Cutting-edge innovation saving endangered rhinos from poachers

Female Northern White Rhinoa Fatu (left) with her mother Najin grazing on March 31, 2018. The memorial service of Sudan the last Male Northern White Rhino took place at Rhino cemetery within Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Laikipia County. [Kipsang Joseph, Standard]

Tourism is among the highest contributors to the National Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

In 2023, the Tourism Research Institute forecasted that by 2027, the number of tourists visiting Kenya will increase to three million, and tourism revenue is projected to reach Sh542 billion.

Wildlife is one of the major tourist attractions, but poaching remains a serious threat to their numbers. Sadly, the most targeted species are on the verge of extinction.

The Rhino is one of the most endangered species in the world today.

 Kenya’s worst year for poaching was in 2013 when 59 rhinos were killed, more than 5 per cent of the national rhino population, according to the 2021 State of the Rhino Report.

Rhinos are usually killed for the possession of their majestic horns, resulting in a critical threat to their existence.

Data by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) estimates the current world rhino population to be at 27,000, a drastic 95 percent drop from a previous population of 500,000 at the beginning of the 20th century.

The primary culprit is persistent poaching, followed by habitat loss due to human activities over many decades.

This declining trend was observed at the Rhino Valley, home to the Ngulia Sanctuary, where there was a significant drop in the rhino population from 100,000 in the 1970s to 100 in the early 2000s.

What was once home to nearly half of Kenya’s rhino population eventually hosted only 13 per cent of the Kenyan rhino population, marking a tragic loss to Kenya’s overall wildlife ecosystem.

It is for this reason that Project Ngulia was initiated to halt the trend.

With the rise of technology, game parks can deploy technology to reduce poaching incidences and this has been applied at the Project Ngulia rhino conservation project, situated at the heart of Kenya’s Tsavo West National Park.

The initiative, founded in 2013 is a collaboration between the Stimson Centre, Linköping University (LiU), Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS) and Airtel Kenya.

The project employs cutting-edge technology to monitor rhinos within the sanctuary, exemplifying how innovation can strengthen conservation efforts in safeguarding wildlife populations in the country.

Upon its inception, the project aimed to utilise cameras strategically placed throughout the sanctuary to monitor wildlife activity, including the movement of rhinos and other key species.

These cameras capture images and videos of animals, providing valuable data on population dynamics, behaviour patterns, and potential threats such as poaching.

The sanctuary also employs a sophisticated monitoring system called Eprotection system, an android application, and a web platform, which integrates data from the cameras and other surveillance devices.

The Eprotection systems allows for real-time monitoring of wildlife movements and security incidents, enabling rapid response to threats and illegal activities within the sanctuary.

Donald Bunge, Country Manager of the project from Linkoping University, whose job entails running the day-to-day operations of the sanctuary and ensuring that all systems work efficiently, says that the technology deployed at the park serves as the “eyes and ears” of the park rangers.

 “The deployment of the technology at the sanctuary has taken rhino conservation to a whole new level by ensuring instantaneous monitoring of wildlife activity. I call it the ‘super eyes and ears’ of the rangers because it has enabled us to stay ahead of the poachers,” said Bunge during the interview in the sanctuary during the weekend.

The system has upgrades from the initial Eprotection system version 1 (EP-1) deployed in 2015 to the soon-to-be-rolled-out EP-4, which integrates more sophisticated capabilities such as a platform for more sensors including environmental sensors, gunshot detectors, AI cameras, tracking tags for collars and foot-bands (including the unique Bluetooth tags developed in the project) that can be monitored by the management from any location with good internet connectivity of at least 3G.

Since the technology is highly dependent on internet connectivity, the partners approached Airtel Kenya to provide the internet.

According to Hussein Versi, Airtel Kenya Networks Director, the company has always been keen on conservation and when they learned of the project, they were more than willing to partner to make it a success.

 “At Airtel, our primary responsibility is to ensure the seamless operation of the technology by delivering reliable internet connectivity, essential for the functioning of systems like the Eprotection system. As of November 2023, we had donated 150 SIM cards to the project with monthly 10GB data, 400 hours voice, and 2000 SMS top-ups to aid the wardens communications needs and integration of the phones to the technology,” said Versi.

In addition, the project supplies patrol teams with mobile phones, enabling them to communicate efficiently and report incidents directly to the sanctuary’s control centre.

These phones are equipped with location-tracking capabilities, enhancing the safety and effectiveness of patrol operations in remote areas of the sanctuary.

Bunge recalled that before the deployment of technology at the Ngulia sanctuary, the rangers’ operations involved a more traditional and manual approach to wildlife conservation and park management.

He said back then, conservation efforts relied heavily on the rangers’ knowledge of the land, wildlife behaviour, and tracking skills to patrol the vast wilderness of Tsavo, to protect endangered rhinos.

The manual approach, he said is inefficient and poachers took advantage of the vast and rugged terrain of the game parks to carry out their evil deeds.

“With technology, such strenuous activities are reduced, and the game rangers can focus on caring for the Rhinos instead,” Bunge added.

Due to such recorded success at the Ngulia Project, the government, and other partners have since adopted a similar project at the Solio Game Reserve, indicating the potential for replication and adaptation in other parks and conservancies across the country.