Ranger College receives royal visitor

The South African Wildlife College (SAWC), which is supported by KfW, recently welcomed a royal visitor. During a speech delivered to graduates of the college, which is located in Kruger National Park, Prince Harry of Wales called the park rangers "heroes" whose profession and efforts to fight poaching cannot be appreciated enough. For almost 20 years now, the College has been training young Africans as rangers and nature conservation managers. KfW Development Bank promotes the College on behalf of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and has been supporting its work from the outset. More than 15,000 men and women have studied there since 1997.

"Around 50 new students are trained in wildlife area management every year", explained KfW project manager Nils Meyer, adding that "numerous short training courses are also offered for the rangers in the parks". The campus is currently being expanded. With a total volume of EUR 4 million, KfW funds the creation and development of accommodation, teaching facilities and mobile training units, as well as the environmentally friendly supply of water and electricity. Expansion is needed to cope with rising student numbers and meet the related higher operational requirements in the national park.

Prince Harry was keen to learn as much as possible about the college's work

During his visit, Prince Harry made sure he spent plenty of time talking with rangers and the park's employees. He asked many questions about the work of the college and the battle against poaching. Nils Meyer also had the opportunity to speak with him. Mr. Meyer emphasised that he "was most impressed by the Prince's interest in and knowledge of nature conservation and wildlife protection in southern Africa". In his speech, Prince Harry drew particular attention to the fact that rhinos are threatened with extinction, deploring the fact that "in 2015 alone 1,500 rhinos were killed in this country. That is four every day." He went on to say that if poaching continued at current rates there would be no wild elephants or rhinos left in Africa in just 25 years. Combating poaching was a test for all humanity, he added.

The Prince announced that United for Wildlife, a British organisation on whose behalf he acts as ambassador, would be supporting the development of the college. Moreover, the SAWC hopes that Prince Harry's visit, which attracted a lot of media coverage, will mobilise new donors and sponsors, as roughly half of the operating costs for the training courses have to be financed through donations. The KfW Stiftung contributes to this by granting bursaries to female students from southern Africa .

The college's work has an impact well beyond the borders of South Africa. The SWAC cooperates with national training institutions throughout southern Africa and with another regional centre in Tanzania. It also collaborates with higher education establishments, including a future partnership with the University of Namibia in Katima Mullilo, which also benefits from KfW Development Bank's support.