A Time of Giving - Community in the time of COVID-19

The national border closures and lockdown of African countries as a result of COVID-19 has left rural communities without the resources required to sustain life. As a result, safari operators have stepped up to the plate to assist.

In Rwanda, villagers are feeling the impact of COVID through a decline in jobs, the inability to sell their arts and crafts to visitors, and their fresh produce to lodges. Bisate Lodge has therefore committed to a monthly supply of more than three tons of essential maize, beans and soap to rural neighbors, for at least the next three months. To date, essential supplies have been distributed to 634 people and 158 families.

In collaboration with Botswana's Ministry of Health, community leaders and other individuals, the COVID-19 Committee of Seronga compiled a list of immediate needs, including toilet paper, tissues, detergents, sanitizers, rubber gloves, antibacterial body and hand soaps. Wilderness Safaris then purchased these materials and donated the use of two aircraft to deliver them to this remote corner of the Delta.

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Children in the Wilderness (CITW), has embarked on a mission to support rural communities in northern Namibia, through the provision of food relief, hygiene products and educational assistance. In Zimbabwe, the team has managed to secure seeds for the Tsholotsho schools' vegetable gardens. Sent with a resupply vehicle to Wilderness Safaris' Hwange camps (Linkwasha, Little Makalolo and Davidsons) and then distributed to each school by one of the headmasters, gardens were planted and are proving productive.

Nicky, a seventh grader, is a Children in the Wilderness Eco-Club member from the Zambezi Region. She wrote a heartfelt piece about her change in routine during COVID-19, giving us insight into life at home.