On the boundaries of the Kruger National Park lies the Greater Kruger region. It comprises many private game reserves which contribute significantly to South Africa’s tourism industry, including job creation for local communities and skills development. These successful tourism lodges, over the years, have driven a high need for Big-5 safari experiences resulting in a need to increase the wildlife area.

Nestled between the Blyde River valley and Kruger National Park lies one of South Africa’s largest privately-owned game reserves. Stretching across 15 000 hectares, Kapama Game Reserve forms an integral player in the Big-5 tourism of this Greater Kruger Region.

A property bordering Kapama, marked in red below, had an EIA – (Environmental Impact Assessment) approved by the department of agriculture to develop a portion of their land for citrus farming. As part of the EIA – the property owner needed to consult with Kapama on future plans of the property and that the land was to be used for citrus farming.

Kapama was very concerned about what long term impact citrus farming would have on the natural habitat of the land. As a private reserve with a mission and vision of conserving and protecting the environment through sustainable practices, Kapama put in an offer to purchase the property to protect and conserve the biodiversity of the land. It’s well known what the impact previous acquisitions of this kind in and around conservation areas have had on the environment.

We are pleased to announce that the acquisition was successful. The transfer went through and the bordering fences will be dropped on the 15th December 2021. This will open up an uninterrupted stretch of over 7km along the Klasserie River, marked in blue in the above image, for animals to roam their natural habitat and tourists to enjoy magnificent wildlife sightings.

This is a huge win for eco-tourism. This natural habitat for hundreds of birds, wildlife, insects, indigenous trees and plants can now be conserved and protected, with space to thrive, for tourists all around the world to enjoy for years to come.