19 Dec 2022

Different stakeholders have hailed the Children in the Wilderness (CITW) initiative for inspiring children to care for natural resources and promote eco-tourism.

The speakers praised the initiative at the end of a four-day educational and fun-filled programme, Friday which gathered 20 pupils from Parakarungu Primary School at Duma Tau Safari Camp situated in the Linyanti area.

The initiative is supported by Wilderness Safari Company to promote environmental conservation and life skills educational programme that focuses on the next generation of rural communities.

Parakarungu Primary School Parent and Teachers Association chairperson, Mr John Jeremiah said the programme was a welcome move as it drilled young children on environmental education so that they become custodians of natural resources.

“This is a brilliant initiative that will help promote environmental conservation and sustainability.

We expect our children to learn more and eventually raise awareness among their peers and the community to promote environmental conservation,” he added.

He said pupils who benefited from the programme would be role models as they would teach others to play their role in caring for the environment.

He said the Parakarangu community had challenges of human-wildlife conflict and believed that through the programme, pupils would be able to raise awareness, educate and empower the community to live harmoniously with wildlife.

Parakarungu school head Ms Joyce Mogorosi acknowledged the initiative for building confidence amongst pupils as they actively participated in Eco-Environment clubs and topics offered.

She also appreciated that through the camp, children were taught valuable life skills while on the other hand developing awareness for and appreciation of the natural resources that surrounded them.

Principal education officer from Chobe region, Mr Bafentse Peter explained that Wilderness Safari had signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Basic Education in 2021, adding that the purpose of the union was to infuse issues of environmental conservation into the curriculum.

Through the initiative, he said children learnt a lot about eco-tourism and various ways of protecting the environment, citing tree planting and promoting clean-up campaigns in schools.

Giving a brief background of the programme, stakeholder manager from Wilderness Safari Company Mr Moalosi Lebekwe explained that the initiative had benefited over 4 500 pupils since its inception in 2001.

In the Ngamiland region, he said about eight primary schools were participating in the programme while some teachers had been trained so that they establish eco-clubs in schools.

Mr Lebekwe said some beneficiaries had graduated from the programme and secured jobs in safari companies, nature reserves and other conservation organisations.

He also noted that pupils who were passionate in environmental issues were provided with opportunities that would aid their progress in finding meaningful employment in the future.

“Through eco-clubs we also identify children showing genuine interests in environmental issues and take them to our safari camp facilities so that they link various topics taught with what the environment offers.

We normally pick topics relevant to our region so that they can easily relate better,” he added.

The camp followed the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement between the school and Wilderness Safari in collaboration with First National Bank Botswana to offer an introduction to conservation and environmental education to learners. ENDS