Kenya is among the world’s most vulnerable countries to climate change-related stresses and extreme events. According to FAO, over 75% of the country is classified as arid and semiarid with rainfall availability and amounts quite unevenly spread across the different parts of the country. The country has very skewed distribution of water sources with the western area being relatively well endowed with abundant water resources. The exponential growth in the country’s population over the years, together with rapid environmental degradation and poor water resource development programs, have worsened the country’s vulnerability to the effects of climate change. Ethnic conflicts over land resources are common-place in Kenya’s rural areas where majority of the people live and the effects of extreme climate change events are likely to exacerbate resource-based conflicts. In this chapter we explore the extent of climate change-induced resource conflicts in three counties along rainfall availability gradient, namely, Kiambu County which experiences relatively high rainfall and also high urban population, Machakos County, which generally experiences modest rainfall availability, and Makueni County regarded to be one of the most arid and semiarid counties in the country. Data were collected in 2017 using a closed ended questionnaire. Between-subjects MANOVA design was used to examine relationship between independent and dependent variables. Qualitative results of the open-ended question reveal that climate change impacts can be diverse, particularly for vulnerable regions such as arid and semiarid regions such as Makueni County. In this county, respondents mentioned nine ways climate change had impacted communities, with the most frequently mentioned impact being increasing food insecurity followed by increasing water shortages. Machakos followed with seven impacts mentioned starting with increased water shortages followed by scarcity of pasture. In Kiambu County, only four impacts were mentioned with food insecurity being frequently mentioned among the list of impacts of climate change in the county. Results of the descriptive and inferential statistics reveal that resource-based conflicts vary along the hydrological gradient. In Machakos County, resource-based conflicts are perceived to have risen during the last 5 years (M = 3.92, SD = 0.66), followed by Makueni (M = 4.10, SD = 0.670). Kiambu residents do not consider resource-based conflicts to have risen during the last 5 year, (M = 2.50, SD = 1.38). Differences in severity of climate related conflicts are statistically significant, F2, 76 = 12.78, p <0.01. Also, climate change is strongly perceived to be a factor in the rise of resource-based conflicts in Machakos County (M = 4.10, SD = 0.67). In Makueni County as well, climate change is perceived to be a significant contributor to resource-based conflicts (M = 3.98, SD = 1.70). These findings have relevance on county and national policies targeted to build capacity to cope with climate change induced resource-based conflicts among grassroot communities in Kenya.

Extreme climate change events such as frequent and prolonged droughts or floods associated with climate change can be very disruptive to peoples’ livelihoods particularly in rural settings, where people rely on the immediate environment for livelihood. Shocks in the people’s livelihoods can trigger diverse responses that include migration as a coping or adaption strategy. Migration takes many forms depending on the context and resources availability. Very few studies in Kenya have used qualitative analysis to bring up women’s voices in relation to gender, climate change, and migration, especially along hydrological gradient. This chapter presents results of qualitative research conducted from 58 participants in 2018 in three counties in Kenya, namely, Kiambu County, Machakos, and Makueni. The study sought to examine gender perceptions related to climate-induced migration, that is: whether climate change is perceived to be affecting women’s livelihood differently from that of men; examine in what ways experiences of climate induced migration differed for men and women; explore perceptions on the county government efforts to cope with climate-induced migration; and examine perceptions of the role of nongovernmental agencies in helping citizens cope with climate change. From the results obtained on ways in which climate change affected women livelihoods more than men had four themes: (1) women exerted more strain in domestic chores, child/family care, and in the farm labor; (2) women also experienced more time demands. The sources of water and firewood were getting more scarce leading to women travel long distances in search to fetch water and firewood; (3) reduced farm yields, hence inadequate food supply; and (4) the effects of time and strain demands on women was a contributory factor to women poor health and domestic conflicts. Several measures that the county government could take to assist women to cope with climate change-induced migration had five themes which include the following: (1) developing climate change mitigations, and reducing deforestation; (2) increasing water harvesting and storage; (3) develop smart agriculture through the use of drought-resistant crops and drought mitigation education; (4) encourage diversification of livelihoods; and finally (5) providing humanitarian assistance to the most vulnerable populations such as orphans and the very poor. Thirdly, the measures mentioned that NGO’s could take to assist rural communities to cope with climate change-induced migration did not vary significantly from those mentioned for county government, except probably for a new theme of increasing advocacy for climate adaption policies.

Kenya is among the world's most vulnerable countries to climate change-related stresses and extreme events. According to FAO, over 75% of the country is classified as arid and semiarid with rainfall availability and amounts quite unevenly spread across the different parts of the country. The country has very skewed distribution of water sources with the western area being relatively well endowed with abundant water resources. The exponential growth in the country's population over the years, together with rapid environmental degradation and

Extreme climate change events such as frequent and prolonged droughts or floods associated with climate change can be very disruptive to peoples’ livelihoods particularly in rural settings, where people rely on the immediate environment for livelihood. Shocks in the people’s livelihoods can trigger diverse responses that include migration as a coping or adaption strategy. Migration takes many forms depending on the context and resources availability. Very few studies in Kenya have used qualitative analysis to bring up women’s voices in relation to gender, climate change, and migration, especially along hydrological gradient. This chapter presents results of qualitative research conducted from 58 participants in 2018 in three counties in Kenya, namely, Kiambu County, Machakos, and Makueni. The study sought to examine gender perceptions related to climate-induced migration, that is: whether climate change is perceived to be affecting women’s livelihood differently from that of men; examine in what ways experiences of climate induced migration differed for men and women; explore perceptions on the county government efforts to cope with climate-induced migration; and examine perceptions of the role of nongovernmental agencies in helping citizens cope with climate change. From the results obtained on ways in which climate change affected women livelihoods more than men had four themes: (1) women exerted more strain in domestic chores, child/family care, and in the farm labor; (2) women also experienced more time demands. The sources of water and firewood were getting more scarce leading to women travel long distances in search to fetch water and firewood; (3) reduced farm yields, hence inadequate food supply; and (4) the effects of time and strain demands on women was a contributory factor to women poor health and domestic conflicts. Several measures that the county government could take to assist women to cope with climate change-induced migration had five themes which include the following: (1) developing climate change mitigations, and reducing deforestation; (2) increasing water harvesting and storage; (3) develop smart agriculture through the use of drought-resistant crops and drought mitigation education; (4) encourage diversification of livelihoods; and finally (5) providing humanitarian assistance to the most vulnerable populations such as orphans and the very poor. Thirdly, the measures mentioned that NGO’s could take to assist rural communities to cope with climate change-induced migration did not vary significantly from those mentioned for county government, except probably for a new theme of increasing advocacy for climate adaption policies.