21 July 2011: Under the auspices of the Lusaka Agreement Task Force and as part of the African Elephant Law Enforcement Day celebrations, the Kenya Wildlife Service and the President of Kenya, Mwai Kibaki, burned five tons of contraband ivory in an effort to draw attention to the predicament of the African elephant.

The purpose of the first African Law Enforcement Day, convened on 20 July 2011, in Kenya’s Tsavo West National Park, under the theme “Fostering cooperation to combat elephant poaching and ivory trafficking in Africa,” was to celebrate the importance of the African elephant and appreciate the challenges faced in its conservation.

Related events held earlier in the week included the launch of the African Elephant Law Enforcement Special Account, the African Wildlife Enforcement Monitoring System and the Africa Wildlife Law Enforcement Award. [Kenya Wildlife Service Press Release]