The Government of Kenya has pledged full support for community-driven conservation initiatives as part of efforts to restore and grow the endangered rhino population.
Speaking during World Rhino Day celebrations at Elsa Ground in Isiolo on September 22, 2025, Wildlife Principal Secretary Sylvia Museiya said communities play a vital role in protecting wildlife while benefiting directly from tourism revenue.
“Communities living around the Maasai Mara, for instance, earn up to Sh45,000 per household monthly from conservancies,” Museiya said, noting that community conservancies offer both economic empowerment and conservation solutions.
Kenya, home to black and white rhinos, now has 1,605 rhinos, according to the 2021 Wildlife Census. However, Isiolo, once a rhino stronghold, now has none due to decades of poaching.
The PS said Samburu County had set the pace through Sera Rhino Sanctuary, East Africa’s first community rhino sanctuary established in 2015, which has since attracted tourists through rhino tracking safaris.
The government will continue supporting grassroots conservation efforts, strengthening anti-poaching strategies, and reviewing the Wildlife Bill 2025 to align with international conventions such as CITES and CMS.
“We will keep enhancing monitoring systems, mobilizing sustainable financing, and working with communities to expand rhino habitats to their former ranges,” Museiya affirmed.
Kenya is ranked third in Africa for rhino population, after South Africa and Namibia, but faces the challenge of having only two remaining northern white rhinos, both female.
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