COOL THOUGHTS

FUND RAISING AT FALAZA

Our good friend Grant Tracy from Tracy & du Plessis Game Capture herded some of his good friends to feed on the fine fare at Falaza Game Park & Spa this weekend.

Not only were we well fed and watered, but we were also supporting a good cause, fund raising for rhino anti-poaching. To some this may seem like the ‘same old, same old’ but what is impressive about this particular campaign is that it is information intelligence driven. Using information intelligently, so to speak.

Hluhluwe game farmers are in the midst of Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife reserves and are particularly vulnerable to poaching. A group of farmers formed the Munyawana Conservation Fund 2 years ago. It consists of 6 directors drawn from this area, and includes members of some of the illustrious private game reserves (&Beyond Phinda Game Reserve, Zululand Rhino Reserve and Zulu Nyala Game Lodge – just to name drop one or two).

The spike in rhino poaching 4 years ago prompted this community to find a way of effectively curbing the decimation of rhino. They introduced a strategy of ‘keeping it simple’ and by using useful information on the ground they have developed a strong network which enables them to know what is going on. This costs money. And sometimes, a lot of it.

In the past two years they have 25 recorded incidents leading to potential rhino poaching. That’s 1 every month. The reward system for successful intervention and/ or arrests has paid off. This has led to 56 arrests and a number of poacher fatalities; 25 high caliber weapons,113 rounds of ammunition, 21 vehicles, 14 silencers and 16 axes have been confiscated.