By Milliam Murigi
Kenya’s fight against wildlife crime has entered a new era, one defined not only by boots on the ground but by drones in the sky, artificial intelligence and data-driven decision-making.
This was revealed by Prof. Erustus Kanga, Director General of the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), during the Global Conservation Tech and Drone Forum 2026.
According to Prof. Kanga, conservation across Africa is undergoing rapid transformation in response to increasingly sophisticated wildlife crime networks, climate change, and escalating human-wildlife conflict.
“Conservation itself is changing across Africa and indeed across the world. Traditional methods of protection are no longer sufficient to confront modern realities,” he said.
Kenya has committed nearly 24 percent of its landmass to wildlife and biodiversity conservation, a significant national investment. KWS manages 24 national parks, 29 national reserves, four marine parks, and works alongside hundreds of community and public conservancies.
Prof. Kanga emphasized that such a vast conservation estate demands smarter tools and faster, intelligence-led decision-making systems.
Wildlife crime, he noted, has evolved into a technologically advanced enterprise, with cross-border networks using encrypted communication and modern surveillance systems. At the same time, climate change is altering habitats at an unprecedented pace, intensifying droughts and shifting wildlife migration patterns.
“These realities demand intelligence-led conservation,” he said.
At the centre of KWS’s new strategy is drone technology. From the dense canopy of Mount Kenya Forest to the vast savannas of the Tsavo Ecosystem, unmanned aerial systems are enabling long-range ecosystem monitoring that would otherwise take weeks to accomplish on foot.
Prof. Kanga explained that the adoption of drones followed rigorous planning. The agency conducted structured feasibility studies, ensured regulatory compliance, established governance systems, and developed internal training programmes before deployment.
“Our drone pilots are approaching full operational readiness through an extended military pathway,” he said, noting that training covers both multi-rotor and fixed-wing platforms suited to different conservation landscapes.
Crucially, drone surveillance is integrated into command-and-control systems, ensuring that aerial intelligence translates into timely ranger deployment on the ground.
“Aircraft and drones alone do not deliver conservation success , systems do,” Prof. Kanga stressed.
The private sector is also embracing innovation. At Lewa Wildlife Conservancy, home to endangered black rhinos, technology now underpins daily operations.
Automated AI-powered cameras monitor key wildlife corridors, while thermal-imaging drones conduct night patrols capable of detecting human movement before poachers strike. The conservancy has also invested in digital software that integrates field data into centralized command systems.
“Technology is protecting our rangers and the animals as well. For long, rangers have been protecting animals with no one to protect them. We are happy now that technology is protecting them,” said Edward Ndiritu, Head of Lewa’s Anti-Poaching Unit.
Kenya’s pivot toward high-tech conservation was shaped by the poaching crisis of 2011–2013, when elephant and rhino killings surged dramatically. The crisis exposed weaknesses in surveillance, coordination and data management.
Since then, both KWS and private conservancies have strengthened intelligence networks, digitized patrol reporting and embraced global partnerships.
One of the most significant breakthroughs was the introduction of conservation management software known as EarthRanger. The platform enables teams to log incidents, track wildlife movements and monitor assets in real time. What began as a crisis response tool has since become a global model used by rangers and researchers beyond Kenya’s borders.
Yet even as technology transforms conservation, experts caution against viewing it as a silver bullet. Ndiritu emphasized that despite drones and digital dashboards, conservation ultimately depends on people and rangers remain its backbone.
Ensuring rangers have adequate equipment, continuous training, psychological support, insurance cover and fair working conditions is just as critical as investing in cutting-edge tools. Without motivated and protected personnel, even the most advanced systems risk falling short.
“Rangers are always in front. Ensuring their safety and welfare is just as critical as investing in new gadgets,” Ndiritu added.
