Despite its abundance elsewhere in the country, wildlife in the most northerly regions of Namibia sadly suffered widescale destruction during the prolonged war between South African occupying forces and SWAPO. Following the cessation of fighting and subsequent Namibian independence in 1990, the Government is now actively setting up Conservancies throughout Namibia so that local people may benefit from tourism.

Kunene River Lodge is in a newly formed Conservancy and, as the only tourist destination in the area, it is at present the only contributor. The funds raised are intended for the local population, with one of the long term aims being to encourage the re-introduction of wildlife to the area, in turn bringing in sustainable tourism.

August / September 2008 - The First Game Release
During August and September a relatively large group of animals was transferred from Etosha National Park and successfully released by the Ondoto River, about 30kms from Kunene River Lodge. In total,
100 Mountain Zebra and 27 Giraffe were released and now roam the area freely. The Giraffe were mostly youngsters and some were fitted with radio collars to enable their movements to be tracked and their progress to be monitored remotely.

A week or so later a herd of 44 Kudu from a private reserve was released in the same area. With virtually no predators in the vicinity, these new residents are expected to flourish and increase their numbers. If successful, it is to be hoped that further game releases will take place, forming perhaps the most visible contribution of the newly formed Conservancy to the area. All our Guests will be contributing indirectly to the ongoing success of this venture.

Latest Wildlife News
The Conservancy has now appointed local game scouts who are equipped with directional hand-held aerials which they are using to track the giraffe. Reports suggest that the aerials are working quite well, although normally limited to line-of-sight detection, so the scouts first have to climb a hill, then follow up any signal they can find from there. Usually signals can be picked up within 2km or so from the collars. It's good that the scouts are keen!

We will publish more news on the wildlife in general, and giraffe progress in particular, as and when we get it.

The FA Cup - Himba Style
Another recent innovation, directly involving the local community, saw the first ever soccer match between teams from KRL and the local village. The match took place in January 2007, about 5km away in Otjimuhaka, creating considerable interest and enthusiasm amongst everyone in the area. The KRL team won.

Since that first game many soccer matches have taken place against local teams including Ehomba School who soundly beat KRL! Recently the KRL team went to Sesfontein to take part in a Northern Conservancy Soccer Tournament which generated a great deal of enthusiasm.