The Influence of Legislation on Women Inclusion in Natural Resource Management in Mara North Conservancy

Communities depend on natural resources close to their settlement as the main source of livelihood. Enhancing women inclusion is increasingly being recognized as instrumental in improving the performance in managing these scarce resources. However, while the trend of emphasis in women inclusion is picking up internationally, the situation in Kenya, particularly in the natural resource management is yet to get to acceptable levels raising concerns of why this is the case. The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of legislation on women inclusion in natural resource management, in Mara North conservancy, Narok County. The study was guided by Fullan’s theory of change which explains the changes process in women inclusion in natural resource management. The study adopted the descriptive research design. The target population was 20 employees working at the Mara North conservancy, 850 community members, 80 county government officials and 150 project stakeholders at the conservancy. The study used primary data which was collected using questionnaires and interviews. Interviews were administered to the Mara North Conservancy Managing Director and community leaders. Data was analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively. Quantitative data analysis results were presented in tables. The study found that legislation significantly positively improved women inclusion in natural resource management (NRM). The F-change was significant implying that organization policies had significant moderating effect on the relationship between legislation and women inclusion in NRM. The study concluded that the legislation and organization policies contributed to women inclusion at Mara North conservancy. The study recommended for existence of mechanisms to monitor compliance in the set legislation is also crucial. Further recommendation was that laws and policies should be formulated to enforce equal participation in the natural resource management. The study finally recommended for full implementation of gender inclusion policies with the aim of enhancing women inclusion in natural resource management.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *