Taita Taveta, KWS tackle wildlife threat through anti-garbage campaign

The Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS) and the Taita Taveta government have teamed up to combat the issue of improper garbage disposal in a garbage collection event aimed at addressing environmental challenges head-on. This is in preparation for World Wildlife Day on March 3,

They stated that waste disposal is a threat to wildlife and their habitats, hence the activity is a way to promote environmental conservation and wildlife protection in the region.

The County Executive Committee Member (CECM) for Water, Sanitation, Environment, Climate Change, and Natural Resources, Grantone Mwandawiro, used the occasion to draw attention to the threat that improper rubbish disposal poses to wildlife.

"Improper waste disposal is not just an aesthetic issue, it is a threat to our wildlife and their habitats. As we approach World Wildlife Day, let this event serve as a reminder of our responsibility to protect and preserve our natural world."

The United Nations launched World Wildlife Day on March 3 of each year to honour and promote awareness of all of the world's wild creatures and plants.

The day highlights the special functions and benefits that wildlife provides to both humans and the environment, as well as the pressing need to combat wildlife crime and the loss of species due to human activity.

The Taita Taveta County Government and KWS are working together to support environmental preservation and animal protection in the area, and the waste-collecting event in Voi is a part of this larger effort.

“People everywhere rely on wildlife and biodiversity-based resources to meet our needs from food, to fuel, medicines, housing, and clothing. For us to enjoy the benefits and the beauty that nature brings us and our planet, people have been working together to make sure ecosystems can thrive and plant and animal species can exist for future generations,” the UN noted announcing this year's theme dubbed ‘Connecting People and Planet: Exploring Digital Innovation in Wildlife Conservation’.

The UN said for World Wildlife Day 2024, they are exploring digital innovation and highlighting how digital conservation technologies and services can drive wildlife conservation, sustainable and legal wildlife trade and human-wildlife coexistence, now and for future generations in an increasingly connected world.