50 percent of revenue from national parks to go to host counties – President Ruto

Speaking on Tuesday in Narok County during the Maa Cultural Festival, President Ruto noted that the national and devolved governments will share the returns equally since host counties play an integral role in ensuring the success of the conservancies.

Ruto says that Kenyans who have ceded parts of their land to the government for the purpose of establishing the game reserves will particularly benefit from the 50-50 split.  

“I have ordered the Ministry of Tourism to ensure that 50 percent of revenues generated from national parks should be ceded to the county governments in which the conservancies are located,” said Ruto who was clad in traditional Maasai attire. 

“The county governments should make sure that money goes to benefit the communities that play host to national parks.” 

President Ruto further added that the responsibility of overseeing the Amboseli National Park will be transferred to Kajiado County from the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS).

“The Maasai community has assisted the country in the conservation of our wildlife and conservation areas. UNESCO has confirmed that this community and their culture are a world resource that needs to be protected,” he said,

“The Maasai community gave the land that is now the Maasai Mara Game Reserve, Samburu Game Reserve and Amboseli National Park. By Executive Order, the Late President Mwai Kibaki said that the parks should be managed by the County of Kajiado and I confirm that this will be the case.”

The Head of State likewise announced that the Maa Festival will from next year be elevated to the status of a national event, with complete funding provided by the government.

“This function will be held each year. It will not only involve three counties but the entire nation. It will be a global function and the national government will work in tandem with county governments to ensure that we host this event accordingly in order to protect the traditions and culture of the Maasai and our national parks,” he said.

“We will also ensure that this function takes care of the commercial interests of the communities that practice this tradition. From next year this function will be included in the Ministry of Tourism’s budget.”