Social/Economic Responsibility
We are dedicated to the social well being of the local community. To this end we employ a Community Development Officer who assists with any village negotiations and translations. He lives in the village in a house we have built for him and, among other duties, attends village committee meetings on our behalf. We are assisting him with his further education by funding him through a post graduate course in Community Economic Development at the Open University of Dar es Salaam.
Our policy includes:
- Our company leases the land from the village for which we pay a monthly rental.
- Employing from the local community, and training our staff - 16 out of 18 fulltime employees are from the local area and we employ up to 50 casual labourers to assist on maintenance, construction etc., all of which are done completely by hand to maximize local employment. In the two years since we started construction there has been a noticeable rise in the spending power of our staff. All but one now have a bicycle, several have mobile phones and several are making improvements to their own homes.
- Purchasing local produce.
- Encouraging guests to partake in village activities and see development projects e.g. school, medical clinic and donations often result. We pay the village committee a levy for each visitor to the village.
- Staff and guides are sensitive to the impact of our guests on village cultural life, and all guests are briefed to respect these sensibilities.
- We have also attracted substantial funding to the surrounding area for many projects including: drilling a village bore hole & installing a pump and building a toilet block in the village school. Environmental Responsibility
Concern for the environment is a cornerstone of our business. We aim for world’s best practice and consider compliance with local and international law and conventions as critical to our success.
Our policy includes:
- A comprehensive Environmental and Social Impact Assessment was completed prior to commencement of the project.
- In the construction of the camp we have ‘carved tracks’ rather than ‘made roads’ making sure that not a single tree be felled in the process, we have used local building materials where possible and furnished almost entirely with furniture made from recycled timber.
- We use rechargeable torch and light batteries, limit electricity use, collect rain water and conserve as much water as possible (including educating guests, and only washing linen when necessary ie. not daily!).
- We are trialling the use of biodiesel as a fuel for our vehicles and generator. The advantage being that the village may be able to grow the plants that produce the vegetable oil.
- The establishment of a bee industry both in the Camp and through loans in the village, has become an ongoing educational tool in teaching environmental principles to the local population.
Yes, definitely. It is the raison d’être of the camp to assist the local people and to devise ways to minimize impact on the environment. They employ locals in all the ways they can. We invite every traveler who books a vacation via us to send in a review. Because we don't run the vacations they're completely independent and unedited... remember to read between the lines though, as two people on the same vacation can have different views!
