IUCN Ranks Lewa in Global Top 40

March 22, 2019 - 4 minutes read

Lewa Wildlife Conservancy has once again been ranked in the prestigious IUCN Green List of Protected Areas, one of only 3 Kenya national parks or game reserves to feature in the global Top 40.

The IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) is the global authority on the status of the natural world and the measures needed to safeguard it.

Sites on the IUCN Green List must reach a very high standard of excellence, with clear and measurable benefits for both nature and local communities. For Lewa to be included in the list, the conservancy had to demonstrate excellence based on a rigorous assessment of 17 criteria in four areas: governance, management, design and planning and conservation outcomes.

The Elewana Collection offers two properties in the conservancy — Elewana Lewa Safari Camp and Elewana Kifaru House — which are the only two tourism properties owned by the conservancy itself with the aim of boosting revenue through camp occupancy.

All camp profits and conservancy fees generated by the camps are reinvested directly into conservation and community efforts of Lewa Wildlife Conservancy.

Elewana Kifaru House

Guests can relax and feel at home, choosing how they spend their time. Whether lying by the picturesque infinity pool and gazing out over the African plains or sitting in the library leisurely reading a book, time stands still at Elewana Kifaru House.

Each of the five cottages offer spectacular views from well-appointed bedrooms, complete with four-poster beds and generous en-suite bathrooms. The camp’s intimate and homey atmosphere offers true luxury in the bush with unrivaled wildlife viewing.

Elewana Lewa Safari Camp

This unique and exclusive retreat offers privileged access to 65,000 acres of private protected wilderness. The camp features large tented bedrooms with their own veranda and full en-suite bathroom. Guests enjoy a host of activities — from walking safaris, horse or camel rides, to visiting the new conservancy joint-operations center, local cultural experiences, or simply relaxing by the pool.

Lewa Wildlife Conservancy

Created in 1995, Lewa was previously a cattle ranch owned by David and Delia Craig, who decided to dedicate their entire property to wildlife conservation, especially the critically endangered rhino.

Lewa Wildlife Conservancy covers 65,000 acres of pristine African wilderness. With dramatic views of snowcapped Mt Kenya to the south and the arid Tassia and Il Ngwesi regions to the north, Lewa showcases a range of wild habitats including highland forest, wide-open grasslands, melt-water mountain springs and acacia woodland. The conservancy supports over 440 bird species and more than 70 different types of mammal that roam a vast expanse near Mt Kenya.

Since 1984, its rhino population has grown steadily, not only restoring local numbers but enabling the reintroduction of black rhinos into other regions of East Africa where they had long been extinct. The conservancy is currently home to over 10% of the black and 15% of white rhinos in Kenya, as well as the largest population of the critically-endangered Grevy’s zebra in the world.

The conservancy also carries out extensive outreach work in the surrounding tribal communities through its Community Development Programme and has improved the livelihoods of hundreds of families living on its boundaries with its healthcare, micro-finance, community-managed water projects and education programs for both adults and children.

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