The role of local community in oil exploration in Lokichar basin, Turkana County, Kenya

Abstract

Community participation in the management of livelihood resources is an important aspect that needs to be enhanced. In this way the local community not only owns the available resources but also invest them based on their real needs and not perceived needs. This study investigates the involvement of the local community in oil exploration as well as the working relationship between multinational oil corporations and host communities in Lokichar Basin, Turkana County. With the aid of the study objective, the mixed research design was adopted for the study. A sample size of 270 was adopted for this study and the study employed purposive sampling technique. Data collection procedures used was: Focus Group Discussion (FGD) and interview schedules. The study concludes that, development projects should not be introduced into host communities without the consent of the members of the host community. Hence, there should be participation of the members of the host communities to determine their own priority or projects needed.