Yusuf Petenya

Yusuf is a community-based conservationist working at the grassroots level in East Africa. He has been to Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, South Africa and Tanzania advocating for the same. He specializes in Community-Based Natural Resource Management with an emphasis on wildlife conservation and ecotourism as a means of diversifying the economic resource base of the rural poor. Having started working as a secretary cum project mentor of the Shompole Group Ranch Ecotourism Development Project (Shopmole Community Trust), Yusuf is now involved at the local, district, national and regional level in developing community-based organizations (CBO) and projects. Yusuf is the chairman of the Kajiado Wildlife Forum, a district-based CBO in charge of all wildlife outside of protected areas. He is also the secretary of the Kajiado District Livestock Marketing Council dealing with local and international livestock marketing and development; secretary of the South Rift Association of Landowners; treasurer of the Kenya Wildlife Working Group; and a member of the “think-tank”developing Kenya Wildlife Policy. Instrumental in lobbying for the enactment of the GG Wildlife Bill currently before parliament, Yusuf is not hoping to have a favorable new wildlife policy supported by an Act of parliament.