The Long Run | The Hide Safari Camp

The Hide Safari Camp

HWANGE NATIONAL PARK, ZIMBABWE

The Hide Safari Camp is located a private concession within Zimbabwe’s largest wildlife reserve, the 3.5-million-acre Hwange National Park two hours south of Victoria Falls. In the late 1920s the land was deemed unsuitable for agriculture and set aside for wildlife conservation, but due to water shortages and neglect, wildlife had almost entirely vanished; only 1000 elephants remained. Thanks to conservation efforts, today Hwange holds the second highest population of elephants in Africa. There are over 450 species of birds in the area, and mammals include wild dogs, bat-eared fox and cheetah.

Specialising in photographic safari experiences makes conservation integral to The Hide. In 2016, they became founding members of the Conservation and Wildlife Fund (CWF), which brings together stakeholders in the Hwange to establish anti-poaching units (one of which is on The Hide’s concession), raise conservation awareness in local schools, implement environmental initiatives and improve the lives of women. The Hide is also a founding member of Friends of Hwange, which maintains the park’s essential boreholes and watering holes, now pumped using solar energy. To further restore the land The Hide has started a tree nursery, propagating indigenous trees. Those trees re-planted in Hwange are protected from elephant damage by beehives — a device also used to protect local crops from wildlife damage.

Striving to become one of Zimbabwe’s leading eco retreats, The Hide Safari Camp separates waste, has an organic vegetable garden and offers guests refillable glass bottles to cut down plastic use. Community outreach revolves around education, minimising human-wildlife conflict and women empowerment. The non-profit The Hide Community Trust works with community leaders to find sustainable solutions to improve livelihoods. Key initiatives include teaching women how to make kilns out of termite mounds and unused car parts so they can recycle glass bottles into beads, and developing a market garden for a local primary school. Fundraising efforts help to support The Trust while guest levies go directly to conservation projects.

www.thehide.com

The 4Cs

The Hide Safari Camp joined The Long Run in 2018 and committed to a holistic balance of the 4Cs – Conservation, Community, Culture and Commerce – as a means to contribute meaningfully to the biodiversity and the people of their local region.

CONSERVATION

Conservation is integral to The Hide. In 2016, they became founding members of the Conservation and Wildlife Fund (CWF), which brings together stakeholders in the Hwange to establish anti-poaching units (one of which has is on The Hide’s concession), raise conservation awareness in local schools, implement environmental initiatives and improve the lives of women. Each lodge involved has put a conservation levy of $10 per bed-night that goes directly into funding conservation and community initiatives. The Hide is also a founding member of Friends of Hwange, which maintains the park’s essential boreholes and watering holes, now pumped using solar energy. To further restore the land The Hide has started a tree nursery, propagating indigenous trees. Those trees re-planted in Hwange are protected from elephant damage by beehives — a device also used to protect local crops from wildlife damage.

COMMUNITY

The camp stimulates the local economy by employing staff from around the surrounding communities and developing essential skills. The Hide Community Trust, their non-profit organisation, works directly with the community in a holistic, on-the-ground and sustainable manner. The Hide Community Trust is a small but fast-growing organisation that has taken care to grow and form strong relationships with the surrounding community by listening instead of telling. The aim is to work together with the community to come up with sustainable solutions for improved livelihoods and better human/wildlife co-existence. Click here to learn more about the community initiatives run by The Hide Community Trust.

CULTURE

The Hide is actively engaged in promoting cultural heritage through its work with the local communities, which are made up of Nambian, Ndebele and Tonga people. This is done with a deep respect for these cultures and does not exploit their authenticity. The camp has created a museum to enable guests to learn about the history of the area and its local, traditional cultures. The camp holds traditional evenings, too, where guests enjoy local cuisine and cultural singing and dancing, which is performed by members of the local community and provides them with a source of income.

COMMERCE

Zimbabwe has a 90 percent unemployment rate and tourism is a very large part of our economic growth – this means that businesses such as The Hide Safari Camp are integral to the future development of Zimbabwe. 90 percent of the staff employed at the camp are from the local community. By staying here guests also make a tangible contribution to Hwange National Park by directly donating $10 per night into the Conservation and Wildlife Fund (CWF) to fund conservation and community initiatives.