Contribution of Conservation Diplomacy to Protracted Land Conflicts in Suyian Ranch, Laikipia County, Kenya

Objective and Context: There has been little research on the effect of conservation diplomacy on land conflicts in Laikipia County, Kenya, which is the focus of this study. The objective of the study was to examine the relationship between conservation diplomacy and protracted land conflicts in Suyian Ranch, Laikipia County, Kenya. Methodology: An exploratory convergent mixed research design was employed, where interviews and surveys were undertaken concurrently. The target population was 165,447 people living in Laikipia North and Laikipia West sub-counties, where Suyian Ranch is located. Additional population members included the local pastoralist community around Suyian ranch, the management of the ranch, the farmers around Suyian ranch and the local security apparatus in Laikipia County. Simple random sampling was used to select 96 residents of Laikipia North and Laikipia West sub-counties to participate in the study. Further, purposive sampling was used to select the sample size to participate in Key informant interviews. Qualitative and quantitative data were analysed using content analysis and descriptive statistics methods, respectively. Key Findings and Recommendations: The findings revealed that Suyian Ranch activities, such as reporting the pastoralists to the government security agencies, who often respond with lethal force against the pastoralists, resulted in conflict. The study recommends that Suyian Ranch management embrace peaceful conflict resolution methods such as such as getting into agreement with pastoralists as regards access to water and pasture during droughts. The government to stop the blanket use of brute force against all pastoralists, as some are genuine pastoralists in need of pasture and water.