MARSABIT BOTANICAL GARDEN

Marsabit Botanical Garden is the first and one of its kind in Northern Kenya among Indigenous Pastoralist Communities. The Garden was founded by Galgallo Roba Guyo who is a young Environmental Conservationist and now the Garden is owned and managed by Community.

Marsabit Botanical Garden works with 14 Ethnic Communities living in Marsabit County,they include Borana, Gabra, Rendile, Samburu, Turkana, Dasnanch, Elmollo, Sakuye, Watta, Konso, Burji, Garre, Somali, Sidam, and Corner Tribes.

Marsabit Botanical Garden is the first and one of its kind in Northern Kenya among IndigenousPastoralist Communities.The Garden was founded by Galgallo Roba Guyo who is a young Environmental Conservationist and now the Garden is owned and managed by Community.

Roles of Marsabit Botanical Garden

Plant Conservation
Protection of Endangered Plants Species
Protection and preservation of Traditional Knowledge of Herbal Medicine
Enhanced family income by empowering Women and Youths groups through ecological based enterprises using locally available resources such as Aloe,Gums,Resins and Herbal Medicine.
Research and Education
We work towards empowering schools and communities on how to grow food sustainably through permaculture practices.
Institutional Greening and Environmental beautification
Leading Indigenous People on Climate Education, Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation
Creation of Tree Nursery to promote Afforestation
To promote Tourism
Offer Recreational Facilities
Developmental of Biocultural Protocol for different Indigenous People living in Marsabit County
Capacity building of IPLCs on Nagoya Protocol,Convention of Biological Diversity and push for the policies that support Bio-trade and Access and Benefits Sharing of Genetic Resources

Roles of Marsabit Botanical Garden in protection, promotion and conservation of Tangible and Intangible Cultural Heritage of 14 Ethnic Communities living in Marsabit County.

We have developed Marsabit Indigenous People Museum-this houses cultural artefacts from 14 Ethnic Communities living in our region.
We have also gathered all cultural books on IPLCs living in Marsabit,Colonial artefacts,reports and journals together with different precious rocks found in our region.
We want to organize Cultural Festival at Marsabit Botanical Garden which will bring together 14 Ethnic Communities who will built their traditional houses and showcase their culture.This will promote Peace, Cohesion and Traditional Knowledge.
We have attached 20 Traditional Medicine Men and Women at Marsabit Botanical Garden who teach young people on Herbal Medicine and the use of different plants in our culture.

In the near future we want to establish Cultural Research and Repository Center in Marsabit Botanical Garden that will promote Research and learning of the culture of 14 Ethnic Communities.

Challenges we are facing in our work

Lack of adequate capital to run all our conservation activities and buy all required tools and equipment
Shortage of water which made it difficult to sustain our tree nursery and water all plants in our garden this is coupled with lack of water tanks
Livestock interference in our work we only have temporary fence of Europhobia which allows livestock in as they break and sneak in the garden eating and destroying our trees and plants
Lack of basic facilities like Latrine, Office and Staff houses that will be used to accommodate our visitors and internship students
Lack of shade net and building materials to develop Tree Nursery
Lack of special storage facilities to store our seeds which hindered our efforts to develop seedbank.
Lack of Machineries that hindered us not to locally process our Genetic Resources like Gums,Resins,Aloe and Herbs