Lack of food -- not money -- drives poaching in East African national parks, study finds

The researchers, led by Gasto Lyakurwa, doctoral student in recreation, park, and tourism, management at Penn State, surveyed 267 household heads in eight villages that border Mkomazi National Park in northern Tanzania. The survey focused on their use of park land and their family's food security, financial security and educational security to understand which factors led to illegal park use. Their results were published in Conservation.

Mkomazi National Park comprises more than 1,250 square miles of protected habitat for rare and endangered wildlife including elephants, lions, buffalo and rhinoceroses. The park, created in 1951, displaced large numbers of people from the park land into surrounding regions two times -- once in the early 1950s and again in the late 1980s.

Since the foundation of the park -- and other protected areas throughout East Africa -- the researchers said park officials and rangers have viewed local people as a threat, rather than as a potential conservation partner.

"For countless generations, the people in this area relied on that land for meat, traditional medicines, firewood, fish and timber," Lyakurwa said. "These resources were essential to the people's livelihood, but suddenly, they were cut off from the land. Even though local people told us they feel connected to the wild animals, they also made it clear that they are not likely to respect park boundaries if they cannot feed themselves or their children."

Tourism in the park -- driven largely by visitors who want to see the large mammals -- generates income that is managed by the national government, the researchers said. Some park revenue is used to fund projects designed to improve the lives of the 45,000 people who live in the 22 villages near the park. Though many government programs have focused on improving infrastructure for health care and education, the results of this study indicate that alleviating food insecurity and poverty are the only ways to build cooperation between the parks and the villages, the researchers said.

Of the 267 families surveyed, 253 earned their livelihood through agriculture -- either growing crops or raising grazing animals for food. The average annual household income for these families was $1,115 United States dollars, and 74% of household heads had been educated only through primary school.

When asked about if and why they used the park for illegal animal grazing or poaching, many villagers reported that they did use park land. The researchers compared these results to people's statements about their family's consistent access to -- or "security" in -- food, education and adequate finances.

Results showed that food security was the primary driver of illegal activity, while education security and financial security had minimal influence on poaching.

The researchers said the findings demonstrated that people poach for food, not to enrich themselves or to pay for their children's education. To successfully protect wildlife and their habitat, parks need to address food security for residents, the researchers said.

"Communities are expected to support conservation, but they are facing deprivation," Lyakurwa said. "Animals -- especially elephants and lions -- come out of the parks and trample crops and injure or kill people. Also, the people feel they need park lands to graze their own animals. It is easy to understand why they are not more supportive of park boundaries when their lives are at stake."

In addition to existential concerns, many villagers told the researchers that they believe more money earned from tourism in the park should be used to support people in the area, but that much of the money is extracted to fund other projects around the nation. Sabuhoro said that this common frustration inspired him to help spearhead a regional effort to reduce conflicts between the needs of humans and wildlife.

"Traditionally, local people have been expected to comply with rules but have not been invited to participate in the planning or benefits associated with the parks," Sabuhoro said. "Through the Human Wildlife Co-existence Research Network, we are trying to change that."

Sabuhoro helps lead the network, which brings together non-governmental organizations, government officials, academics, park leadership and local people across East Africa to address ways conservation efforts can support the needs of local communities and local communities can support conservation efforts.

"People in each nation are expressing their own needs and developing their own solutions," Sabuhoro said. "Last year, we held a conservation stakeholders meeting in Uganda. This year, we had a meeting in Tanzania, and next year we have meetings planned in Kenya and Rwanda."

To support and expand the work of the Human Wildlife Co-existence Research Network, Sabuhoro sought to recruit and train a researcher from East Africa. After combing through many applications, he said that he found an ideal candidate in Lyakurwa.

Lyakurwa was born in Tanzania and previously worked as a park ranger there. This meant that he had the language skills, cultural knowledge and perspective needed to conduct studies like this one. Sabuhoro also emphasized that local connections are needed to build trust.

"Traditionally, western researchers studied African animals or people and then left without helping the local community understand the results of the study or providing any sustained tangible benefits," Sabuhoro said. "When the researcher has local connections like Gasto does, there is more faith that the researcher will bring the knowledge back to the community."

Lyakurwa agreed.

"They can hold me accountable because I am from there," he said. "I believe that helps me get more honest and complete answers from people -- both villagers and park rangers. All these people are trying to what is right in a difficult situation, but they need to feel safe to explain themselves."

Sabuhoro said universities like Penn State play an important role in training local people like Lyakurwa and Mercy Chepkemoi Chepkwony, graduate student in recreation, park, and tourism management at Penn State and the other co-author of this research.

"By training local people in research methods and helping to develop and support meaningful research projects, we can help support management of parks in ways that are sustainable for humans and animals alike," Sabuhoro said.

The Ann Atherton Hertzler Early Career Professorship in Global Health funded this research.