This programme sets out a framework designed to
address these issues and to strengthen the effectiveness and
complementarity of management operations within the MMNR, as well
as collaboration with key stakeholders in the wider Mara-Serengeti
Ecosystem. Its first objective focuses on harmonising
management systems and strengthening internal
collaboration between the two sections of the Reserve,
through for example, the establishment of an internal management
committee (in line with the Memorandum of Understanding between the
two councils that has been developed to support plan
implementation, see Annex 1) and harmonising staff terms of
service, along with actions to improve relations with external
stakeholders (such as the neighbouring Serengeti National
Park).
One of the most important underlying principles of
this plan is the management of the MMNR as a
single
and coherent ecological unit and visitor
destination. Although originally designated and still gazetted as
a
single national reserve, the MMNR has effectively
been managed as two separate areas since the area’s
division
between the County Councils of Narok (east of the
Mara River) and Trans Mara (west of the Mara
River, the “Mara Triangle”)
following the creation of the Trans Mara District in 1995. In
addition, the responsibility
for management of the Trans Mara section of the
Reserve has now been entrusted to an
independent
non-profit company, the Mara Conservancy. The
situation is further complicated by the large
number of key stakeholders in areas adjacent and
around the MMNR (such as TANAPA, community
wildlife
conservancies, etc.), whose collaboration and
support is vital if the MMNR is to be effectively
conserved
and managed over the long-term and external
threats to the area are to be mitigated.
The holistic and integrated approach to the
management of the MMNR pursued thought this
management
plan necessitates a high degree of compatibility
and complementarity between the management regimes
in
the two sections of the Reserve, especially with
regard the conservation of the area’s exceptional
resources,
the development of a coordinated, coherent and
appropriate tourism product across the entire MMNR,
and
security and other key management operations. As
both parts of the Reserve started from a common
baseline,
the rules, regulations and management systems for
each area are largely similar. However, some
discrepancies
between the two areas have begun to emerge (for
example regarding off-road driving
regulations),
which, while not currently a problem, now need to
be realigned to support the coordinated management
of
the MMNR as a coherent single unit. This
realignment will not only to help improve the streamlining,
effectiveness
and efficiency of management operations and the
administration of the area, but also to enhance
visitor
and stakeholder understanding of the
Reserve’s rules and regulations.
In addition, as a result of the pivotal role that
the MMNR plays in the greater Mara-Serengeti Ecosystem, it
is
also vital that MMNR management capitalises on the
potential synergistic benefits of management
collaborations
in the wider ecosystem, by strengthening ties with
other external agencies such as SENAPA, and
community organisations and wildlife conservancies
as appropriate.
This objective has therefore been developed to
address these issues and to ensure that management
systems
are integrated and enhanced across the MMNR and
that management collaboration both within the
MMNR
and in the greater Mara-Serengeti Ecosystem is
strengthened. In order to achieve this, six management
actions
have been developed and are elaborated in the
following sections.
