The Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS), in partnership with Huawei-Kenya and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has launched the Tech4Nature project at the Kisite-Mpunguti Marine Park and Reserve in the Coast Region.
The three-year project will see the deployment of underwater cameras, photogrammetry, and audio monitoring technologies to monitor marine life, including the biomass and population of parrot fish which are key in preventing coral from being smothered by seaweed and algae through their diet.
Speaking during the launch of the Tech4Nature project on Monday, KWS Senior Assistant Director, Coast Conservation Area, Adan Kala said deployment of the technologies will ensure coverage in a wider area.
“For us to deliver our mandate of protecting and conserving our wildlife, both terrestrial and in the marine ecosystems, you have to understand your resources very well. We are partnering with Huawei and IUCN to deploy underwater cameras to acquire some data on marine mammals, corals, and fisheries to make informed decisions. The advantage of this technology is that it can be deployed in wider areas that we couldn’t patrol every single day to get data for day and night for us to make good, informed decisions,” said Adan Kala.
Aligned with Huawei’s TECH4ALL initiative and the IUCN Green List, the objective of the project is to strengthen the monitoring and management efficacy of the protected area.
The project will address challenges faced by the Kisite-Mpunguti Marine Park and Reserve, including; illegal fishing and insufficient human resources to effectively patrol the area, lack of remote monitoring for the reserve’s three coral islands coupled with pressures created by tourism, and limited community awareness of the importance of reef and biodiversity protection.
During the launch, Huawei-Kenya’s Media Director Khadija Mohammed underscored the importance of leveraging technology and innovation to solve pressing global challenges.
“Climate change and biodiversity loss are threatening the health of our planet and placing our longevity in a precarious position. However, advances in technology are offering humanity and our home a lifeline: innovative thinking and smart solutions are already helping to mitigate some of the world’s most pressing environmental problems,” said Khadija.
The solution will also monitor substrate cover in the reef ecosystems, seagrass cover, and the occurrence of green turtles and bottlenose dolphins, which are classified on the IUCN Red List as endangered and vulnerable, respectively.
“The technology we are bringing here is extremely important because it is the first one that it will be used in Kenya marine conservation. It will be the first monitoring instrument and data capturing and analysis in the marine protected area. It is also an opportunity to help the park to obtain green list certification to support sustainability agenda that most tourists like and as well as to ensure our future generation enjoy the benefits of the Marine parks,” said Innocent Kabenga, Country Representative-IUCN Kenya Country Office.
The use of Artificial Intelligence to recognize specific target species by sight or sound will provide real-time data-driven insights into the behaviors, populations, and distribution of biodiversity in the reserve and reef ecosystem. The system will also be able to identify boats used for illegal fishing, and send alerts for rangers to intervene in near real time.
As well as the technical side of the solution, the project will include community outreach to raise awareness about biodiversity changes over time and the presence of different species, including those that are threatened, vulnerable, or endangered.
The site will also be assessed against the IUCN Green List Standard, with the goal being that the reserve obtains Green List certification
