Zimbabwe vacations, tailormade

Planet

On this trip, you will visit the Imire rhino breeding programme on the outskirts of Harare. Serious about conservation and education, the programme runs a black rhino protection and breeding programme. To date 14 births have taken place at Imire. They have returned 9 rhino to the Matusadona National Park in Zimbabwe and 1 to Botswana.

The Mother Earth Charity works with 3 of the lodges on this itinerary. They help the environment and community financially and in the following ways:

Mother Africa has assisted financially Friends of Hwange Trust in pumping water for the Parks wildlife. All waste water at the 3 lodges is recycled.
They have launched a variety of projects, including recycling, vermi-culture and tree planting at each lodge, aiming to make them more eco-friendly and minimize their environmental impact.
Mother Earth also supports the Lion researchers in Hwange, buying tranquilisers and other materials and they return the favour by giving talks to guests at Ivory Lodge about the work they are doing.

The Southern Ground Hornbill Research project is dedicated to the long-term conservation of this iconic bird in Zimbabwe, through research on the bird's breeding ecology, education about its importance and sustained action to preserve its habitat. Their key aims are:
To monitor Southern Ground Hornbill breeding and other activity over a period of time not less than five years.
To investigate variables relating to nest choice and construction, nest tenure, diet, territory size, breeding success, interaction with other bird species and human-bird interactions.
To understand how interventions to enhance population breeding success such as providing artificial nests where necessary and collecting and hand-rearing the second chick (which often dies of starvation) for later release into areas where they are currently locally extinct. This is culturally sensitive.
To reestablish woodland areas by encouraging communities to set up indigenous nurseries and managing these woodland areas for recreating nesting habitat for the birds in the long term future.

By staying at the lodges on this itinerary, you are directly contributing to this project.

In the Hwange area, Mother Earth have recently funded the electrification of Mabale Clinic while they conduct regular anti-poaching patrols in Ivory Lodge's 6000-acre concession and assist Zimbabwe National Parks do the same in the game park. Mother Africa has also assisted financially Friends of Hwange Trust in pumping water for Parks wildlife.

We work with local suppliers in Zimbabwe and employ local guides on this itinerary.

People

For every booking we make to Zimbabwe, we donate USD$50 to the Zimbabwe Aid Fund UK, a registered charity which raises money and sources medical equipment and consumables to support the pensioners in Zimbabwe. The plight of the elderly is one of the less publicised outcomes of Zimbabwe's social, economic and political collapse. For more information - please visit their website:

Three of the properties in this itinerary are involved with the 'Mother Earth' project in Zimbabwe. Each property supports a variety of projects adapted specifically to the needs of the area, ranging from environmental research to community support and development. Projects include: The Haven, a home for abused women and their children in Bulawayo, community support for a girls school in Hwange and supporting a children's home in the Matobo Hills.

We ensure that our local guides and the staff are paid a fair wage for the work they do. All employees at the properties/lodges we feature in this itinerary are from the surrounding communities.