Two Kenyan conservationists have received international recognition after Prince William presented them with top honours at the 14th annual Tusk Conservation Awards in London.
Raabia Hawa, founder and director of Ulinzi Africa Foundation, won the Tusk Award for Conservation in Africa, while Daniel Yiankere, security manager at Loisaba Conservancy in Laikipia County, received the Tusk Wildlife Ranger Award.
The Prince of Wales presented the awards during a ceremony held at Raffles London at The OWO in Whitehall on Wednesday, November 11, 2026. The event brought together conservationists, wildlife advocates and supporters of efforts to protect Africa’s natural heritage.
The two Kenyans were recognised alongside Mozambique’s Dr Colleen Begg, who received the Prince William Award for Conservation in Africa for her decades of work protecting wildlife and supporting communities.
William, who serves as Tusk’s Royal Patron, used the occasion to highlight the difficult conditions conservationists face while protecting endangered species and natural habitats.
“It is critical that we continue to support the vital work being spotlighted here this evening,” he said, calling on more people to recognise and support conservation efforts.
Hawa received the Tusk Award for Conservation in Africa for her work defending wildlife and fragile ecosystems along Kenya’s northern coastline, particularly in the Tana Delta and Lamu landscape.
Through Ulinzi Africa Foundation, which she established in 2014, Hawa works with rangers and local communities to protect areas including Kipini Forest and the Milihoi mangrove creeks.
These habitats support elephants, migratory birds and other wildlife. Her work combines frontline conservation with legal action against activities that threaten the environment.
According to Tusk, Hawa has pursued cases involving illegal fishing, destructive bottom trawling and proposed mining activities. She also played a central role in the impounding of the MV Roberto in April 2021 over allegations linked to illegal fishing.
Her efforts against bushmeat poaching have also contributed to the recovery of coastal topi populations. In one stronghold, their numbers increased from approximately 33 to more than 300.
Hawa said the recognition reflected the efforts of rangers and communities who have continued protecting the region despite difficult working conditions and limited public attention.
“What keeps me committed, of course, is a deep hunger for justice for wildlife and the environment,” she said.
The award comes with £75,000 in funding over three years for Ulinzi Africa Foundation to support its conservation work.
Yiankere received the Tusk Wildlife Ranger Award in recognition of more than 30 years of frontline conservation work.
He currently serves as security manager at Loisaba Conservancy in Laikipia County, where he leads a team of more than 100 security and wildlife monitoring personnel.
His conservation career began in 1992 after he joined the Kenya Wildlife Service. Over the years, he served in several conservation areas, including Tsavo, Amboseli, Meru, the Maasai Mara and Marsabit.
Tusk credited Yiankere with helping maintain a period of zero poaching incidents at Loisaba since he joined the conservancy in 2017.
He also played a central role in the return of 21 critically endangered eastern black rhinos to Loisaba in 2024. The population has since grown, with calves born as part of the recovery programme.
Beyond wildlife protection, Yiankere works with neighbouring communities through security and grazing committees. He is also involved in efforts to expand the rhino sanctuary onto community-owned land.
He described conservation as an effort that requires cooperation with the people who live alongside wildlife.
“Conservation is not something you do to a community. It is something you do with them,” he said.
The Tusk Wildlife Ranger Award carries £50,000 in funding over three years for the work of the winning organisation.
The third major award went to Dr Colleen Begg of Mozambique, who received the Prince William Award for Conservation in Africa.
Begg founded the Niassa Carnivore Project and has spent more than three decades working to protect large carnivores while supporting communities living alongside wildlife.
Her work includes promoting coexistence between people and predators and supporting women conservation leaders across Africa.
The award carries £100,000 over three years for the recipient’s conservation organisation.
The ceremony also recognised Kenyan conservationist John Kamanga and Zimbabwean wildlife ranger Amos Gwema, who won Tusk awards in 2020 but could not attend the ceremony that year because of COVID-19 travel restrictions.
Established in 2013, the Tusk Conservation Awards recognise individuals whose work protects Africa’s wildlife, habitats and communities. The awards are organised by conservation charity Tusk in partnership with investment firm Ninety One and under the patronage of Prince William.
The financial grants go to the winners’ organisations rather than directly to the individual award recipients. They are intended to strengthen conservation programmes and support the people working to protect threatened species and ecosystems.
