Mukurumuji Community Development Programme

 

The Mukurumuji community programme was launched in November 2005 and is named after the river that runs through our camp (Mukurumuji meaning 'where people meet' in Swahili). Majimboni is the nearest village and is situated on the edge of Shimba Hills National Reserve. Over 60% of the inhabitants in this area are living below the poverty line.

 

Most of our work is based at Steven Kanja Primary School in the Majimboni area. It is a mixed day school with around 600 pupils and only nine teachers that caters for children between the ages of 6-15 years. Many of the pupils at the school have to walk 20 km every day just to attend classes. Our school development plan is designed to enhance education facilities at the school by building school desks, providing clean water for the children, sourcing instructional materials and encouraging environmental conservation in the area. Our work also involves alleviating human wildlife conflict issues by repairing and maintaining sections of the wildlife fence surrounding Shimba Hills National Reserve to prevent crop raiding by wildlife as well as illegal wildlife poaching and extraction of endangered hardwood timber.

 

 

The Steven Kanja School

 

 

 

 

The importance of Shimba Hills National Reserve

 

Shimba Hills National Reserve was established in 1968 and is situated in the southwest of Kenya , approximately 25km south of Mombasa and 15km inland from the Indian Ocean . The Reserve covers 220km squared and comprises a flat plateau reaching 448m above sea level bounded by steep scarps. The remaining area consists of undulating coastal uplands. The main vegetation comprises coastal rainforest and grasslands interspersed with woodland and coastal bush. Shimba Hills hold one of the largest areas of coastal rainforest in East Africa, supporting over 1000 plant species, a quarter of which are endemic to this area. Over 50% of the 159 rare plants in Kenya are found here including some endangered species of cycad and orchids.

 

 

 

It is also a nationally important site for reptiles, birds and butterflies - over 35% of Kenya's butterfly species can be found here and 111 bird species have been recorded, of which 22 are coastal endemics. Species include honeyguides, touracos, woodpeckers, sunbirds and the rare palm nut vulture.

 

 

Mammal species present in the Reserve include leopard, serval cat, buffalo, giraffe, warthog, impala, suni antelope, duiker, sykes monkey and yellow baboon. The reserve is most famous for its population of sable antelope that are found nowhere else in Kenya and is also a haven for the endangered Angolan black and white colobus monkey.

There is a natural wildlife corridor allowing free movement of elephants between Shimba Hills National Reserve and Mwaluganje Elephant Sanctuary and together, this area boasts the highest density (per km 2 ) of elephants in Africa . The remainder of the park boundary is fenced to reduce human-elephant conflict by preventing the elephants from invading farmland.

 

 

Progress so far

 

So far, we have managed to complete the following projects:

 

• Planted 200 naturally occurring trees as well as maintaining the existing plantation

   

 

• Maintained the boundary fence surrounding Shimba Hills National Reserve including tensioning wires, replacing fence posts and replacing broken wire

   

 

• Repaired the gutters around the school so that the water tanks receive rainwater runoff from the roofs

   

• Construction of 34 new school desks

   

 

Forthcoming Projects for the next three years will include:

 

Increase instructional materials by 33% by supplying the following:

 

• 1881 text books

   

• 16200 exercise books

   

• 1350 supplementary text books

   

• 1350 pencils

   

• 39 dusters

   

• 117 chalk boxes

   

• 39 registers

   

• 39 charts/wall maps

   

• Provision of three water tanks

   

• Provision of 10 sanitation facilities (toilets)

   

• Construction of a library

   

• Construction of desks for pupils

   

• Painting of classrooms

   

• Repairing roofs and gutters

   

• Planting of seedlings along the fence line, primarily to encourage environmental awareness and conservation in the school, but also to provide shade for the children

   

• Establishment of seedling nursery

   

• Maintenance of fence