Laikipia District is a vast plateau to the north west of snow-capped Mount Kenya, in Kenya’s Rift Valley Province.  It spans an area of over 9,500km², and forms part of the 40,000km² Ewaso ecosystem.  The Laikipia plains stretch from the Great Rift Valley to the magnificent escarpments which descend into Northern Frontier District.

The People and land-use:  Laikipia is home to ethnically diverse communities, including the Mukogodo Maasai, Kikuyu, and Meru, who live side by side with Europeans, Turkana, Samburu and Pokot.  Cattle-rearing on large commercial ranches and community owned rangelands has for many years been the life-blood of the community.  As so much of Laikipia has traditionally been used for low intensity grazing it has become a cherished haven for big game.

Wildlife:  Increasingly acknowledged as one of the most important areas for biodiversity in Kenya, Laikipia continues to record rising or stable wildlife numbers, in contrast to a declining trend throughout much of the country.  Wildlife population densities in the Laikipia region now rank second to the internationally renowned Maasai Mara ecosystem, whilst the diversity of large mammals is higher than in any other part of Kenya.  The Ewaso ecosystem is home to the second largest population of elephant in Kenya (6,000+) and Laikipia hosts the highest populations of endangered species, such as  black rhino (half of Kenya’s total population), Grevy’s zebra (70% of the world’s population), reticulated giraffe, and the only viable population of Lelwel hartebeest in the country, as well as Africa’s only expanding population of wild dog.  Laikipia’s biodiversity is globally unique, yet remarkably Laikipia is not a protected area, and Laikipia’s wildlife is entirely sustained by private and communal landowners.