Effect of Wildebeest Migration on Sustainable Tourism Development in the Mara-Serengeti Ecosystem: A Transboundary Resource Use and Management Practices Perspective

Abstract

Persistence of wildebeest migration phenomenon in the MSE is not guaranteed. There is observed shrinking of the phenomenon in terms of range, routes, size and composition. Sustainable tourism development in the Mara-Serengeti region is seemingly dependent on the demand on wildebeest migration phenomenon product. This is particularly due to its appeal to the tourist and its classification as one of the new wonders of the world by UNESCO. The wildebeest migration phenomenon has over the years been used as a flagship/marketing tool to project the ecosystem as a leading tourism destination. This has resulted in proportionate flow of tourists to the region to witness this unique occurrence. Development of facilities to meet demands of tourists has also grown in tandem. However, continuity/persistence of the migration phenomenon has not been interrogated. Resource use and management practices and other human activities on either side of the Kenya-Tanzania boundary have begun to alter the spectacular nature of the migration. Eventually, this trend may truncate the migration. Determination of the extent of impact of such truncation on tourism development is desired. The main objective of this study was to assess the effect of the wildebeest migration phenomenon on sustainable tourism development in the MSE. Specifically, the study sought to assess effect of wildebeest migration route, wildebeest population/numbers, wildebeest migration pattern and composition of the migrating community on sustainable tourism development. This was done by interrogating continuity of the phenomenon from a transboundary resource use and management practices perspective. The intention was to assess the relationship between these features and tourism development in the region. The study was guided by Common property &Tragedy of Commons Theory, Rational Choice Theory and Political Ecology Theory. Among the concepts explored included Transboundary Natural Resource Management, Integrated Natural Resource Management and the concept of sustainability. A questionnaire was used to collect primary data from the field. A pilot survey at Lake Nakuru National Park was used to test reliability of the research instrument. Reliability of the research instrument was tested using Chronbach’s alpha correlation where coefficient between or close to 0.6 and 0.7 was adopted. The research instrument was also subjected to scrutiny by subject matter experts to determine content validity, returning a Content Validity Index of 0.9 Target population for the study was 14983 individuals drawn from conservation agencies employees, business community, tourists and local community members. Sample size of 221 was obtained using coefficient of variation from Nassiuma’s formula. The sample size was adjusted upwards based on response rate from the pilot survey to cater for nonresponse during the main study. Based on this, an adjusted sample size of 339 was adopted for the study. The study used Pragmatism as the guiding research philosophy where a combination of qualitative and quantitative techniques was explored when collecting and analyzing data in the practical field study. Descriptive research design was used where data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics and presented using tables, scatter plots and bar graphs. It was found out that wildebeest migration phenomenon plays a significant role in the sustainability of Mara and Serengeti ecosystem, tourism development and socioeconomic livelihoods of the locals (Pearson’s correlation average r=0.5305 and multiple regression R Square of 0.449), and therefore recommended to be protected to ensure its continuity. Knowledge so produced was/is expected to supplement existing literature and contribute towards informing and guiding on management of transboundary resources to ensure sustainable development.