The upcoming Inaugural Magical Kenya Tembo Naming Festival has today received a further financial boost after three more organizations handed over their contributions towards the initiative.
The organizations KCB Bank, Mabati Rolling Mills (MRM and Mediheal Hospital who now join the list of namers in the festival handed over their cheques totalling Ksh 1.5 million during an event officiated by the Cabinet Secretary for Tourism and Wildlife Najib Balala at the KWS Headquarters in Nairobi.
The Magical Kenya Tembo Naming Festival is set to be held on the 8th and 9th of October 2021 at the Amboseli National Park. The ceremony will allow individuals and organizations to adopt and give names to selected elephants after donating funds towards the program which is aimed at boosting conservation efforts of the endangered species.
Speaking after receiving the donations, CS Najib Balala registered his satisfaction on positive responses by Kenyans towards the initiative.
Balala noted that the choice of Amboseli National Park for the debut event was a boost to conservation efforts whose results have seen to zero poaching in the Park for the last over 10 years.
“This initiative has been well embraced by the public which is really positive and motivating to us. It shows that the efforts we are putting towards conservation in the country is slowly bearing fruit. Through this initiative we are aiming to ensure that we bring everybody on board because conservation should be of interest to everyone, it ensures that we maintain what we have for our future generations,” said CS Balala.
He said the recently concluded national wildlife census gives the government a basis of identifying the species that requires attention as far as conservation is concerned.
“From the Wildlife Census that we recently conducted, we are now able to channel targeted efforts to species that require urgent attention, and as you know, conservation is not a cheap affair. So therefore, through this initiative we are able to raise more funds that will go towards the protection of these species,” he added.
He committed that the fund would be put into good use in a transparent and accountable manner. The target for the financial year 2021 – 22 is at least Kshs 100 million. CS Balala further observed that other iconic wildlife species such as rhino, sable and roan antelopes require attention which the government was also putting emphasis on.
KCB Director of Corporate Banking Esther Waititu said “We appreciate the opportunity extended to us to play a part in conservation which aligns with our business strategy for best practice in sustainability framework, we are proud to be part of making a better future for elephants and improving the relations between wildlife and humans”
On his part, MRM Head of Business Manish Mehra commented “The ministry has opened a door for us to expand our interest in our CSR areas that focus partly on environment, and we are looking forward to a lasting partnership in this area of conservation”