Extensive poaching at the hands of ivory smugglers meant the country was home to just 16,000 elephants in 1989, tourism minister Najib Balala revealed. 

But thanks to dedicated anti-poaching efforts, the number of elephants had soared to more than 34,000 as of 2018. 

The Kenyan government has imposed longer jail terms and larger fines for poachers and traffickers as part of its crackdown. 

All hunting is illegal in Kenya, with Balala claiming that: 'In the last couple of years, we have managed to tame poaching in this country'.

He made the comments when visiting the Amboseli National Park, in the south of the country.

There were 80 elephants killed in 2018, he said, a number that more than halved to 34 the following year. 

So far in 2020, just seven elephants have been poached. 

Alongside intensified anti-poaching efforts, stifled air traffic amid the coronavirus pandemic means fewer poachers will have been able to travel to Kenya.