PhD Oral Defence: Institutions in public-private partnerships for natural resources conservation, management and use
PhD Oral Defence of Klerkson Lugusa, Natural Resource Sciences
The evolution of Kenya as a flexible environmental state has had implications on natural resources management and institutions in the arid and semi-arid rangeland ecosystems. This study was motivated by the lack of empirical research on the effects of public-private partnerships (PPPs) as hybridized modes of natural resources management. Therefore, through this study, I aimed to characterize the partnerships in terms of their evolution, stakeholders’ interaction and power dynamics. Making community conservancies the focal point of my analysis, I also examined the PPPs efficiency, effectiveness and equity implications of natural resources governance.
I employed mixed method research methodologies, as well as various theoretical and analytical frameworks in my analyses. My doctoral research provides new insights into the current conservation partnerships impacts on pastoral livelihoods and their ecosystems in northern Kenya and proposes a set of methodology that future research could build upon to enhance a comprehensive understanding of conservation PPPs. Recommendations arising from this body of research, if adopted by relevant stakeholders, could form the basis of policy intervention for advancing PPPs as modes of natural resource governance.