rambo
Ikona builds artificial boreholes and dams, known as rambo in Swahili, to hold water for wildlife through the dry season. In extreme circumstances, the community trucks water in from other areas.
Not only for wildlife
The dams also serve livestock in the member villages. Water points have been built in villages, schools and the dispensary, reducing the long and risky journeys women and children made to fetch water in the rivers.
The result
The dams have increased the life span of wild animals and the number of animals moving into the area. They are a practical response to a changing climate, and a reminder that conservation and community development are the same project.
Wildlife at a waterhole in Ikona.