Empowering Wildlife Protectors

Our dedicated anti-poaching game scouts recently underwent a transformative training program in January. Under the guidance of Simon Leaks from Big 5 Protection, this specialised tracking skills training aimed to elevate their wildlife protection abilities to new heights.

Simon emphasised the critical role of tracking skills, stating, “Every game scout needs to be a good tracker. The fate of rhinos, elephants, and countless wildlife hangs on it.” Glen Steyn, our anti-poaching manager, expressed his excitement about the training, foreseeing it as just the beginning of a comprehensive initiative. By year-end, the goal is to equip all eighty scouts with these crucial skills, turning the first ten scouts into knowledge ambassadors who will share their expertise with the entire team.

Our anti-poaching team, comprising eighty game scouts, sixty-four members across Observation Points (OPs), mobile patrol units, and the Special Operation Group (SOG), plays a pivotal role in wildlife protection. The core objective of the tracking course is to empower game scouts with the expertise to trail animal spoor and poacher footprints within the Ikorongo – Grumeti concession, strategically enabling them to gather crucial information on poaching activities.

While our scouts already possess basic tracking skills, the aim was to elevate them to an advanced level. Amos Kisako, one of the ten game scouts who completed the twenty-one-day course, shared his newfound knowledge, stating, “I can now track a group of more than two poachers, determining their number, weight, and sex.”

In our relentless pursuit of conservation, our game scouts operate in the field 24/7, making these advanced tracking skills indispensable. If you wish to contribute to our anti-poaching activities and support wildlife preservation, please click here. Together, let’s unite to safeguard our planet’s precious inhabitants.