Eco-commerce initiative gets boost

An eco-commerce initiative by WildlifeDirect has received a major boost from several donors and supporters geared at advancing the group’s effort to interlink commercial activities and wildlife conservation.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Wild Lives Foundation donated $30,000 and $10,000 respectively while CMC Motors provided an attractive discount to WildlifeDirect towards the purchase of the Mazda pick-up truck valued at more than Sh4.1 million.

The community project known as Imbirikani Women’s project is an initiative of Margaret Kenyatta, First Lady of the Republic of Kenya and is being implemented by WildlifeDirect with funding support from the UNDP. Based in the greater Amboseli ecosystem, the project is spearheading a transformative commercial enterprise geared at shifting income-generating patterns.

The fledgling enterprise is seeking to shift local communities from activities that escalate human wildlife conflict to alternative options such as beadwork production for the local and international market. CMC Motors Group Managing Director Wanjohi Kangangi expressed the firm’s commitment to continue supporting community-based development organisations.