Northern Kenya – Ewaso Lions

Kura’s Pride Just Got a Powerful Boost

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]At Ewaso Lions, through community-led conservation, we have seen how strategic impact happens when people who know their neighbours, understand local concerns, and have earned their trust lead the conversation.

That is exactly what Kura’s Pride is building in Westgate Community Conservancy through the Kura’s Pride Ambassadors.

Meet the Kura’s Pride Ambassadors

Our Kura’s Pride programme has welcomed eight new Ambassadors: Nyati, Nakwatu, Sharon, Nosurai, Meeme, Njuana, Stellah, and Doris. Women drawn from all locations across Westgate Community Conservancy.

These are women engrained in the daily life of their communities. They understand how livestock is important to their communities. They know which families have dogs and cats. They know which households have questions or concerns about their animals. They know how to have the difficult conversations with patience, with trust, and with cultural fluency that no outside team can replicate.

As Kura’s Pride Ambassadors, they accompany our Domestic Animal Mobile Veterinary Unit (MVU) on field vaccination drives across Westgate Community Conservancy, speaking directly with community members about the importance of vaccinations and responsible animal care. Their presence transforms what might feel like a veterinary visit into a community-led conversation that is built on relationship and not instruction.

824 Vaccinations in 4 Days

The impact of this approach showed up clearly in the numbers from a mid-April vaccination drive organised this year across Westgate.

In just four days, the MVU vaccinated 824 dogs and cats against rabies and distemper, a result that reflects not just logistical efficiency but genuine community trust and participation.

Rabies remains one of the leading causes of human death in rural Kenya, and distemper poses serious risks to both domestic animals and wildlife. When animals in pastoral landscapes go unvaccinated, the consequences ripple outward: to livestock, to the predators that share those landscapes, and to the communities that depend on both.

Healthy animals mean healthier communities. Healthier communities mean a landscape where people, livestock, and predators, including lions, have a better chance of coexisting.

The MVU operates through a partnership between Ewaso Lions, the Samburu County Department of Veterinary Services, Animal Care Centre, VetinWild, and the Foundation for International Aid to Animals. This coalition brings together government, NGOs, and specialist veterinary expertise in the service of community-led conservation.

The addition of the Kura’s Pride Ambassadors strengthens that partnership from the ground up, ensuring that the communities being served are not just recipients of veterinary care but active participants in it.

Images by Simatwa Ngachi[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

BIG CATS: A Story of Coexistence in Northern Kenya

Looking through the lens at the northern Kenyan horizon, we don’t just see wildlife. We see stories of transformation, of people reclaiming their connection to the land, and of lions finding safety in places once marked by conflict. In this landscape, lions face mounting threats: habitat fragmentation, human-wildlife conflict, and the steady disappearance of prey due to land degradation. But amid these challenges, we also witness hope. Through community-led conservation, these struggles are being met with resilience, and continued coexistence is slowly becoming possible.

We follow the journeys of two powerful community-led conservation movements, Warrior Watch and Mama Simba, anchored by Ewaso Lions in the heart of Samburu. These aren’t just programmes, they are revolutions in how conservation can be done when the community takes the lead.

In the Warrior Watch programme, traditional knowledge meets modern tools. With each scan of the binoculars, he’s not just looking for lions; he’s watching over his people’s livestock, preserving peace, and protecting Kenya’s last wild lions. © Anthony Ochieng Onyango

Through Warrior Watch, the Samburu warriors, men who were once seen only as potential threats to wildlife, are today the protectors. The programme idea came from a Samburu warrior himself, Jeneria Lekilelei. Armed not with weapons, but with smartphones, binoculars, notebooks, and a resolve. They track lion movements, alert herders of approaching lions, and prevent livestock loss. They traverse thorny terrain, sometimes on foot, sometimes by vehicle, covering hundreds of kilometres not for glory, but to keep the peace. They’ve moved from the periphery to the centre of the conservation story, and they know it.

Mama Simba involved in restoration efforts in the landscape. © Anthony Ochieng Onyango

Then there’s Mama Simba. In 2013, a group of Samburu women from Westgate Conservancy approached Ewaso Lions, expressing a desire to be actively involved in conservation. Their request led to the founding of Mama Simba (Mother of Lions), a pioneering initiative that empowers women to protect lions, educate their communities, and advocate for continued coexistence. These women are not just mothers; they are matriarchs of change. They bead, they teach, they monitor lions, and they meet drought with dignity by growing grass and digging water pans for wildlife. Their mantra, “bringing back wildlife to women,” isn’t a slogan. It’s a return to balance.

These images and voices reveal what happens when conservation isn’t imposed, it’s lived. And in that living, lions gain more than safety. They gain allies.

Featured Image: Our Mama Simba Manager, Munteli, the first woman from a village to drive in Samburu. Mama Simba was also her brainchild (together with Mparasaroi). © Anthony Ochieng Onyango

Published in Big Cats Magazine VOL 3/Issue 1/ January – February 2026

A New Home for a New Generation of Conservation Leaders

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]Lion Kids Camp has been transformed. When we launched in 2013, we squeezed 15 eager children into basic shelters, taught under the shade of Acacia trees, hired vehicles, and dreamed of the day we could reach more young people across northern Kenya. The energy was always there. The space to grow, not quite yet. Today, that fully upgraded Camp can reach more than 375 young people every year. And that is just the beginning.

That day is here…

After more than 200 days of construction, our revamped Lion Kids Camp is now open and everything we hoped it would be. The upgrade was not just about building new structures. It was about building capacity: the physical space, the infrastructure, and the foundation to grow a new generation of conservation leaders from the communities that live alongside lions every day.

Before and After

The scale of the upgrade speaks for itself. Where we once hosted 175 children annually, we can now welcome 375. Where we ran 7 Camps a year, we can now deliver 15 Lion Kids Camps annually. It is more than double the reach and more than double the impact. This year alone, we are hosting 15 Lion Kids Camps, 3 Warrior Camps and 10 Reunion Camps, bringing back 500 alumni.

Before the upgrade:

Basic shelters, limited facilities
7 Camps per year
175 children annually

After the upgrade:

15 Lion Kids Camps + 3 Warrior Camps + 10 Reunion Camps planned this year
375 children annually
New mess hall and learning area, a fully equipped kitchen, tents with shading and proper bunk beds, a solar-powered system, and water storage through 12 tanks

Built to Last, Built to Learn

Every element of the new Camp has been designed with the children in mind. The new mess hall and learning area give young people a proper space to gather, eat, and engage with conservation concepts no longer under the shade of a tree, though we will always love those Acacia trees. The kitchen means meals can be prepared safely and at scale. The tents with shading, bunk beds, and solar power mean children can sleep comfortably and stay connected to learning even after dark. And 12 water storage tanks mean the Camp can operate consistently through the dry season.

More Than a Camp

Lion Kids Camp has always been about more than a week in the bush. It is about planting seeds in curious young minds from communities that share land with lions, elephants, and wild dogs. Children who attend Lion Kids Camp go home with something different: a deeper connection to wildlife, a sense of responsibility, and the beginning of a conservation identity that can carry through into adulthood.

With the upgraded Camp now able to host more than one Lion Kids Camp a month, that pipeline has been widened. More children. More communities. More new conservationists.

Since the new Camp opened, we have already welcomed children for three Lion Kids Camps and one Reunion Camp, and the energy has been extraordinary. The Camps are fuller, the learning spaces are better, and the young people of northern Kenya are arriving ready to engage.

Images by Simatwa Ngachi and Ewaso Lions[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Protecting People, Livestock and Wildlife on Our Roads

A milestone moment for people, livestock, wildlife, and the roads we share in northern Kenya: 26 new wildlife crossing signs now stand along the A2 Highway in northern Kenya, marking years of data, dedication, and collaboration.

In February 2026, we celebrated a significant milestone: the installation of 26 wildlife and livestock warning road signs along key wildlife corridors of the A2 Highway. This is not just about road signs. It is about recognising that the roads cutting through our landscape are also shared by lions, elephants, zebras, and the livestock of the communities who call this place home.

The A2 Highway passes through some of the most important habitats and wildlife corridors in northern Kenya, cutting across National Reserves and Community Conservancies, including Kalama Community Conservancy, where wildlife and people continue to coexist. This Highway is essential for northern Kenya, and so is ensuring it is safe for every user of this landscape, whether people, livestock, or wildlife.

Where the Signs Are and Why It Matters

The 26 signs have been strategically placed in high-risk areas where wildlife-vehicle collisions have been documented over many years. Over 400 animals have been killed along the A2 Highway in northern Kenya over the past decade, including 2 lions hit between Buffalo Springs and Shaba National Reserves. By alerting drivers to wildlife crossing zones, these signs act as a first line of defence, slowing drivers down, raising awareness, and ultimately saving lives on both sides of the road.

The placement of these signs was based on data collected over many years through the Northern Kenya Road Watch. Citizen Science was a key aspect where drivers, community members, and conservation partners alike provided a robust dataset on how wildlife traverses the landscape, tracking movement patterns, identifying pinch-points and critical corridors, and building the evidence base needed to act.

A Long-Term Message

While these signs are a short-term mitigation measure, they carry a long-term message: that the threats facing wildlife in shared landscapes are real, that they are being taken seriously, and that action is possible. Road kills have been a serious concern across this landscape for years. Seeing tangible, on-the-ground action is something we do not take for granted.

There is still much work to be done. But every sign installed is a signal, to drivers, to communities, and to the wildlife navigating this landscape, that this road can be made safer. That we are paying attention.

The Power of Collaboration

This achievement represents years of collaborative work to reduce roadkill, protect lions and livestock from being hit, and ensure road-user safety in the landscape we all share and would not have been possible without the dedication and partnership of many. The Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA), the Northern Kenya Road Watch and all its partners, Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), the National Reserves, Westgate Community Conservancy and Kalama Conservancy all played a critical role. Their collective commitment to finding solutions is a powerful reminder of what is possible when conservation organisations, government agencies, and local communities work together toward a shared goal.

We are also grateful to Action for Cheetahs, the Grevy’s Zebra Trust and Save the Elephants, among others, whose contributions to the data collection and initiative made this possible. Conservation at this scale demands exactly this kind of coordinated, cross-sector effort. We are also grateful to Ewaso Lions donors for funding the construction of these road signs.

Written by Victoria Wanjohi and photos by Simatwa Ngachi.

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