Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for the Ministry of Tourism, Wildlife & Heritage, Hon. Peninah Malonza has said sustainability is a key pillar of Kenya’s tourism sector, especially since sustainable tourism ensures continuity and development of the sector for the future.
Malonza in an interview with news.itb.com at the ongoing ITB Berlin Trade show said the Kenyan government, through the Ministry of Tourism, wildlife, and Heritage, continues to implement various initiatives aimed at promoting sustainable tourism while finding a balance between communities, travellers and conservation to ensure that we sustain our assets for as long as possible.
She said a good example of these initiatives was witnessed in 2021 when the government, through the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), carried out the first-ever National Wildlife Census. This was a key exercise which gave us an understanding of the wildlife species we have and their needs in terms of their conservation for the long term. The aim is to ensure the protection of all the species and to ensure that our parks and conservancies can continue offering great experiences to our visitors.
The ban of single use plastics from all the parks has been a huge success in championing sustainability, some of the businesses are also trying out the use of electric cars and maximising on solar energy.
On the same note, as part of efforts to champion elephant conservation in Kenya, the government, through my Ministry, launched the Tembo Naming Festival in October 2021 and the second edition more recently on March 3rd 2023 which coincided with the World Wildlife Day. The annual event is aimed at raising funds to conserve elephants by minimising human-wildlife conflict. So far, close to 500 communities in the environs of Amboseli national park have directly benefited from projects funded through the initiative.
