Why is elephant ivory so valuable?

A Recent Case in Samburu

On a Sunday morning in Samburu Central, Kenya’s National Police Service (NPS) officers—working closely with Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS)—arrested two suspects in Maralal Town. Hidden inside a bag, they discovered seven pieces of elephant tusks weighing approximately 11.33 kilograms. The ivory, valued at around KSh 1.1 million (USD 8,300), was likely bound for the black market.

This case is not unique. Despite decades of bans and global awareness campaigns, ivory continues to hold extraordinary value. But why? And what does this mean for the survival of Africa’s elephants?

The nature of ivory

For elephants, ivory isn’t just a physical feature, it is a tool for survival. Tusks, which are elongated incisors made of dense dentin, are used to strip bark from trees, dig for water during droughts, move obstacles, and defend against predators. Older elephants, particularly matriarchs, also use tusks to protect younger herd members. In short, ivory is integral to an elephant’s daily life, culture, and survival.

Yet what elephants rely on as a natural tool, humans have taken for profit. Ivory’s smooth, durable, and easily carved structure made it highly desirable for centuries. Artisans across cultures turned tusks into jewelry, figurines, religious icons, chess pieces, piano keys, and billiard balls. This human demand stripped ivory of its ecological meaning and transformed it into a commodity, fueling centuries of exploitation that have cost countless elephants their lives.

Its rarity and unique qualities made ivory synonymous with luxury and status. In many cultures, it became a symbol of power and wealth—crafted into royal thrones, ceremonial objects, or religious carvings.

Why does ivory’s value persist?

Even in the face of bans and rising awareness, ivory continues to command great value for several interlocking reasons:

• Cultural Significance & Artistry:
  Ivory has long been prized as a material for carving, ornamentation, and religious icons. In many Asian cultures, it retains symbolic meaning—some believe it brings luck, status, or connection to tradition. 

• Rarity Premium:
  As elephant numbers decline and enforcement tightens, tusks become scarcer. Scarcity itself boosts the black-market price—buyers are often willing to pay a premium for pieces considered rare or historical.

• Status & Wealth Symbol:
  Ivory is sometimes called “white gold” because owning it signals prestige, wealth, and social standing. In some markets, carved ivory pieces are more about display than utility.

• Porous Enforcement & Smuggling Networks:
  Weak law enforcement, corruption, and porous borders make illegal ivory trade easier. Criminal syndicates exploit gaps in regulation and border control to move ivory across regions.

Historically, ivory has fetched as much as USD 2,000 per kilogram in Asian markets. Though prices have dropped in recent years due to bans and reduced demand, seizures like Samburu’s show that ivory still commands high street-level value in Kenya and beyond.

The history of ivory and poaching

• Ancient Trade: The ivory trade has a dark and extensive history, beginning with the exploitation of North African elephants to supply the Roman Empire. By the 4th century, elephants in North Africa were driven close to extinction.

• Medieval Expansion: After a brief decline, the trade resurged during the medieval era. Ivory from West and East Africa was carried along trans-Saharan routes and Indian Ocean trade networks to Europe and Asia.

• Portuguese Arrival (1400s): Portuguese traders entered West Africa, intensifying inland hunting as coastal elephant populations collapsed.

• Ivory and Slavery (1700s–1800s): Along East Africa’s coast, ivory became entwined with the slave trade. European hunters in the 1800s further escalated elephant slaughter, shipping tusks in vast numbers to Europe.

• Colonial Regulation Attempts: Early colonial game laws tried to limit hunting, but weak enforcement allowed poaching to continue.

• 1970s–1980s: Industrial-scale poaching halved Africa’s elephant population, fueled by global ivory demand.

• 1989/1990: CITES banned the international ivory trade, granting African elephants wide protection.

• 2010–2013: A new poaching crisis erupted, driven by booming demand in Asia, particularly China. Tens of thousands of elephants were killed annually.

• Today: Despite declines in poaching across Kenya thanks to law enforcement and community conservation, elephants are still poached across Africa. It’s estimated that around 30,000 elephants are killed every year for their tusks.

Conservation consequences

Ivory’s value comes at immense cost:

• Population decline – while poaching is lower now, every tusk lost means another elephant gone.

• Genetic loss – tuskers have been wiped out from certain areas of Africa, reducing genetic diversity.

• Social disruption – calves orphaned, family groups fractured, and herds destabilized.

Kenya’s recent data shows that human-elephant conflict (HEC) has now surpassed poaching as the leading cause of elephant deaths, but ivory trade remains a constant, dangerous threat.

Protecting elephants: The way forward

1. Law enforcement: Strong collaboration between NPS, KWS, and community scouts to detect and intercept ivory trafficking.

2. Demand reduction: International campaigns to shift cultural perceptions in consumer countries.

3. Community involvement: Empowering local people with benefits from wildlife, so living elephants are worth more than ivory.

4. Global action: Sustaining ivory trade bans, strengthening CITES, and closing loopholes.

Ivory’s value has driven centuries of exploitation, pushing elephants to the brink across much of Africa. Today, Kenya stands as a conservation stronghold, but the threat of poaching and ivory trafficking has not disappeared. Protecting elephants is a constant battle—one that requires vigilance, innovation, and community collaboration.

At Tsavo Trust, we work hand-in-hand with the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) to monitor and safeguard elephants across the Tsavo Conservation Area, home to Kenya’s largest elephant population. Our aerial surveillance, ground teams, and intelligence networks help prevent poaching before it happens. We also partner with local communities, building trust and providing alternatives so that wildlife and people can coexist.

The protection of elephants—especially Tsavo’s iconic Super Tuskers—is not just about saving individuals, but about ensuring the survival of entire populations and ecosystems. Every tusker lost is a genetic library and cultural memory erased.

You can be part of this effort. By supporting Tsavo Trust, you are helping to keep rangers in the field, aircraft in the skies, and communities engaged in conservation. Together, we can ensure elephants continue to roam Tsavo’s vast landscapes for generations to come.