By Eddah Waithaka
The Republic of Kenya today launched a landmark summit to empower the continent’s pastoralist communities. The five-day African Indigenous Pastoralists Gathering at the Kenya School of Monetary Studies brings together approximately 100 delegates from across Africa to build a unified policy agenda.
The meeting directly prepares communities for the United Nations’ International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists (IYRP 2026). A coalition of groups, including IMPACT Kenya, AFPAT, and the State Department for ASALs and Regional Development, organized the event.
It sets the stage for major advocacy at upcoming international forums, including UNCCD COP17.The gathering tackles a stark contradiction.
Pastoralists sustain an estimated 258 million people across 43% of Africa’s land. These communities manage vast rangelands that sequester carbon and safeguard over 80% of the continent’s livestock genetic resources.
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Yet climate change, land conflicts, and biodiversity loss now threaten their economic stability and ancient governance systems.
Organizers emphasize a core mission: amplifying marginalized voices in global policy. They argue that the climate crisis delivers disproportionately gendered impacts, often sidelining the needs of women, youth, and persons with disabilities.
This gathering documents stories of resilience and crafts common policy positions. The goal is to direct crucial financial resources and social protections to the communities who steward the environment but contribute least to its crisis.
The event will conclude with a field visit on January 28. Delegates will travel to indigenous pastoral communities in Suswa, Narok County, for peer learning and grounded dialogue.
The visit aims to showcase pastoralism as both a sophisticated cultural identity and a proven model for biodiversity conservation.
By next week, organizers expect to solidify a powerful network of pastoralist organizations and government partners. This alliance commits to carrying a message of inclusive representation and shared advocacy onto the global stage in 2026.
