This 18,700 acre Kenyan wildlife conservancy is on a tranche of land belonging to a Maasai community who leased it to Gamewatchers Safaris to be set aside for the purposes of wildlife conservation.
Located within the Serengeti-Mara eco-system, Ol Kinyei is renowned for its unspoilt and breathtaking scenery with diverse terrain offering on one hand open savannah plains and rolling hills on the other.
The land, with its abundance of water sources in the form of springs, streams and rivers, coupled with spectacular views across the Mara plains, is home to a wide variety of animal species. There is a resident lion pride of over 20 animals and several leopards also have their territories within the conservancy and are often sighted by guests from Porini Mara Camp on evening or early morning drives. Cheetahs are frequently seen and it is not rare to come across large numbers of giraffe as well as Cape buffalo and elephants.
Ol Kinyei is an established Kenyan wildlife conservancy is on a tranche of land belonging to a Maasai community who leased it to Gamewatchers Safaris to be set aside for the purposes of wildlife conservation. Located within the Serengeti-Mara eco- system, Ol Kinyei displays open savannah plains and rolling hills. The land, with its abundance of water sources in the form of springs, streams and rivers, connected to the wider Mara plain, is home to a wide variety of animal species. Local Maasai tour guides are employed to ensure that visitors safely experience natural and cultural values with low impact and mutual benefits.
Major Site Values:
There is a resident lion pride of over 20 animals and several leopards also have their territories within the conservancy.
Cheetahs, giraffe as well as Cape buffalo and elephants are present in viable populations. The great Wildebeest Migration (generally June to October) passes through Ol Kinyei, and there is another Wildebeest Migration from Kenya’s Loita Plains to the Mara which moves into Ol Kinyei Conservancy earlier, usually by January. The calving takes place there during February and March when the plains of the conservancy are teeming with wildebeest before they move through Naboisho Conservancy and into Olare Motorogi and the Mara Reserve.
visits. These were then followed up during the site visit. Following submission of the PA candidate phase to the Reviewer, a review was carried out and a preliminary report was sent to the EAGLs on 27 September 2018 for their review and correction of findings. All findings have been addressed by the PA and EAGL and corresponding updates were made in COMPASS as well. The review detailed report shows the EAGL and PA responses and
comments. Stakeholder consultation around Green List issues happened at various occasions throughout the process. The final voting took place during a face to face meeting organized by the EAGL on 31 August 2018. Minutes of EAGL meetings have been reviewed and the Reviewer also watched the recording of the EAGL meeting to ensure that the discussions were in line with the EAGL ToRs. Discussions were open and constructive. No EAGL member had any Conflicts of Interests with respect to the Ol Kinyei site. All EAGL members (except the two new members who joined in June 2018) unanimously voted positively for the Ol Kinyei PA, after review of the various documents and responses from the PA management. The outcome of voting is documented in the 31 August 2018 meeting report. The assessment process has been properly conducted and all aspects of the User Manual have been followed. Following the outcome of the review and the process carried out by the EAGL in evaluating the PA, the Reviewer hereby confirms that all relevant requirements of the IUCN Green List User Manual v1.1 (Aug 2018) have been fulfilled, as outlined above. The Reviewer, therefore, recommends that Ol Kinyei Conservancy, Kenya (S- 0096) be nominated for the IUCN Green List of Protected and Conserved Areas.
