HIrola Conservation Programme

The Hirola Conservation Programme (HCP) is a non-profit organization established (in 2008 and formerly registered in 2014) as a result of global concern about the declining hirola populations. It was established to build the local capacity to spearhead conservation in the volatile region along the Kenya-Somalia border. The hirola antelope (Beatragus hunteri) is arguably the world’s most endangered antelope restricted to areas along the Kenya-Somalia border and outside formally protected areas. HCP’s approach to hirola conservation is multi-faceted and involves field-based conservation, research, environmental education, and community engagement. Their community-based conservation approach has been successful in promoting evidence-based species conservation and bridging the gap between the local communities and conservation agencies in an otherwise historically prohibitive region due to cultural barriers between the Somalis and other ethnic groups. By promoting community-based protected area establishment and management, HCP has been instrumental in reducing poaching incidents, overgrazing by livestock, and human-wildlife conflicts. HCP recognizes that the long-term survival of the species ultimately hinges on the support of local communities. As such HCP works with the local communities to run the conservancies, for instance, their antipoaching unit includes locally recruited and trained rangers who patrol the protected areas each day. HCP’s field activities and research have been instrumental in filling vital ecological knowledge gaps and understanding the underlying factors influencing hirola declines. Our research aims to explore the best management interventions to curtail ongoing declines. HCP also intervenes during emergencies to provide relief to hirola, other wildlife, and local communities during drought, floods, and contagious disease outbreaks.