Animal Welfare Monthly Highlights: November - December 2024

Executive Director's End of Year Message

Dear Partners, Supporters and Friends,

As we approach the conclusion of another transformative year at ANAW, I am filled with gratitude for the unwavering support and commitment from all our partners to the work we do.

Nostalgically, this year we celebrated our 18th Anniversary since ANAW was founded. It was, indeed, gratifying to reflect upon the journey we have travelled as a toddler organization to reach this teen-age, and the impact we have made to so many animals across Africa, with your help – you, our big-hearted stakeholders.

I am extremely proud of every single member of our team and everything we managed to achieve this year, this far, remaining faithful to our vision and mission. Indeed, many thanks to my fabulous staff team, for never losing their dedication and passion. No role is more or less important than another – from frontline staff to those working quietly behind the scenes – you all make ANAW.

The year 2024 has been marked by incredible achievements, impactful projects, and the strengthening of partnerships that propel our mission forward - some of which you will read in this monthly newsletter, while the rest will appear in our Annual Report to be out in the first quarter of next year, 2025.

Top on the list of achievements, was this year’s continental animal welfare forum – The 8th Africa Animal Welfare Conference (AAWC) – Action 2024 themed, ‘Partnership Actions to Improve Animal Welfare and Environmental Sustainability,’ hosted by the government of Kenya, United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), The African Union Inter-African Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR) and Africa Network for Animal Welfare (ANAW). The gathering brought together 856 delegates: 238 physically and 618 virtually from 58 countries across the world. Amongst these, 54 delegates were member states representatives.

Similarly, in this last quarter of 2024, we were fortunate yet again to hold the 11th Inter-agency forum on Wildlife and Environmental Crimes. As I have said before, it is always heartening to see the diverse stakeholders represented at these forums which are convened with the aim of encouraging agencies and the public to work in a collegiate manner, share information, exchange experiences and develop ways to overcome technical, bureaucratic and administrative bottlenecks hindering inter-agency cooperation in wildlife crime management.

In this last newsletter to you, as ANAW’s Executive Director (you read about my stepping down this December 31st) I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone and express my warmest gratitude for sticking with us and helping us successfully go through yet another year of supporting thousands of animals and the communities who ensure their wellbeing.

Finally, allow me, on behalf of the Chairman, Board and staff of ANAW, to sincerely thank you for your support in 2024. You have made a great contribution to Africa’s animals and with your continued support, we are without a doubt looking forward to 2025 with renewed energy for the work we do.

Wishing you a joyous Christmas holiday season and a prosperous New Year, 2025.

With gratitude,

Josphat Ngonyo.

Breaking Chains to Save and Protect Wildlife

In striving to achieve a harmonious balance and conserving our biodiversity, the ANAW team continues to be at the ready to protect Africa’s splendid wildlife and domestic animals, emerging valiantly to fill the vulnerability gap that increases with the rapid infrastructural development activities and human encroachment.

The ANAW team, in collaboration with KWS and conservancy scouts, carried out two impactful de-snaring operations across Machakos and Nakuru ranches. These efforts led to the recovery of 90 snares, including 10 ground snares, 55 live noose snares, and 25 dead wire noose snares.

The snares, fashioned from crude materials like wire and nooses, are indiscriminate and leave a trail of destruction in their wake, capturing any animal that crosses their path.

In seeking to gain new perspectives on this, the ANAW team summoned herders in a meeting to understand the impact on the loss of their livestock through snaring. The herders spoke of the painful reality of losing livestock to snares—animals that provide their families with sustenance and livelihood. The snares, originally intended for wildlife, do not differentiate, becoming deadly traps for cattle, goats, and other livestock. These losses, often heartbreaking and financially devastating, highlighted the broader impact of snares—not only on ecosystems but also on the communities who coexist with wildlife.

Resilient Community Triumphs as Kenya's Marine Conservation Efforts Takes on Water

Weather conditions impeded threat management efforts to conserve turtles in the Kenya’s coastal strip in November 2024. Funzi Turtle Conservation Group faced challenges with patrols due to the prevalent heavy rains experienced in many counties. While no new turtle nests were reported, the group compiled data on the 19 nests laid from March to September. These nests produced 2,206 eggs, resulting in 2,180 live hatchlings—a remarkable success thanks to regular patrols and nest protection.

Meanwhile, the Msambweni Turtle and Marine Conservation Group tackled the challenge differently by focusing on broader conservation efforts. Despite limited patrols, they recruited new members to bolster marine protection activities and held regular planning meetings.

Collaboration with the Msambweni Waste Collectors Trust continues to grow, with the group establishing waste collection initiatives and engaging recycling partners to manage trash effectively. Exciting news was received when one of the group’s proposals for constructing a larger social hall at the Msambweni Education Center was approved, marking a significant step forward for the community!

The 11th National Judicial Dialogue on Wildlife and Environmental Crimes

The 11th National Judicial Dialogue on Wildlife and Environmental Crimes was a landmark event held from November 20th to 23rd at Sarova Woodlands Hotel, Nakuru. Hosted by Africa Network for Animal Welfare (ANAW) in partnership with the law enforcement agencies, this year’s dialogue centered on the theme “Dialogue on Pollution, Biodiversity Loss, and Climate Change.” The discussions sought to empower judicial officers and law enforcement agencies to effectively address the triple planetary crisis threatening our environment.

The Dialogue was officially opened by Hon. Justice Smokin Wanjala, CBS, Judge of the Supreme Court of Kenya and Director General Kenya Judiciary Academy (KJA), who underscored the critical role of collaboration in combating environmental and wildlife crimes. The forum brought together 80 delegates, including 40 judicial officers, 28 representatives from law enforcement agencies, and members of ANAW and KJA. Notable participants included representatives from the Attorney General’s Office, Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), and the National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA).

The event resulted in impactful resolutions, including strengthened inter-agency collaboration, the creation of a multi-agency committee to address environmental and wildlife crimes, and the development of a comprehensive training manual on investigations, prosecutions, and adjudications.

We are deeply grateful to our partners, the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) and the Society for the Protection of Animals Abroad (SPANA), for their invaluable support in making this dialogue a success.

Championing Donkey Welfare in Kajiado County

On 11th and 12th November, ANAW, in partnership with the Kajiado Veterinary Department, spearheaded dynamic awareness campaigns in Rombo and Olmapinu. These sessions were not just about donkeys, they were about empowering communities.

Through engaging discussions and practical demonstrations, 67 participants, including donkey owners, community leaders, women, and youth, discovered the vital link between proper donkey care and sustaining their livelihoods. From treatment-seeking behavior to primary care and husbandry, training provided tools to ensure the well-being of the donkeys they rely on daily.

This initiative highlights a simple truth: when donkeys thrive, so do communities.

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End of Year Message from the Executive Director

In a few days, we will all be bidding farewell to this extra-ordinary year, 2020, which ends at an unprecedented time when the COVID-19 pandemic has affected all countries of the world. The pandemic has caused much suffering, driving most economies into chaos. Extra-ordinary, also, because we brought this onto ourselves - through disrespect and interference with the natural world, and animals’ well-being. ANAW, like many other organizations, was not spared either; since our work was affected by this pandemic especially during the lock downs. A time, we established that the poaching incidences went up by 50%.

Complexities brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic did not, however, dampen our spirit; with your unyielding support, we strove with our last ounce of energy and courage and continued to safeguard the welfare of animals through our various programs!

Animals continue to face increasing threats to their survival, and support such as you have given to ANAW, especially this most trying year, has gone a long way in giving our animals a chance for survival even in the face of these monumental challenges; and for that, we are forever grateful.

In this year I am glad to report to you that as an organization, working with our incredible partners, we have been able to achieve many important animal welfare milestones, some of which you will read in this newsletter. Amongst the top was this year’s Africa Animal Welfare Conference (AAWC) held virtually on September 7 - 10, 2020 and attended by 523 delegates. The conference realized resolutions and a policy brief shared with Member States.

Allow me, on behalf of the Chairman, Board and staff of ANAW and ANAW-USA, to sincerely thank you for your support in this near-ending 2020. You have made a great contribution to Africa’s animals and with your continued support, we are without a doubt looking forward to 2021 with renewed energy for the work we do.

May you have a blessed Christmas and prosperous New Year 2021.

Josphat Ngonyo.

Judicial Dialogue on Wildlife and Environmental Crimes

The 10th National Judicial Dialogue and Continuing Judicial Education on Wildlife and Environmental Crimes was for the first time held virtually on 26th and 27th November 2020.The theme of the conference was, ‘Emerging Issues and Trends in Adjudicating Wildlife and Environmental Crimes’.

ANAW supported and participated in the dialogue as part of the Secretariat, and the Executive Director, Josphat Ngonyo delivered opening remarks highlighting ANAW’s collaboration with Judiciary Training Institute (JTI) and law enforcement agencies in response to issues of wildlife and environmental protection.

JTI and ANAW, together with six lead law enforcement agencies held a meeting during the conference regarding the law enforcement curriculum that was due for adoption and validation. It was resolved that based on the current needs of the law enforcement agencies, what they required was a detailed training manual for ease of reference in executing their day-to-day duties. The manual will also aid in ensuring sustainability of the dialogue process which would function as an annual monitoring tool. This manual development process is being facilitated by financial support from Animal Welfare Institute.

Arising from this meeting, therefore, a workplan to develop a detailed training manual was endorsed and the process would be completed in April 2021.

Stakeholders’ Workshop on Cage Free Chicken Farming in Kenya

On December 7, 2020, ANAW facilitated a successful Stakeholders’ Workshop on Cage Free Chicken farming in Kenya. Participants included representatives from Kenya Directorate of Veterinary Services (DVS), Chairperson Counties’ Directors of Veterinary Services CCDVS), Kenya Pigs and Poultry Veterinary Association (KPPVA), Kenya Society for the Protection and Care of Animals (KSPCA), World Animal Protection (WAP) and Farm Animals Voice.

During the workshop, ANAW shared progress regarding its work on the campaign against battery cage chicken farming in Kenya. A key highlight of the workshop was the presentation of a study report done by ANAW on the status of battery cage farming in Kenya.

The one-day workshop resolved to build a credible, skilled and coordinated coalition for advocacy against caged chicken farming in Kenya, which is planned to be established in the first quarter of 2021.

41 Animal Welfare Cases Attended to in October and November 2020

In the months of October and November, a total of 41 animal welfare cases were acted upon. Out of these nine were Vervets, four Colobus, 15 Sykes, three Civets and four Bush Babies. The good news - three Sykes, three Vervet monkeys, one Bush baby and two Civets were released back to the wild with an infant vervet monkey entered orphan care..

Building Resilience and Capacity of Donkey Owning Communities

ANAW in partnership with Brooke East Africa kicked off the third quarter of the project’s implementation plan with activities geared to building resilience and capacity of donkey owning communities residing along the Kenya-Tanzania border in both Kajiado and Narok Counties, as well as bridging the trust gap between the said communities and the grassroot government authorities for effective vigilance and security of the animal they love – the donkey.

These activities included:

1. Four community education and awareness structured meetings on donkeys’ welfare and the need for their security at the grassroots held in Olposimoru and Oloolaimutia in Narok County as well as Magadi and Olmapinu, Rombo in Kajiado County.

2. Four capacity building meetings with selected community scouts, factoring gender balance and the youth, on monitoring of illegal donkey movement within their localities. Participants were sensitized on the importance of establishing links with the local authorities and law enforcers for better reporting of theft cases and suspicious donkey movements along the borderlines of the two counties – Narok and Kajiado.

3. Information gathering, sharing and awareness raising on revenue collection from donkeys crossing the border from Kenya Revenue Authorities (KRA) officials, and data of donkeys crossing from Border Security Committees at both the Narok and Kajiado - Tanzania borders. To help in this important undertaking, four research assistants were recruited and tasked to gather data on donkey movement along the border for 15 days as well as information on revenue collected at selected Cess points within the two counties, as a result of donkey movement along the borders.

Two Suspected Bushmeat Poachers Apprehended in Machakos and Kasighau

Two notorious bushmeat poachers in Machakos had been on Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) radar for some time. When they woke up on the morning of October 21, 2020, and as usual, armed themselves with bows and poisoned arrows and machetes and set out for a wildlife harvest in Malili Ranch, they did not know that their forty days’ grace had expired and would soon be in the unforgiving hands of the wildlife protectors!

According to locals, the poachers had set up wire snares the previous night anticipating a heaped catch the following morning. When the morning came, they went about inspecting, and were buoyed with joy when they saw a limping zebra dragging one of their wire snares by its left hind leg, to which they shot with a poisoned arrow to make a quick kill and save on time.

When the zebra was down, they hurriedly slaughtered it and put the carcass in gunny bags ready for transportation to the nearby shopping centre to sell to unsuspecting residents. Unknown to these two poachers, however, a ‘little bird’ was watching as they slaughtered the animal in the grassland bushes and reported to ANAW’s informant who in turn relayed the information to both KWS and ANAW who swung to action.

The joint rescue team rushed to Malili area where the incident had been reported and commenced a wild chase for the suspects after which they apprehended the two as they ferried the zebra carcass on a motorbike. KWS confiscated the zebra carcass, poachers’ paraphernalia that included arrow, knives and containers and the motorbike used, and detained the suspects at Kyumbi Police Station for onward prosecution.

While this seems a success story to the protection of wildlife, it is important to note that elimination of bushmeat poachers is far from over for they continue to multiply in different regions of wildlife areas – both protected and unprotected as poverty among those communities living close to the said wildlife areas continue to bite, especially with the advent of Covid-19 pandemic.

With this worrying reality in mind, ANAW and KWS team, with financial support from Animal Welfare Institute, conducted four de-snaring exercises in Machakos and Nakuru regions, in the months of October and November 2020 lifting a total of 87 wire snares. The devoted team will religiously continue to comb the bushes for lifting of more wire snares and rescue of trapped animals in the efforts to conserve these precious wildlife species.

Similarly, in the expansive Kasighau ranch, Taita Taveta County, a suspected poacher was jointly arrested by Wildlife Works and ANAW supported Kasighau Wildlife Guardians with 7kgs of impala’s meat on 24th October 2020 at Mto Mwatate area.

Glimmer of hope

ANAW’s de-snaring and rescue activities continue to be inspired by the desire to create positive change within the communities that border these wildlife areas, who are almost always, the culprits of bushmeat poaching, by among other ways championing the ‘Africa Conservation Education Fund’ (ACEF) program. This program seeks to empower these communities through education to ultimately get employment for alternative income, with the goal of decreasing poaching and care for wildlife.

We encourage all our partners to walk with us in this promising journey of paradigm shift and conservation success. If you would like to know more about the ACEF program, read more here

Africa Animal Welfare Conference, Action 2020 Publications.

Conference Report - Click Here to Read/Download .

Conference Policy Brief - Click Here to Read/Download .

Support Our Work

Here's a great way to support Africa Network for Animal Welfare (ANAW) and enable us to protect future generations of animals. You can do so through the following ways:

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By putting a bequest to ANAW in your will or trust, you will help us to improve the lives of animals far beyond your lifetime. Contact Purity at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. if you need additional information about how to include us in your will.

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Africa Network For Animal Welfare (ANAW)

Quarterly Newsletter - September 2020 

Message from the Executive Director

Warm greetings to you, from Nairobi – Kenya

Despite the pandemic, ANAW has kept moving on steadfast with its projects and programs. The last three months have seen the government start to slowly re-open the country through relaxing travel restrictions within and without the borders of Kenya. This in essence, accorded ANAW the opportunity to step out and continue making imprints in safeguarding Africa’s animal welfare.

In the next few pages you will read about our impacts on de-snaring and rescue operations, advocacy campaign against use of battery cage system in poultry farming, capacity and resilience building of donkey owning communities and grass-root administration along Kenya-Tanzania border, Kasighau Wildlife Guardians’ graduation after rigorous 21 day training and how Covid-19 has meant good news to the Colobus monkeys of Diani coral rag forest in Kenya’s south eastern coast.

Finally, the Africa Animal Welfare Conference (AAWC) 2020 was a huge success as it brought together over 500 online participants drawn from 52 nations across the world! We shall exclusively cover key highlights of the conference in our next monthly brief even as we share the conference report with all of us.

Please do enjoy your read and as usual give us your thoughtful feedback.

Sincerely,
Josphat Ngonyo.

The Pain of De-snaring and Rescuing Wire-trapped Wild Animals

Sometimes, and those times are many; it starts with a distress call. The focal points in respective wildlife habitation areas, almost always make the most agonizing calls to ANAW’s de-snaring and rescue team announcing a new spotted wire-trapped animal. As the team preps to respond to the emergency, one question that always lingers in their minds is – will they find the said trapped animal(s) alive? Or worse still, if they find it, will they have to put it down upon ascertaining that it may not recover due to immeasurable pain and degree of injury?

Simon Wambua, ANAW’s head driver with an unparalleled passion for wildlife rescues knows this, too well; “Sometimes we drive to the rescue area amid eerie silence in the rescue vehicle.” He says. Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) rangers, who have taken oath to protect these beautiful wildlife species rarely say a word while en route to the rescue sites. “The most familiar sound in the vehicle is normally that of cocking of their guns in anticipation for the worst – finding and having to apprehend an armed poacher.” Adds Simon. “It is always a tense journey till they find and rescue the wounded or wire snared wild animal.” Wambua says, as he walks away – not wanting to say more.

ANAW’s de-snaring team and partners go through these experiences every so often as they seek to conserve Africa’s wildlife in selected program areas – Machakos, Kajiado and Nakuru Counties. Indeed, for the last three months they have painstakingly given a new lease of life to at least 18 wild animals with snares or injuries through the help of KWS veterinarians. These rescued wildlife species would have ended up in someone’s plate as a delicacy, but the courage and tenacity of the team saved them.

Unfortunately, 2 of the wild animals attended to, had severe injuries hence they were humanely put down. Sadly again, another 6 wild animals were found dead in snare traps.

The de-snaring operations helped to cumulatively lift 168 live wire snares in the last three months with an active noose, ready to trap an unsuspecting wild animal.

Through the findings of these operations and collated corroborating data, it has emerged that there has been an upsurge of bushmeat exploitation by 50% because of covid-19 pandemic. This realization depicts an immense threat to the survival of wildlife from bush meat poaching.

Notably, the economic effect of Covid-19 has weakened the security patrols of private ranches and conservancies due to scarcity of funds making them more vulnerable to bushmeat exploitation. The team is cognizant of the fact that community conservation education for the communities neighbouring wildlife areas is more necessary now, than ever before. They, however, acknowledge the prevailing restriction protocols to mitigate Covid-19, as a limitation to what they can do and are therefore, exploiting more innovative ways of awareness creation such as digital messaging.

Anyone out there with the in-depth understanding of the precarious situation the de-snaring and rescue team must deal with, will surely understand the mood in the de-snaring and rescue vehicle.

In this sad regard, it is only paramount that the de-snaring and rescue activities be continued, to dismantle the lethal snares and save more wild animals from more suffering and eventual death. This, clearly, cannot be done by jolly faces.

Battery Cage Poultry Farming Infringes on Bird’s Welfare

For those who would never want to miss a piece of chicken meat or scrambled chicken eggs on their plate; here is something for you to ponder – ever stopped to think about how your meal arrived at your plate? How was the chicken reared? Just like all of us value freedom of movement; was the chicken given the chance to ruffle and flap their wings? Was the chicken let go to stretch and exercise from one corner of the homestead or compound to the other corner? As a bird, that chicken, was it given space for natural nesting?

A dedicated team of ANAW staff supported by Open Wing Alliance (OWA) in June 2020 started out on an advocacy campaign against use of battery cage system in poultry farming to which most of the above chicken welfare concerns are raised.

For the starters, use of battery cages in poultry farming is a system whereby poultry especially egg-laying chicken are reared in identical rows and columns of cages connected for easy feeding and collection of eggs. The birds suffer by being confined in spaces less than an A4 sheet of paper per bird. Many animal welfare experts agree that battery cage system also known as indoor cages system need to be replaced with cage free poultry farming because lack of adequate space can have negative consequences on the health, behavior, and physiology of the birds .

The team visited over ten chicken rearing farms in six counties (Narok, Bomet, Kisii, Kericho, Nyeri and Meru) in Kenya, to conduct a comprehensive welfare assessment of egg-laying chicken reared under the battery cage system, and also to enhance the team’s understanding of farmers’ perceptions and ideologies regarding the adoption of this system.

In their own words, the farmers cited several disadvantages of the system including: the birds appearing to be stressed in the cage; rampant vent pecking during egg laying; increased feather pecking as the birds are crowded in the cages and birds tending to get overweight hence increasing their susceptibility to sudden death syndrome.

Of the 10 battery cage poultry farms visited most of them were for commercial purposes meaning part of what you get in your plate comes from these unhappy suffering birds.

The ongoing project continues to strongly advocate for use of free-range method which is a cage-free system of chicken rearing where the birds grow naturally and can also give the farmer maximum output.

Indeed, Alfred Chesang one of the chicken farmers in Kericho, rearing over seven thousand chickens spoke of his daughter’s dislike of their battery cage poultry farm, “My daughter who is in the university does not like the way we rear the chicken… she says they are suffering due to the confinement we have subjected them to and she never goes near them.” He says.

The team noted that substantial knowledge gap exists among poultry farmers and battery cage suppliers regarding poultry sentience and welfarism. Farmers lack sensitization and education forums to learn on poultry welfare and its significance in enhancing productivity thus would benefit greatly from forums that educate them on animal welfarism, sentience and how this is linked to improved productivity.

The advocacy campaign shall, therefore, going forward focus more on capacity building to bridge the knowledge gap among the battery cage poultry farmers, suppliers, policy makers and other key stakeholders in the industry.

Building Capacity and Resilience Amongst Donkey Owning Communities

‘Punda ni mama’ loosely translated as ‘donkey is a mother/woman/co-wife/helper’ is a saying that resonates well with most of the Maasai community women, especially those who have experienced first-hand brunt of donkey theft from their manyattas’ leaving them without a helper, fellow mother, and co-wife.

It is, indeed, not just a saying among the Maasai community but it also reverberates with other many donkey owning communities across the world who understand and experience the role the donkey plays in the economies of those communities.

This anecdote was more elaborated as ANAW supported by Brooke East Africa started out last year, 2019 to ascertain the nature, extent and frequency of cross-border movement of donkeys along Kenya – Tanzania border and how that movement and trade of donkeys across the two nations border was facilitating wanton theft of donkeys as unscrupulous traders increased their stock to supplement the slaughter capacity in the four operational slaughterhouses in the country.

One of the discoveries of the project was that despite huge cry by the border communities of their donkeys being stolen by the cross-border traders, there was extraordinarily little documentation or none, at all. They would narrate horrific tales amid pain of the negative impacts the movement has had in their lives but most of them had not reported to their local administration. The team soon gathered that there was huge trust gap between the locals and the local authorities, and they did not trust them to recover their stolen donkeys.

It was therefore, arising from one of the key recommendations of that project’s phase – the need for capacity and resilience building among the donkey owning communities residing along the Kenya-Tanzania border as well as the local administration, the current project was born. Importantly, the project covers the expansive border, mostly porous, and stretching from Olmapinu in Kajiado County to Oloolaimutia in Narok County.

The project started in earnest this last August and aims at engaging in activities keen on building the capacity and resilience of the said donkey owning border communities to not only be vigilant on the borders but also to ensure they report theft cases to their local authorities. The community leadership at all levels, including village elders, sub-chiefs, chiefs, local police, church leaders, opinion leaders among other influential leaders are being sensitized on the need to be more vigilant.

This sustained vigilance will be key to monitoring the borders especially now that Kenya’s donkey abattoirs are not operational due to the withdrawal of donkey slaughter licenses in Kenya, and the traders may turn to Tanzania to continue with the lucrative business as they monitor the situation in Kenya on whether the abattoirs’ licenses will be reinstated. There are already unconfirmed reports that donkeys are crossing the border from Kenya moving to Tanzania’s Fang Hua (Pty) Ltd donkey abattoir in Shinyanga which is currently operational.

By the end of March 2021, when the project comes to a halt, it is expected that donkey owning communities and local authorities along the Kenya-Tanzania border will have remarkably increased their resilience and vigilance to protect their donkeys from theft. Further, there will have been an increased nationwide media involvement and coverage in advocacy campaigns against illegal movement of donkeys and skin trade to raise the consciousness of nations that have for long forsaken the welfare of the beast of burden – the donkey.

When the above outcomes are achieved during the lifeline of the project, this line ‘punda ni mama’ will have gained traction and all the donkey-owning communities of the Kenya-Tanzania border, especially the women, will breathe a sigh of relief and live with their fellow helper, mother, woman, and co-wife for posterity. Together they shall prosper; women economically and the donkeys in their welfare observance.

Kasighau Wildlife Guardians Empowered

One of the profound achievements for the Kasighau Wildlife Guardians for the last three months was that in the month of September they joined a team of 50 rangers drawn from both Kasighau ranch and the neighboring ranches to participate in a rigorous 21-day consolidated training at Kasighau ranch, that was sponsored by the African wildlife Foundation (AWF).

All the ranch guardians plus 29 others from neighboring ranches underwent laborious training on patrol techniques, security reporting, communication, first aid, wildlife tracking, human-wildlife conflict monitoring, wildlife ecological monitoring and basic community wildlife extension.

At the end of the course, and upon graduation, all trainees were given copies of codes of discipline, rangers’ standard operating procedures, and equipped with branded full uniforms kits.

In 2016, ANAW assisted Kasighau ranch to establish a 28,000-hectare community wildlife conservancy within the community-owned ranch. The ranch has remained a critical wildlife migration corridor for Tsavo East, Tsavo West and Mkomazi National Parks.

ANAW supports nine (9) out of 21 wildlife guardians and therefore, takes this auspicious moment to congratulate them for enduring the said 21-day training and for their graduation. This training will enable them to be more efficient in their conservancy patrol roles as wildlife guardians.

Again, congratulations!

Relief for Colobus Monkeys Amid Covid-19 Restrictions

For the last seven months since the first Covid-19 case was announced in Kenya on March 13, 2020, Diani Beach Road that leads to Colobus Conservation has experienced minimal vehicle and human movement compared to its previous busy state. This has been good news to the wild colobus troops and other wild monkeys who reside in the expansive coral rag forest along Indian Ocean, on Kenya’s south eastern coast region as tourism activities reduced decimally.

It ought to be remembered that it was out of an uproar from local residents about the high number of deaths of colobus monkeys being hit by speeding motorists on the nine kilometer Diani Beach Road stretch, that the organization was established in 1997 to promote the conservation, preservation and protection of primates like the nationally threatened Angolan Colobus monkey (Colobus angolensis palliatus) and its coastal forest habitat.

Since 2015, ANAW has been partnering with Colobus Conservation through secondment of a Veterinary Officer, helping build a recovery hospital for the primates as well as helping build aerial ladders (Colo-bridges) across the road.

In the last three months, for example, we have had a total of 36 welfare cases. Out of these 11 were Vervets, 5 Colobus, 15 Sykes, 2 Baboons, 1 Hadada Ibis and 1 Bush Baby. Out of these, 1 died in transit on its way to the clinic, 1 died under treatment, 4 were euthanized, and 7 were joyfully released back to the wild.

Comparatively, these welfare cases especially arising from the primates being knocked down by speeding vehicles are way low compared to pre-covid-19 pandemic when tourists flocked the many beach hotels along the Diani Beach Road.

More significantly, and although the pandemic has negatively impacted on the world’s economy among other spheres, for the primates, it has been good news for they could cross the road at their own pace without minding speeding motorists!

Support Our Work

Here's a great way to support Africa Network for Animal Welfare (ANAW) and enable us to protect future generations of animals. You can do so through the following ways:

Through Donation
You can support our work by donating online through our secure online platform using a credit card. Please, click here to donate .

Leave a Legacy in Your Will
By putting a bequest to ANAW in your will or trust, you will help us to improve the lives of animals far beyond your lifetime. Contact us through This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. if you need additional information about how to include us in your will.