At the Global Conservation Tech and Drone Forum held in Nairobi, KWS Director General Prof. Erustus Kanga made it clear that the agency is moving away from conventional conservation methods and going all-in on technology, drones, sensor networks, live data platforms and the works.
The push isn’t just about keeping up with the times. Kanga pointed to a growing list of threats, poaching networks, a shifting climate, and the ever-tense friction between wildlife and human settlements as reasons why smarter, faster tools are no longer optional.
“Technology is the way forward for the Kenya Wildlife Service,” he said. “Our mandate to conserve wildlife, protect biodiversity, enforce laws, safeguard marine ecosystems, and drive sustainable tourism demands nothing less.”
What’s notable is that KWS isn’t still talking about plans, it’s already executing them. Over the past five months, the agency has trained pilots on both multi-rotor and fixed-wing VTOL drone systems, built out integrated data reporting structures, and established compliance frameworks designed to make sure drone intelligence actually translates into action on the ground.
Kanga was pointed in pushing back against the idea that this is just a tech showcase. “This is not technology for demonstration,” he said. “It is technology embedded within doctrine supported by standard operating procedures, safety oversight, regulatory compliance, and sustained mentoring focused on real missions. Technology and conservation are no longer separate ideas; they are fused pillars of lasting impact.”
The forum also heard from John Paul Okwiri, CEO of KONZA Technopolis, who offered a different but complementary angle on the conservation-development conversation. The 5,000-acre smart city project, he noted, sits alongside a rich mix of wildlife, flora and fauna that are very much part of Kenya’s natural landscape.
Rather than treat nature as something to work around, KONZA made a deliberate choice to build with it in mind, carving out a 1,000-acre wildlife corridor within the city’s boundaries, rolling out a biodiversity strategy, and committing to a development model where urban growth and natural ecosystems aren’t forced to fight for the same space.
