Kasanka Trust Limited
After visiting the neglected and completely undeveloped Kasanka National Park for the first ime in 1985 and hearing gunshots, the late Mr David Lloyd, impressed with the wide range of habitats and amazing scenery, concluded that if there was still poaching, there must still be wildlife! He made it his life’s mission and ambition to develop the park and safeguard the amazing biodiversity of Kasanka.
In 1987 the Kasanka Trust was founded as a non-profit charitable institution with tax-exemption within Zambia. It has since become a registered charity in the UK and the Netherlands. The Kasanka Trust has a Memorandum of Understanding with the Zambian Wildlife Authority and has taken upon itself the responsibilities of park management, community relations and tourism. ZAWA retains the responsibilities for anti-poaching work in the park and surrounding Game Management Area in conjunction with the Trust. The Kasanka Trust aims to cover their costs through tourism-generated revenue, but is still reliant on gifts and charitable funding for part of their budget.
In the last 25 years a lot of work has been done in the park, a vast network of roads has been created as well as an excellent tourist-infrastructure, a community conservation centre and the implementation of effective anti-poaching measures. The Trust employs about 90 local staff and does a lot of outreach work within the surrounding communities and amongst other things; sponsors the secondary education of promising local students, educates farmers on more effective alternative farming practises and teaches them how to employ chilli-fences to keep elephants out of their fields. The Trust has since also started operations in the Bangweulu Wetlands, here they operate Shoebill Island Camp, and plan to commence operations in the undeveloped and depleted 1600km2 Lavushi Manda National Park in 2011 with assistance from the World Bank.
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