Environment CS Judi Wakhungu has been awarded for being "a driving force behind wildlife law enforcement improvements" in the Kenya Wildlife Service".
The 2016 Clark Bavin Wildlife Law Enforcement award was presented to Wakhungu during the just concluded CITES convention in Johannesburg, South Africa.
The CS was recognised for the recruitment and training of 1,200 new rangers and the adoption of new law enforcement technologies thermal imaging and night vision equipment.
"Under her stewardship, the Kenya Wildlife Service ... has intensified its prosecutions of wildlife criminals, resulting in a substantial decline in poaching over the past three years," the citation reads.
Wakhungu was also awarded for in the destruction of 105 tonnes of elephant ivory and 1.35 tonnes of rhino horn to signify intolerance for wildlife crime.
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She was lauded for the institution of a forensic lab for KWS, which has already provided admissible DNA evidence in over 100 wildlife cases.
Another Kenyan, Richard Bonham of the Big Life Foundation, also received the same award for projects including instituting
a scholarship programme supporting students and teachers.
Bonham was also awarded for setting up the Selous Rhino Trust to protect the rhino population.
He was recognised for pioneering the Community Game Scout Programme, through which residents collect snares as a means of combating wildlife crime
The director is behind the Maasai Olympics that provides a culturally relevant sporting competition for young Maasai warriors, as an alternative for hunting and killing lions.
Wakhungu and Bonham were presented with their awards by the Animal Welfare Institute at the 17th Conference of Parties of the CITES, which took place between September 24 and October 5.
The award was named after the late Clark Bavin, who was chief of the US Fish and Wildlife Service's Office of Law Enforcement.
Bavin substantially elevated the fight against wildlife crime in the United States and internationally, pioneering the use of covert investigations and sting operations to expose illegal wildlife trade.
He also advocated for the use of forensic science to identify and prosecute wildlife criminals.