The Hub Mall sponsors Rhino Charge team to boost conservation efforts

For the third year in a row, The Hub Karen mall has announced its sponsorship for the Rhino Charge competition to the tune of Ksh. 500,000, underpinning its commitment towards wildlife conservation in Kenya.

While announcing the sponsorship, The Hub Karen Mall Marketing Manager Linda Muriithi, hailed the organisers of the event “for offering an opportunity for the private sector to make a lasting contribution to wildlife conservation.”

This year’s Rhino Charge’s key projects of focus are the Mt. Kenya & Aberdare Fence project, Bongo Surveillance and towards a Joint Surveillance Unit.

“Our commitment to Car 61 team reiterates our continued support towards Rhino Ark’s conservation efforts of the Mountain forest areas and especially to the critically endangered Mountain Bongo,” said Ms Muriithi.

She added: “We believe in the responsibility bestowed on the private sector to play its part in salvaging the country’s biodiversity and we will continue to do so.”

The car 61 team consists of Driver, Ekya Shah, Navigator, Nikunj Shah and Runners, Rajul Shah, Kamal Shah, Minesh Rathod and Reval Shah.

“We are happy to have the support from The Hub Mall once again as we partner for the noble cause of conservation,” said Ekya Shah, Driver of Car 61.

With a current population of less than 100 individuals remaining, the Mountain Bongo have been classified as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

The Hub Karen Mall, East Africa's first open air shopping destination, is part of the Business investment portfolio of businessman Humphrey Kariuki. His other business interests include the Mount Kenya Safari Club and the Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy which runs the only Mountain Bongo breeding program in Kenya.

The Hub Karen mall has over the past three years supported Rhino Ark’s work towards seeking sustainable, long term solutions to the conservation challenges facing mountain forest ecosystems, and other areas of important biodiversity under threat. The mall is also a strong advocate of the Green energy agenda.

As part of its going-green initiatives, the Hub Karen Mall recently announced plans to install a 450 Kilowatt solar electric power generating plant, projecting a cut in the mall’s CO2 emissions by 525.18 tonnes per year.

Since 1989, the Rhino Charge event has raised funds for the construction of the Aberdare Electric Fence and the significant success of the project has seen the efforts extended to Mt Kenya and Mau Eburu to prevent destructive activity within the forest reserves.

The Rhino Charge event to be held in June 2017, is expected to not only benefit the hosting communities through access fees from thousands of participants but also raise the areas profile as a conservation destination.