Cash will go to supporting conservation of 3 key national water towers

May 8, 2012……Kenya Airways cargo division, KQ Cargo, today announced its sponsorship of this year’s Rhino Charge Event which is seeking to raise money to support the construction of electric fences around the country’s three largest water towers. 

The national carrier has set aside Ksh1.5 million through Cargo, to fund the activities of the Rhino Ark Charitable Trust, which spearheads the conservation effort. 

The Trust has in recent years spearheaded the construction of an electric fence around the Aberdares Range, one of the country’s principal water towers. It plans to expand the scope of its conservation efforts to cover the Mau-Eburru Ranges and Mt Kenya. 

According to Kenya Airways Chief Operating Officer Mbuvi Ngunze, of the total sponsorship, Ksh750,000 will go toward directly supporting the Trust’s activities. The rest will be used to support one of the teams participating in this year’s event called Global Freight. 

“Protecting our forest ecosystems through initiatives such the electric fencing of the Aberdares not only preserves a rich natural heritage but also minimizes incidences of human –wildlife conflict,” noted Ngunze. 

General Manager KQ Cargo Sauda Rajab said the sponsorship underlined the airline’s focus on global best practices which emphasize environmentally sound business operations. “As a business that is attuned to global best practices, we see it as our responsibility to support environmental protection and conservation. This is imperative to sustainable business development,” said Rajab.  

This is the first time that KQ Cargo is sponsoring the event, a grueling motorsport competition that attracts dozens of contestants each year. 

Kenya has five main water towers namely, Mt Kenya, Aberdares, Mau, Cherangany and Mt Elgon. Some of them are home to the country’s richest flora and fauna resources. 

Mbuvi noted that Kenya Airways had an ongoing Carbon Offset Programme in partnership with IATA through which the airline offers its passengers an opportunity to offset carbon dioxide emissions related to their flights. The carbon offset contributions collected on behalf of passengers are invested in environmental conservation projects in Kenya.  

KQ Cargo operates one B 747-400 freighter and had revenues amounting to over Ksh7 billion in 2010/11.