Kenya and China have taken another step in deepening their ecological and cultural ties, with the Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) signing a Memorandum of Understanding with China’s Yanwu Group, the company behind the internationally recognised Yancheng wetlands, to jointly promote shared natural heritage and drive tourism between the two countries.
The MOU was signed at a high-level conference held at the Xinhua News Agency Africa Regional Bureau in Nairobi, bringing together government officials, conservation experts, tourism executives, and policy leaders from both nations. The event is part of the 2026 China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges.
Speakers at the conference highlighted a striking parallel at the heart of the partnership. Just as Kenya is home to the world-famous Great Migration in the Maasai Mara, the Chinese city of Yancheng hosts its own extraordinary wildlife spectacle: the annual King of the Deer contest, where thousands of Milu deer compete across vast tidal wetlands every June.
“In Kenya, wild beasts thunder across the plains and giraffes roam gracefully, a magnificent anthem of life itself. Far away in the east, Yancheng City is home to a magical animal called the Milu deer. Its antlers resemble those of a deer, its head looks like a horse, its hooves resemble a cow’s, and its tail looks like a donkey’s, earning it the nickname, the ‘four-unlike creature’,” said Fan Rong, the Chairman of Yanwu Group.
He described the Milu deer’s story as one of the world’s most remarkable conservation triumphs. Once extinct in China, 39 Milu deer were transported from the United Kingdom back to Yancheng four decades ago. Today, their population stands at over 8,500.
“This is not merely a miracle. It is the result of decades of China’s commitment to ecological civilization, just as Kenya has worked tirelessly to protect black rhinos and mountain gorillas,” Fan noted
KTB Chief Executive Officer June Chepkemei said the partnership was a natural fit, built on a foundation of shared ecological values.
“Both Yancheng and Kenya hold UNESCO World Natural Heritage status, and they are both classified as anchors for global biodiversity, and that gives us a great platform to engage,” she said.
Chepkemei pointed to Yancheng’s coastal wetlands along the Yellow Sea, spanning over 247,000 hectares and serving as a critical waypoint for migratory birds, as a direct ecological echo of Kenya’s own migration wonders.
“That speaks to our wonder of migration in the Masai Mara as well. Kenya’s ecosystem, from the Mara to the Great Rift, anchors some of the world’s most significant terrestrial wildlife corridors, and both regions share a conservation identity rooted in the fact that both serve as irreplaceable habitats for endangered species,” she noted.
With approximately four million Chinese travellers visiting the African continent in 2024, of whom around 100,000 came to Kenya, Chepkemei said the timing of the partnership could not be better.
“We believe that by 2027, this number will have doubled. To reach our target, we are building a proposition specifically designed for environmentally aware Chinese travellers, a demographic that values impact over volume, ensuring we conserve our heritage jointly,” she said.
Vice Mayor of Yancheng Municipal People’s Government, Chen Weihong, described Yancheng as “the Oriental Kenya”, a city whose character, she said, mirrors Kenya’s in its reverence for nature.
“Yancheng and Kenya, though separated by vast oceans, share something fundamental: we both cherish the gifts of nature and believe that travelling can open your heart,” she said, extending a formal invitation to Kenyans to experience Yancheng’s wetlands, wildlife, and culture first-hand.
The Vice Mayor outlined plans for practical cooperation in tourism route development, tourist source sharing, and cultural exchanges, with the ambition of linking Kenya’s wild safari experience with Yancheng’s ancient ecological landscape into a single intercontinental eco-tourism offering.
Lessons for Africa
Former African Union Commission Deputy Chairperson Erastus Mwencha said the story of China’s Milu deer carried powerful lessons for Africa’s own conservation challenges.
“Here in Kenya, we continue to witness an alarming decline in the number of wildlife species: the white rhino, the leopard, the lion, the elephant. The Milu deer story shows us how to reverse that trend, and I believe this offers encouragement,” he said.
Mwencha welcomed a raft of planned activities under the partnership, including joint research between Chinese ecologists and Kenyan conservation experts, youth cultural exchanges, wildlife photography exhibitions, cultural festivals, and the translation of conservation literature between Chinese and Swahili.
“The journey of the Milu deer, from extinction in China, to survival in Europe, to restoration in its homeland, shows what humanity can achieve through trust, science, and international friendship. May 2026 become a landmark year for conservation, cultural exchange, and cooperation between China and Africa,” he said.
Professor Peter Kagwanja, President of the Africa Policy Institute, placed the partnership within the framework of President Xi Jinping’s Ecological Civilisation philosophy, which he described as “the art of harmonising development and nature.”
“We don’t want a world that has development that destroys nature. At the same time, we don’t want nature that limits our potential to grow. In so doing, we are literally disciples of the concept of ecological civilisation,” he said.
Kagwanja noted that Kenya’s tourism credentials were formidable: 23 national parks, 28 national reserves, six marine reserves, and over 1,100 bird species, but stressed that the relationship must be reciprocal.
“It is not just Chinese visiting us. Kenyans also need to prioritise visiting China, because China offers rich historical heritage, iconic landmarks, and the warmth and hospitality of its people,” he said.
According to Deputy Director at Kenya’s State Department of Wildlife, Kavaka Mukonyi, the partnership aligned with Kenya’s broader push to diversify its tourism products through community-based and cultural tourism.
He disclosed that Kenya is currently undertaking an Indigenous Knowledge Documentation and Digitisation Programme covering all 47 counties, cataloguing heritage sites, traditional covenant systems, indigenous foods, traditional medicine, music, and cultural performances.
“Let us continue acting locally, while building partnerships that create global impact for humanity and nature,” he said.
The two sides will proceed to establish formal networks for information sharing, promote cultural and tourism development projects, and foster active exchanges that will see Kenyans going to Yancheng and Chinese tourists to Kenya’s wildlife destinations.
