The land degradation-neutrality (LDN) national baseline for Kenya in 2015 was established in terms of the three LDN indicators (land cover, land productivity, and carbon stocks), and using trends in GIMMS NDVI and land cover datasets over the 24-year period from 1992 to 2015. Human-induced land degradation was separated from degradation driven by climate factors using soil moisture data and the residual trend method. On the basis of Kendall's tau of the NDVI residuals computed using annual mean data of the NDVI and soil moisture relationship, the country has experienced persistent negative trends (browning) over 21.6% of the country, and persistent positive trends (greening) in 8.9% of the country. The land cover change map for the period 1992-2015 showed that in 5.6% of the area there was a change from one land cover class to another. Pronounced changes in terms of land area were the increase in grasslands by 12,171 km 2 , the decrease of bare land by 9,877 km 2 , and the decrease in forests by 7,182 km 2 . Browning and greening trends account for 13% and 12%, respectively, of the land cover change areas. By establishing the LDN national baseline, the LDN concept is now operational. As a first step, targeted field level assessments, alongside the collection of data for the computation of soil organic carbon stocks, should be undertaken in selected browning, greening, and land cover change sites. These field studies will provide decision makers with key information on how to plan for the implementation and monitoring of LDN interventions.
The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) land degradation neutrality (LDN) scientific conceptual framework underscores that LDN planning and implementation should be integrated into existing planning processes and supported by an enabling policy environment. Land-use planning, which requires the integration of different policy goals across various sectors concerned with land-use, can be an effective mechanism through which decisions with respect to LDN can be coordinated. Using Kenya as a case study, we examined current policy instruments that directly or indirectly impact on the use of land in a rural context, to assess their potential to implement LDN objectives. The qualitative content analysis of these instruments indicated that they are rich with specific legal provisions and measures to address LDN, and that there are a number of relevant institutions and structures across governance levels. However, the main shortcoming is the disjointed approach that is scattered across policy areas. Key policy improvements needed to support effective implementation of LDN include: a national soil policy on the management and protection of soil and land; a systematic and coordinated data collection strategy on soils; mobilisation of adequate and sustained financial resources; streamlined responsibilities, and governance structures across national, regional and county levels.
At the sub-national level, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) proposes the analysis and contextualization of land degradation-neutrality (LDN) at a water catchment scale to provide decision support for the formulation of policies and programmes towards transformative LDN interventions. Building on a number of national LDN studies in Kenya, an approach for the implementation of LDN that is based on the spatial and temporal characterization of key land degradation and climate change variables was defined. For a selected water catchment area, the LDN baseline was computed, the drivers that affect land degradation and regeneration trends within the main land cover types were identified and described, the trends of key climate change variables were described, and appropriate sustainable land management interventions for the main land cover types were identified. A climate-smart landscape approach that delineated the catchment area into zones focused on adaptation, and both adaptation and mitigation objectives was then proposed. The operationalization of a climate-smart landscape will require significant investment to not only provide an understanding of the bio-physical processes and interactions occurring at the catchment level but also to develop the institutional and technical capacities of relevant actors. The landscape approach proposed for the catchment area has the potential to improve livelihoods and the productivity of ecosystems while concurrently facilitating synergies between land degradation, climate change, and other development objectives.
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