The national population census carried out in 1969 put the number of persons in the then Taita Taveta district at 110,742. The Kenya Population and Housing Census of August 2019 found that the number of people in Taita Taveta county was 340,671 representing an increase of 207.6% in fifty years. The growth of the human population means that land close to the park boundaries is converted from bush land into settlements. Consequently, people have been killed by wildlife, as others lose crops and livestock.