Distell Namibia Ltd partners with Wildlife Credits and the Sobbe Conservancy

Distell Namibia recently announced their renewed partnership for the third year with Wildlife Credits and the Sobbe Conservancy. The community conservation programme spearheads the recovery of many wildlife species, dangerous and endangered species, on communal lands. Wildlife Credits differs from the traditional method of supporting conservation which relies on donations for inputs such as boots, vehicles, training, etc, in the belief that ultimately there will be a positive conservation outcome if people are appropriately paid for living with wildlife.

Wildlife Credits payments are made based upon measurable success. Therefore, funding does not go into a conservation plan, but it is applied to a conservation result, such as securing essential wildlife corridors to enable free movement of elephants.

Distell shared: “Amarula has renewed their commitment for a third year with Wildlife Credits, an innovative conservation initiative that rewards communities who are actively protecting and conserving wildlife and its habitat. This is cutting edge conservation, where funding is paid directly to communities for measurable conservation results. The ground-breaking partnership units Amarula, Wildlife Credits and members of the Sobbe Conservancy in Namibia’s Zambezi Region who have been proactively protecting a wildlife corridor that is critical to elephant movements between Botswana, Namibia, Angola and Zambia. This is the community’s choice, one that doesn’t come lightly considering what hardships elephants can bring to rural farming communities, but one that will help to ensure the protection of elephants now and for generations to come.”

By rewarding conservation successes, Wildlife Credits and Amarula’s continued partnership provides an incentive for communities to continue to conserve elephants and other endangered and problem causing species. It is smart conservation and good business.

Technology remains at the forefront of the conservation efforts and rangers are trained and equipped to operate camera traps, a wildlife monitoring app and satellite verification to ensure the elephants are safe and out of harm’s way.

The Community Conservation Fund of Namibia (CCFN) continues to provide support to community-based conservation initiatives in rural Namibia, acts as an important interface between Amarula (Distell Namibia), Wildlife Credits and the Sobbe Conservancy.