This archive report was first published on 16 December 2019.
Published on December 16, 2019, wildlife conservators in the world-famous Maasai Mara National Park have expressed fears that the park might lose its gem to rival Tanzania's Serengeti game reserve.
According to the Masai Mara Wildlife Conservancies Association (MMWCA), rampant human activities in the conservancies around the park are causing concern, as tourists are now preferring the neighboring Serengeti reserve.
Chief Executive of MMWCA Daniel Sopia called for urgent intervention to save the tourism jewel, citing congestion as a major issue. 'We are losing tourists to Tanzania due to congestion. Mara dropped two positions in this year's World Travel ranking of the most attractive tourist destination and this should be urgently rectified for us to get back to our top position,' said Mr Sopia.
The Kenya Wildlife Conservancies Association Chairman Dickson ole Kaelo echoed Sopia's sentiments, citing fencing as the major challenge in conservation at the Mara. He also expressed concern over Tanzania's move to open up a new wildlife corridor to Lake Victoria, which he said poses a major threat to the annual wildlife migration across Mara-Serengeti.
'We recently saw our neighbor Tanzania opening up a new corridor for wildlife to access Lake Victoria. Wildlife such as wildebeests used to cross over to Mara from Serengeti in search of water and pasture and if they will be getting them at the other end we might not witness migration,' said Kaelo.
