Impact Assessments of Resettlement Implementation on Livelihood After Dam-induced Displacement and Resettlement on Locals; A Case Study of Mwache Dam in Kenya

Abstract

The constructions of dams are associated with massive displacement and resettlement of people. The study adopted a cross-sectional descriptive qualitative research method. The study established that the construction of the Mwache dam exerted adverse livelihood impacts on displaced households by causing them to lose their livelihood activities and become more impoverished in the newly resettled areas since livelihood restoration was not easy. The study revealed that resettlement implementation policies were constraining effective resettlement and rehabilitation of the displaced households due to delays in livelihood compensation money and not giving enough information to the displaced households on how to use the compensation money they received. The study indicated that the existing Kenya resettlement legal frameworks on resettlement and rehabilitation of displaced people due to the Mwache dam were not effectively implemented; displaced households felt they were under-compensated compared to other projects which had displaced households early, like standard gauge railways where displaced households were given enough money. Further, the study recommends that resettlement implementation teams follow Kenyan resettlement legal frameworks on displacement resettlement and rehabilitation to integrate displaced people’s livelihood enhancement restoration into resettlement plans to minimize adverse impacts.