Thus the socioeconomic and cultural orientation of
most Kenyans is quite different from those of western
tourists and the social and environmental conditions
which led to increasing public awareness and
public support for nature conservation and the
appreciation of nature's aesthetic values in western
countries are non-existent in most of rural Kenya.
As is the case with most of the Third World, Kenya
has not undergone massive urbanization and industrialization
- the socioeconomic processes which
encouraged the creation of national parks as centres
of nature conservation and the promotion of naturebased
tourism in the western world. 4"s It has been
estimated that close to 80% of Kenya's population
reside in rural areas and earn a livelihood through
subsistence agriculture.