Lewa Milele

In 1983, a handful of conservationists, hoping to reverse the rampant poaching of the region’s rhino, established a small sanctuary in the northern rangelands of Kenya. Over the years, the sanctuary has evolved into the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy (Lewa), a globally significant wildlife reserve credited with bringing black rhino back from the brink of extinction and proving that conservation can be a positive force for economic development and poverty alleviation.

Originally a 5,000-acre reserve located on the edge of a private cattle ranch, Lewa today is made up of 62,000 acres of grasslands, acacia groves and wetlands situated in the foothills of Mount Kenya. The reserve protects a host of wildlife, including endangered black rhino, the world’s largest population of Grevy’s zebras and one of the three last remaining habitats of the sitatunga, a swamp-dwelling antelope. Lewa also helps local communities manage more than two million acres of wildlife resources and develop ecotourism enterprises, which in turn fund education, conservation and social welfare projects.

But, Lewa’s reserve is located on privately owned land, and Lewa exits only because of the current owners’ generosity and commitment to wildlife.  Future owners and future generations may not be so generous and Lewa’s long-term existence is threatened by the incompatible development conversion to intensive agriculture, and inappropriate use of its water resources.  With its core reserve in danger, Lewa's ability to sustain conservation and further economic development in northern Kenya is in jeopardy.

Fortunately, the current landowners are committed to help preserve Lewa’s wildlife for future generations, and to back-up their commitment, they have offered to sell their land to Lewa on very favorable terms—terms that are unlikely to ever be available again as future generations and future private owners inevitably fragment the land into smaller parcels and convert to wildlife-incompatible uses in order to achieve higher returns on investment.

Lewa Milele (Swahili for "Lewa Forever") is an innovative partnership between Lewa and The Nature Conservancy that strives to seize today’s opportunity to secure the long-term future of Kenya's most successful private-sector wildlife conservancy. Drawing on The Nature Conservancy’s 50-plus years of experience in land acquisition, the organizations have negotiated a limited-time option to purchase 28,500 acres, and up to 8,000 additional acres, of Lewa’s core reserve so that it can be protected permanently. If we’re successful, Lewa’s core reserve will be secure forever, its capacity to sustain support for community-based conservation on over two million acres of adjoining pastoral land and wildlife habitat will be assured, and its potential to catalyze community-based conservation on an additional ten million acres can be realized, thereby creating a new model for conservation across the region and beyond.

If you would like to learn more about Lewa Milele and be part of Lewa's future, please email elodie@lewa.org.