In late June 2021, the PAW Foundation accompanied Peter Lindsey (Director, Lion Recovery Fund) and Paul Thomson (Director, Wildlife Conservation Network) to Gonarezhou National Park in South-Eastern Zimbabwe to see first-hand the excellent work being done there by the Gonarezhou Conservation Trust (GCT). The GCT is supported through an innovative partnership of one of PAW’s grantees, the Frankfurt Zoological Society (FZS), and the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZPWMA). This public-private partnership has set about preventing wildlife poaching, building community relations, and working to make Gonarezhou one of Africa’s premier national parks.
Very little of what has been achieved so far in Gonarezhou would have been possible without the impressive stewardship of Hugo van der Westhuizen, who has served as GCT project leader since 2007. Today, the park is thriving again under Hugo’s steady hand, with a rising population of lions and a massive population of elephants that can often be seen walking under the park’s famous Chilojo Cliffs. The chance to spend some time with Hugo and his team was priceless for PAW and solidified our mission to fund organizations that are working to safeguard Africa’s last wild places for both people and wildlife.
With restoration of ecosystems firmly in mind, we were also in Gonarezhou to witness the relocation of a foundational group of 30 black rhinos, a species that disappeared from the park in the early 1990s due to rampant poaching. This critical initiative has been partially funded through WCN’s Rhino Recovery Fund overseen by Markus Hofmeyr, another legend in the conservation world. It was an immense privilege to witness the tireless work being done by all in the park to ensure that this relocation progressed successfully. Today, Gonarezhou is once again home to black rhinos and a fully intact ecosystem, a fitting testament to the vision of the GCT.