KESCOM
The Kenya Sea Turtle Conservation Committee
Action for Sea Turtles
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KESCOM |
The Kenya Sea Turtle Conservation Committee |
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Action for Sea Turtles |
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12th Edition/2010 A Newsletter of the Kenya Sea Turtle Conservation and Management Trust (KESCOM) Online Edition |
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KESCOM’s transition into a Trust Having started as a Community Based Organization in 1993, last year KESCOM was finally registered and recognized as a trust, effectively changing its name to “The Kenya Sea Turtle Conservation and Management Trust”. This change has thrust the organization into the limelight, putting it in a better position to manage more and diverse projects. Over the 13 years of its existence, KESCOM has managed to provide “leadership from the front” supporting and initiating various community-based sea turtle conservation efforts. It is hoped that this transition will place KESCOM in a better position to continue spearheading national and regional sea turtle conservation initiatives. KESCOM participates in the KWETU environmental challenge event The event which was organized KWETU training center on 4th November 2009 is an annual event aimed at showcase the importance of and encouraging community participation in mangrove forests conservation. Schools, government institutions, community groups, NGOs, youth groups, teachers, were among those who were present. Some of the activities that characterized the event included mangrove planting, exhibitions from various community groups, KWETU and key stakeholders, talks on importance of conserving our environment . Key stakeholders who were present displayed information and products from their organizations. Community groups that had shown recommendable efforts in managing mariculture initiatives supported by KWETU were awarded.
KESCOM and Global Vision International establish a joint project Recently, KESCOM and GVI entered into a collaborative agreement which will see the strengthening of KESCOMs volunteer program. Through this agreement, volunteers from GVI are to spend up to three months in work placement among the various Turtle Conservation Groups formed under KESCOM. The volunteers will help the hosting clubs manage and carry out their everyday conservation activities. Through this agreement, the clubs also benefit from frequent joint trainings offered by GVI and KESCOM.
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Three more groups join KESCOM Marereni (which is an important nesting site), Dabaso (located at Mida creek area, Watamu), Kibuyuni TCG and Diani TCGs have officially joined KESCOM in the quest to further turtle conservation at the Kenyan coast. This will be a major advancement for KESCOM with regards contribution of information for the national sea turtle database, especially since the groups shall join other TCGs in collecting and providing relevant information about sea turtles. It is expected that the groups will participate in; -turtle monitoring i.e. beach patrols, collection of data on turtle sighting, nesting, mortalities, tagging and release as well as habitat rehabilitation through beach clean-ups and mangrove replanting (for groups inhabiting areas near mangrove habitats such as Dabaso TCG). They will also undertake awareness creation and education on sea turtles and coastal and marine environmental conservation at all societal levels. KESCOM welcomes these groups to the national as well as worldwide sea turtle conservation efforts. (Back to the top) Targeted education and awareness in schools Fifteen pupils from Maji safi, Shimoni, Wasini and Mzizima primary schools, were on the 11th of December, 2009 educated on sea turtles and their conservation. The pupils were accompanied by their teachers whom were eight. The event was held at Coastal Rural Development Organization, Likoni and was facilitated by KESCOM (supported by CDTF), Wildlife Conservation Society, Kuruwitu Community Marine Conservation Project. The session involved a simple presentation on what turtles are, types of common sea turtles, common threats to sea turtles and the need and how to conserve them. Sheets containing pictures and descriptions on the five common species were also circulated round for the kids to visualize the animals. A brief video was also shown to the kids to make the session more interactive. The pupils were further asked to draw any sea animals from which the best drawings would be selected for awarding. The presents which ranged from color pencils , story books ‘Marine activity book” , hand bands and Jig saw puzzle were donated to KESCOM by the Save Our Seas Foundation. Representatives of teachers from the four schools were also given a copy each for their school’s library. Brochures and posters with information on sea turtle and marine conservation were also issued to the teachers for display in their schools. Raising a well informed school generation in matters relating to sea turtles and their environment conservation is one of the key objectives in the broad KESCOM’s conservation education programme. Funzi Turtle Club Ecotourism project Over the past few months, FTC has with the help of KESCOM and support from EGP grant launched several awareness materials to help in spreading information on turtle conservation around the Island aside popularizing the group’s activities. The materials range from a newsletter, brochures, posters and also t-shirts. Apart from helping in raising awareness, the t-shirts are also a source of income for the club, as these are sold out at an affordable price. What’s more, Swedish volunteering couple (Sonja and Avital Dobo) helped put conservation activities in Funzi on the global map by writing a series of articles which appeared in the Finnish press. This has really helped raise Funzi Turtle Club’s stature. The club members have also benefited from several training sessions courtesy of collaboration between KESCOM and Global Volunteers International. The trainings covered areas such as marine biology as well as financial management, branding and marketing of ecotourism activities as well as locally produced handicrafts and souvenirs.
Training of TCGs on patrols and monitoring of turtle activities For improved and quality turtle data, KESCOM has seen the need to conduct training to equip the groups with the practicality of patrolling, handling nesting turtles, entangled turtles, nest and eggs handling, excavation and translocation of nests. Communications of the dates for the training shall be made soon. (Back to the top) KESCOM holds workshop to popularize the Sea Turtle Recovery Action Plan (Strap) KESCOM has been one of the main architects in drawing up the sea turtle recovery action plan. The document, whose draft is out, will ensure at a coordinated approach to the management of sea turtle conservation. A liaison office sitting at KWS headquarters will serve as hub to enable a network which will give conservation projects a common front. The KESCOM programs coordinator joins the IUCN MTSG KESCOM programs coordinator, Andrew Wamukota, was recently requested to
(Back to the top) KESCOM programs coordinator embarks on the PhD. Journey The KESCOM programs coordinator Andrew Wamukota, has embarked on his Phd. Studies. Andrew joins a Swedish university to study Environmental Science. We all wish him well in this important endeavor! (Back to the top) |
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