Kenyan Wildlife Conservancies Association (KWCA) is the national membership representative body and voice of conservancies in Kenya. Our role is to support and catalyse the conservancy movement by connecting, informing, convening and representing conservancies and other key stakeholders in a shared effort to make wildlife conservancies thrive in Kenya. KWCA seeks to recruit a highly […]
KWCA is among four winners of the second round of the USAID Office of Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GenDev) Resilient, Inclusive & Sustainable Environments (RISE) Challenge Award designed to support organisations address Gender Based Violence (GBV) in environmental programming. The RISE Challenge aims to: Spur greater awareness of the intersection between environmental degradation […]
KWCA and the Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to collaborate in marketing and supporting wildlife conservancies as part of the tourism product diversification strategy in re-engineering safari experiences. The MOU signed on 3rd December 2020 provides a structure in which the two organisations will promote Kenya’s wildlife conservancies as […]
Photo: Courtesy MoTW The Cabinet Secretary Ministry of Tourism and Wildlife Hon. Najib Balala, has officially established the Wildlife Research and Training Institute (WRSTI) Gazette Notice No. 4862 published on 17th July, 2020, in compliance with section 53(1) ((f) (ii) of the Wildlife Conservation and Management Act 2013 which guides on the legal framework of […]
Photo Courtesy: Basecamp Explorer The Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) and KWCA have partnered to market and promote Kenya’s conservancies as a niche tourist destination at national, regional and international levels through the Magical Kenya Signature Experience (MKSE) program. The program aims to promote a compilation of unique, authentic and exceptional Kenyan traveller experiences aligned […]
On 23rd May 2020, His Excellency the President Uhuru Kenyatta unveiled a Khs 53.7 Billion eight point economic stimulus package to alleviate the effects of coronavirus pandemic on the economy. The tourism and wildlife sector received a total of Kshs 5 Billion to provide soft loans for refurbishment of the tourism facilities through the Tourism Finance Corporation (TFC), Kshs 1 Billion for 5,500 wildlife scouts […]
This opinion article co-authored by Dickson Kaelo CEO KWCA and Northern Rangelands Trust (NRT) CEO Tom Lalampaa was first published by the Daily Nation on June 5th 2020. Here’s a quiz for World Environment Day today: Where in Kenya do most people earn their daily bread from tourism while still living in their home […]
The conservancy model approach is not only securing biodiversity in Baringo County, but its also improving community’s governance structures and enhancing livelihoods Adjacent the World’s largest congregations of lesser flamingos on Lake Bogoria National Reserve, Baringo County, in Kapkuikui location, lies Irong community conservancy, a communally owned conservancy inhabited by the indigenous Endorois […]
This commentary was first published by Mongabay on 20th May 2020. It is co-authored by Dickson Kaelo-CEO of the Kenya Wildlife Conservancies Association, Daniel Sopia- CEO of the Maasai Mara Wildlife Conservancies Association, Damian Bell -Executive Director of Honeyguide, based in Tanzania, Richard Diggle-Business and CBNRM Specialist with WWF in Namibia and Fred Nelson -CEO […]
KWCA CEO Dickson Kaelo in this article shares his insights on community conservation in Kenya and makes the case for investing in community led conservation approaches in Africa in the newly launched international website, the New Big 5 Dickson explains why the war on wildlife crime and wildlife loss will be won at the grassroots and […]
As the world grapples with unprecedented challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, a lot has been written by conservationists and journalists on the linkage between wildlife conservation and the Novel coronavirus (COVID-19) Want to learn more? Here’s a roundup on the intersection of wildlife conservation and COVID-19: COVID-19: Let us put emphasis on risk […]
Globally, the tourism sector is among one of the economic sectors worse hit by the impacts of the novel coronavirus COVID-19. In Kenya, Tourism, Kenya’s second foreign exchange earner that contributes 9% of the Country’s GDP has temporarily collapsed. If this pandemic is not contained, Kenya risk losing more than $ 1.6 Billion income from […]
The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) global pandemic is causing unprecedented health and economic challenges globally. In Kenya, the wildlife conservation sector is already experiencing a complete standstill of the tourism industry. The ability for community led conservation that is built around the global tourism industry is under threat. We are actively monitoring the situation and have […]
KWCA in collaboration with Uvumbuzi Africa and the Kenya Wildlife Trust (KWT), partnered with Light Art Club on a social media campaign dubbed #WildAboutLife to enhance knowledge on wildlife conservation in national parks and conservancies and promote domestic tourism among the youth. The campaign was launched on 3rd March to commemorate World Wildlife Day […]
TERMS OF REFERENCE 1. Introduction The Kenya Wildlife Conservancies Association (KWCA) is a national landowner led membership organisation, established in 2013 to serve the interests and collective voice of over 160 community and private conservancies. KWCA works to create an enabling environment for conservancies to thrive by advocating for the right policies, laws and […]
Kenyan Wildlife Conservancies Association (KWCA) is the national membership representative body and the voice of conservancies in Kenya. Our role is to support and catalyse the conservancy movement by connecting, informing, convening and representing conservancies and other key stakeholders in a shared effort to make wildlife conservancies thrive in Kenya. KWCA seeks to recruit a […]
We are excited to be recognised by African People & Wildlife and National Geographic Society as a best practice in community engagement in their new publication Community, Conservation and Collaboration: A framework for Success. The groundbreaking publication provides lessons, strategies, and best practices from the vast network of conservation and development organisations working closely with communities to address both natural resource management and community […]
Great news for Kenya conservancy rangers. The Association of Wildlife Conservancy Rangers in Kenya is officially a regular member of International Ranger Federation (IRF) KWCA an associate member of IRF, together with representatives of over 3,000 conservancy rangers, initiated the registration process of the association in 2017. The association which is the central voice for community and private […]
KWCA’s role as an official observer representing communities at the CITES CoP 18 conference, had its status elevated by the Kenyan government to make proposals on the importance of consultation and engagement of communities in CITES processes. Among KWCA’s interventions which were recognised and adapted include; development of a CITES framework that mandates governments to […]
Following KWCA’s petition on The Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill 2018, (Wildlife Act 2018 Section) submitted on 11th May 2018, to the National Assembly through the chairperson of the Environment and Natural Resources Departmental Committee, several amendments were made including establishment of the Wildlife Conservation Trust Fund, which will be a public-private fund to support conservation in both […]
Community-Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) is a major strategy for enhancing conservation outcomes while also seeking to improve livelihoods. Communities are at the centre of natural resources management and governance. CBNRM encompasses natural resources. Natural resources—the resources people depend upon for their livelihoods—generally mean renewable natural resources, including water, forests, fisheries, rangeland, and wildlife. CBNRM […]
In many areas of sustainable development including land and natural resources governance, it is becoming increasingly well known that gender equality and equity is key to conservation effectiveness and sustainability. The Convention on Biological Diversity recognises the vital role women play in the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity. It also affirms the need […]
The Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Act No. 18 of 2018, passed on 31st December 2018 and effective 4th January 2019 substantially amends the Wildlife Conservation and Management Act 2013, focusing on; Institutional structures & functions changes; New offences and penalties on wildlife crimes Institutional Changes 1. Kenya Wildlife Service Sec 6 (1)– now identified as […]
KWCA this morning submitted the Natural Resources (Benefit Sharing) Bill, 2018 memorandum to members of the Senate Standing Committee on Land, Environment and Natural Resources on 27th February 2019. KWCA submitted the memorandum on behalf of its 160 community and private wildlife conservancies covering an area of 6.5million hectares (11% of Kenya’s Landmass) and collectively representing […]
Dear Partners and Friends, As we wrap up 2018, one word seems to best describe the year; Partnerships. The long term success of wildlife conservancies in Kenya is dependent on partnerships and collaboration, this was a conclusion of our June Partnership Dialogue Forum we co-hosted with our partners. We met with only one agenda, to identify […]
Press Release 11 October 2018 Representatives from communities affected by the illegal wildlife trade are calling on governments meeting in London today to recognise local communities as equal partners in conserving wildlife, strengthen their rights to land and increase benefits from wildlife, and give local knowledge equal status in tackling the illegal wildlife trade. The […]
Wildlife Conservation efforts in Kenya is at a critical stage. Four decades of extreme wildlife declines may progressively come to an end if the current wildlife conservation effort in community and private lands were to succeed in the longer term. Already we are seeing some good results: More than 6 million hectares of land is […]
Briefing Paper Senate Standing Committee on Land, Environment and Natural Resources Submitted by Petitioners Representing Wildlife Conservancies in Kenya and Kenya Wildlife Conservancies Association Date: 8th August 2018 Venue: Main Parliament Building, Committee Room 10 Introduction This briefing paper is intended to appraise the Senate Committee on Land, Environment and Natural Resources on matters raised […]
KWCA CEO Dickson Kaelo, has been shortlisted among the finalists for the 2018 Tusk Award Conservation in Africa for his work in promoting community conservation and for his passion and dedication working with communities and landowners to conserve and benefit from wildlife conservation. Through a press release, Tusk CEO Charlie Mayhew, in announcing the […]
