Bird watching is a leading recreational activity in the world which provides a booming international business opportunity that can attract high returns from visitors. This boosts rural tourism and can support livelihoods  in rural areas, as well as enhance  biodiversity conservation efforts. However, there is a general lack of awareness about the potential of bird watching in the entire Serengeti Mara Ecosystem (SME). 

The  SME  has  approximately  540  bird  species,  including  nine  globally-threatened,  16  regionallythreatened and at least nine range-restricted bird species. These birds can attract birdwatchers and make  it  one  of  the  premier  birding  locations  in  Kenya  and  Tanzania.  This  innovation  aims  at utilizing the potential in the growing number of tourists visiting SME and will employ bird guides who  will  take  guests  around  the  area.  Many  of  the  guides  will  come  from  the  surrounding  local communities  and  make  their  living  from  this  type  of  ecotourism.  The  local  community  members will also benefit from bird watching through entrance fees that will be paid by foreign tourists and visitors at the main entrance to locally protected and owned areas.

Bird-based  ecotourism  (avitourism)  can  achieve  sustainable  development  goals  through community-led  ecotourism  businesses  (providing  money  through self-sustaining  employment  for local communities) while achieving global and national bird  conservation priorities. It was tried in the  Serengeti-Mara  Ecosystems  of  Kenya  and  Tanzania  and  validation  process  was  conducted. Participatory tools and techniques through multi-stakeholder consultations were used. 

The local communities living in both the wet and dry regions of the Serengeti Mara Ecosystems and those engaged in the tourism and hospitality industries are  the ultimate beneficiaries of the project. It has been disseminated through publication of research findings in a journal.

The key partners needed in the scaling up process are:

• Wildlife conservation Agencies
• Tourism ministries,  
• Communities around the SME  
• Wildlife population

The  technology  is  gender  sensitive  since  community  conservancies  are  developed,  managed  and implemented  by  locals  who  are  both  male  and  female.  However,  practices  related  to  gender imbalances,  (especially  on  land  and  benefit  sharing  and  utilization  of  natural  resources  such  as biodiversity), exist within the SME. Although Tanzania and Kenya’s statutory laws do not prevent women from owning land, women still face numerous challenges in this area partly because male members of the family tend to hold land in trust as communal property. Both women and youth are able  to  implement  this  ecological  and  biological  friendly  innovation  while  deriving  from  it alternative  means  of  income  and  subsistence.  Thus  the  innovation  has  the  potential  to simultaneously take care of multiple needs such as income, food, conservation, and natural resource management.  However,  there  is  a  need  for  the  government  to  facilitate  gender  analysis; participation  and  affirmative  action  in  biodiversity  management  through  gender-sensitive legislation, promote gender awareness and involvement in all these innovations.

Muchai Muchane
Director, National Museums of Kenya (NMK)
PO Box 40658-00100
Nairobi, Kenya
Tel: +254-722 286133
Emails: mmuchaim@yahoo.com, mmuchai@museums.or.ke

Bernard Ngoru
Programme Officer, Kenya Wildlife Service
PO Box 494 – 0161,
Nyeri, Kenya
Tel: 0721 521324
Email: bngoru@yahoo.com

Emanuel Manyasa
Professor, Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT)
PO Box 57290,
Nairobi, Kenya
Tel: 0723 845707
Email: emanyasa@yahoo.com

AyubMacharia
Director, National Environment Management Authority (NEMA)
P.O Box 67839,
Nairobi, Kenya
Tel: 0722 728572
Email: amacharia@nema.go.ke

James Wakibara
Director, Tanzania National Parks
P.O Box 3134,
Arusha, Tanzania
Tel: 0786-703-399
Email: jwakibara@yahoo.com

Agnes Mwakaje
Professor, University of Dar Es Salaam (UDSM)
P.OBox 35064,
Dar-es-salaam, Tanzania
Email: amwakaje@udsm.ac.tz