Kenya aims to boost the animal's population growth to 8% per year, President William Ruto has said

Kenyan President William Ruto officially opened the largest rhino sanctuary in the world in Tsavo West on Tuesday.

The expansion combines the previously overcrowded Ngulia Rhino Sanctuary and the Tsavo West Intensive Protection Zone to create one larger habitat. 

The president stated that "from modest beginnings of three rhinos on a three-square-kilometer parcel 40 years ago, the Tsavo West Rhino Sanctuary has grown into a national and global treasure. Expanding it to 3,200 square kilometers - the largest in the world."

Ruto said Kenya is now aiming to raise the country's black rhino population growth from 5% to 8% annually through improved habitat, technology, and security.

"Today, Kenya is home to about 2,100 rhinos, including 1,060 black rhinos, 1,040 southern white rhinos, and the world's last two northern white rhinos. We have in our custody nearly 78 per cent of the global population of the Eastern Black Rhino," Ruto said at the launch, as quoted by The Star.

The government plans further development around the sanctuary. Ruto said high-end hotels and carbon credit revenue will be pursued to support conservation and community benefits. 

"We are building a high-value tourism circuit in Tsavo and beyond, enterprise zones connected to conservancies, research, training, and ecological technology for our young people," he stated, adding that Nairobi has "invested heavily in drone cameras, aircraft, and other security systems."

Jobs in conservation, security, monitoring, construction, and tourism are expected to grow. Government projections estimate over 18,000 jobs and more than $45 million in revenue by 2030.

According to a local outlet, in the early 1970s, the region had more than 8,000 black rhinos, but the numbers fell dramatically due to poaching, drought, and land pressure.

However, the combined number of black and white rhinos rose from 1,603 in 2020 to around 2,100 by the end of 2024 - growth of 31% over four years, according to the Economic Survey 2025.

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The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) said on X that the initiative will help guarantee that future generations inherit a landscape in which rhinos are "not just seen, but protected, valued, and celebrated."