Saturday June 4 2016 the IVORY BELONGS TO ELEPHANTS EAST AFRICA WALK was officially flagged off at the KICC grounds by the first lady of the Republic Of Kenya H.E Margaret Kenyatta. The walk is led by JIM NYAMU & his team who will walk from 4th June - 30th September 2016 covering a total distance of 3200km across East Africa as they raise awareness on Elephant & Rhino poaching. & educating communities about conservation.
As my God given duty to watch over other creation. I was definitely interested in Jim's efforts on conservation. I therefore decided to join him on the first day of his walk from Nairobi - Kitengela (if not for other commitments I would have gone as far as my legs would have taken me). Poaching industry is a big market with a gross income of over 40 billion dollars annually but with devastating consequences e.g wiping out of an entire species. This has led to various world leaders including our president (who recently sent a strong message by burning one of the largest stockpile of ivory ever) putting tough measures against poaching & trade in wildlife products.
In the 1970's & 80's there were hundreds of thousands of Elephants & Rhinos roaming the plains of East Africa , but as soon as man's greed set in. The numbers have reduced drastically. With only around 2000 Rhinos remaining in Kenya (all under 24hr surveillance due to the seriousness of the matter).
Man's greed has gone too far that the Hyena is now in the endangered species list. Sooner or later man's greed will catch up with him & he will be the next victim, but before this happens those who care must try & do something.
If we protect these animals there will be enough Ivory & Rhino horn for everyone who desires a piece. Because the numbers of these animals will increase & when they die from natural causes you will be allowed to get a piece of what you desire from them legitimately. I think this is what God intended for us (to live in harmony with nature & it will give us back its full benefits). But the opposite is evident, our greed is slowly killing us. You can see by the situation of our rivers, forests & how we treat each other. But before its too late we need more people to stand up like Jim & raise awareness & teach people on the benefits of conservation. Many industries benefit when we protect & conserve our environment. A good example is the TOURISM industry which is very big in Kenya. One of the leading sources of foreign exchange for our country, good for the transport & hotel industries, countless employment opportunities for our youth & the rest of the population. So if we say NO TO POACHING. we are assured to generate huge incomes protecting our wildlife.
I learnt a lot from my 30KM walk on that day & am gonna carry it with me for the rest of my life. I'm gonna get more involved in conservation & also try to educate my peers on the same.
Its your responsibility too so make an effort to conserve the environment & protect wildlife.
SAY NO TO POACHING
IVORY BELONGS TO THE ELEPHANTS
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