Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS) has confirmed plans to move the Nairobi Animal Orphanage to a location across from the Bomas of Kenya.
The service made the announcement on Friday, June 5, explaining that the move is intended to enhance rescue and rehabilitation capabilities for wildlife.
KWS reports that the volume of wild animals requiring rescue and rehabilitation has grown substantially, making the current facility inadequate.
The orphanage is currently situated within Nairobi National Park, occupying a limited space.
The facility will be transferred to an 89-hectare property in Galleria, positioned across from Bomas of Kenya, allowing for improved handling of rising incidents involving injured, orphaned, and displaced wildlife.
The choice of location was based on scientific, environmental, operational, and visitor management factors, as per KWS.
The orphanage experiences significant congestion during peak periods, as it stands among the most frequently visited conservation education centers nationwide.
According to the service, the Nairobi National Park location was not constructed to handle the current scale and complexity of operations, necessitating the relocation.
The new location exceeds the current site by over twenty times in size and is situated along Langata Road. It also provides direct access to Nairobi National Park and adjacent ecosystems.
The service states that the facility can accommodate more than 20,000 animals, with provisions for future expansion.
The relocation project will also create employment opportunities for young Kenyans during construction and operation, along with business prospects for service providers.
Earlier in March, KWS disclosed that the new facility would include spacious enclosures constructed to meet welfare standards established by the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), both internationally recognized conservation organizations.
The enhanced orphanage will contain a fully equipped veterinary unit, a contemporary wildlife hospital with surgical capabilities, quarantine areas, nursery facilities for rescued animals, and specific zones to support rewilding initiatives.