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Locally Led Adaptation: How Mr. Olbucket is adapting to Climate Change Impacts

Climate change has become a universal term, but local people who experience and are the most impacted by it, seldom participate in the discussions around it. 49 year old Mr. Olbucket lives in his 80-acre piece of land situated in Eluai village within the Pardamat Conservation Area, Maasai Mara, a mixed land use conservancy model […]

Policy Update: Call for Memoranda on the Natural Resources (Benefit Sharing) Bill No. 6 of 2022

The Natural Resources (Benefit Sharing) Bill 2022 sponsored by Senator Danson Mungatana seeks to provide a legislative framework for the establishment and enforcement of a system of benefit sharing in natural resources exploitation between natural resource exploiters, the National Government, County Governments and local communities and provide that the commission for revenue allocation oversees the […]

KWCA Position on the Climate Change (Amendment) Bill 2023

Following a call for memoranda on the Climate Change (Amendment)Bill 2023, to the Environment, Forestry and Mining Committee, KWCA submitted a collective memoranda on behalf of its 184 conservancies following feedback ad comments from the members.   The Climate Change (Amendment) Bill 2023 sponsored by Hon. Kimani Ichung’wa seeks to amend the Climate Change Act, […]

One year later: How the Africa Protected Areas Congress Elevated the Voices of Women in Conservancies

  Exactly one year ago, twenty-six women drawn from Kenya’s Conservancy network came together under the umbrella forum- National Conservancies women forum convened by KWCA to elevate women’s voices at the IUCN Africa Protected Areas Congress (APAC). KWCA, with support from the USAID Department of Interior, supported and prepared the conservancy women to instigate and […]

International Biodiversity Day: From Agreement to Action, Building Back Biodiversity

The United Nations Sanctioned May 22, as the International Day for the promotion of  Biodiversity Secretariat termed as International Biodiversity Day. It is commemorated annually to increase understanding and awareness of biodiversity issues globally.    Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) are required to participate in the annual celebrations by organising or hosting […]

KWCA wins RISE Challenge award for a second time to upscale its gender work in conservancies

KWCA is among five USAID grantees to win the competitive Resilience, Inclusive and Sustainable Environments (RISE) 2022 challenge award for a second time. The announcement was made today April 18, during a pre-Earth day event held in Washington DC hosted by IUCN and USAID to commemorate International Earth Day 2023.   In this second RISE […]

KWCA Position on the Natural Resources (Benefit Sharing) Bill, 2022

KWCA in consultation with and on behalf of 175 wildlife conservancies submitted a memorandum on the Natural Resources (Benefit Sharing) Bill, 2022 pursuant to the invitation for memoranda for the Kenya Gazette Supplement no.177 (Senate Bill No.6). KWCA submission of the memorandum is based on the following grounds: Inequitable revenue sharing ratio Failure to consider […]

A new Global Biodiversity Framework adopted at CBD CoP15

A new Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) was adopted on 19th December 2022 at the 15th meeting of the Conference of Parties (CoP 15) of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in Montreal Canada. The new GBF termed as the “last chance’ to halt and reverse the destruction of the natural world by 30% by […]

KWCA at CITES Cop 19

KWCA is part of Kenya’s government delegation attending the Convention on International Trade on Endangered Species (CITES) Conference of Parties (CoP19) in Panama City in Central America between 14-25th November 2022.    Kenya is a signatory State to CITES, ratified in December 1978. Article 2(6) of the Kenyan Constitution defines CITES implementation. Kenya regulates the […]

KWCA Scoops Best Conservation Supporter Award

Reported First by the Standard Newspaper   Kenya has scooped three trophies at the just-concluded African Conservation Awards ceremony held in Kasane, Botswana, to recognise the country’s effort in safeguarding natural heritage through empowering rangers in conservancies.   The African Conservation Award ceremony coincided with the second Ranger’s Congress in Africa on September 17 in […]

“The More we Reflect, the More we Learn and Find Solutions.”

Hezron grew up in Bungule Village, Kasigau Ward, Taita Taveta County, approximately 9kms from Kasigau Conservancy. His father ardently believed in being a good community member and participating in environmental conservation. Growing up in the Kasigau community, he saw few women involved in tree planting and ranching activities. Women were mainly in the house, fending […]

Speech by KWCA CEO on Commemorating World Ranger Day 2022

Speech by KWCA CEO Mr Dickson Kaelo during the Pre-World Ranger Day Event held on Saturday, July 30th 2022 in Kasigau Wildlife Conservancy in Taita Taveta County. Ladies and Gentlemen,   It gives me great pleasure to be here with you today during this special day as we celebrate rangers in conservancies, wildlife parks and […]

Radio Interview: Promoting Gender Equity and Preventing Gender Violence In Conservancies

In the radio interview below, SIFA FM’s radio presenter Linda Akoth discusses with KWCA Gender Officer Joyce Peshu how gender-based violence manifests in wildlife conservancies and the role KWCA is playing in promoting gender equity and preventing gender-based violence in Kenya’s conservancies.    

Championing Conservancies to take the lead in ending Gender-Based Violence

Championing Conservancies to take the lead in ending Gender-Based Violence   Achieving gender equality and ending gender-based violence is a goal many organisations strive for across Kenya. There have been countless programs in the education, health, business and government sectors to promote gender equality as a critical tool towards attaining Sustainable Development.   In the […]

LGT Venture Philanthropy partners with KWCA to help scale the conservancy model across Kenya and beyond

Nairobi, Kenya, July …, 2021 – LGT Venture Philanthropy Foundation (LGT VP) announces its new engagement with Kenya Wildlife Conservancies Association (KWCA). LGT VP’s core funding and strategic support enable KWCA to expand and improve its operations, financial strategy and monitoring & evaluation.   KWCA serves as the national membership organisation and representative body for […]

The Role of Conservancies in Curbing Desertification and Drought

By Dickson Kaelo CEO, Kenya Wildlife Conservancies Association   June 17th is the World Day to combat desertification and drought. It was declared  in December 1994, by the United Nations General Assembly,  to give an opportunity to highlight the urgent need to curb the spread of deserts and ravaging droughts, both serious environmental threats in […]

‘The future of conservation lies in community conservancies’

Kenya’s community conservation has grown over the past two decades with remarkable success thanks to the role of local communities in conservation and the support by Kenya government through the Kenya Wildlife Service In its February-March issue,  Msafiri magazine dedicated a special feature on community conservation with interviews from Director General Kenya Wildlife Service Brig. […]

Policy Update: KWCA Submissions on the Review of the Wildlife Act 2013

KWCA in partnership with eight regional associations; Maasai Mara Wildlife Conservancies Association (MMWCA), Northern Rangelands Trust (NRT), Amboseli Ecosystem Trust (AET), Taita Taveta Wildlife Conservancies Association (TTWCA), Athi Kapiti Wildlife Conservancies Association (AKWCA), Rift Lakes Conservancies Association (RCLA), Baringo County Conservancies Association (BCCA) and Laikipia Conservancies Association (LCA) held consultative meetings with conservancy landowners and […]

KWCA wins RISE Challenge Award

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 Kenya Tourism Board enter into a partnership agreement to promote Tourism in Conservancies. 

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 […]

Kenya Wildlife Research Training Institute operationalised, conservancies represented in the board

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 […]

Conservancies set to benefit through the Magical Kenya signature experience

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 […]

Conservancies receive historic government support

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 […]

OPED: Invest more in complementary conservation

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 […]

Conservation Stewardship: Communities Securing Biodiversity in Lake Bogoria Landscape

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 […]

Commentary: From crisis to solutions for communities and African conservation

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 […]

Local communities and indigenous people are vital in saving wildlife

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 […]

Intersection between wildlife conservation and COVID-19:

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 […]

Amidst COVID-19 situation, community conservation must continue

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 […]

Kenya’s conservancy network response to COVID-19

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 […]

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