MAJETE WILDLIFE RESERVE IN MALAWI - BROUGHT BACK FROM THE DEAD

Majete Wildlife Reserve Malawi, proclaimed in 1955, is situated in the Lower Shire Valley, a section of Africa's Great Rift Valley, covering an area of 700 km². Vegetation is diverse, ranging from moist miombo woodland in the western hills, to dry savannah in the east with prominent thickets along the riverbanks.
Since its proclamation as a protected area in 1955 Majete had been managed by the Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW). However, due to a lack of resources, scouts were poorly equipped to deal with heavily armed poachers. In 1988 there were estimated to be over 200 elephants in Majete but by 1992, all had been exterminated together with buffalo, sable antelope, eland, zebra and hartebeest. Other species that inhabited Majete included hippo, warthog, bush pig, zebra, kudu, bushbuck, waterbuck, grey duiker, klipspringer and spotted hyena. By the early 1990s their numbers too had been greatly reduced through poaching. Small numbers of crocodiles still survived in the Shire River.
Majete was gradually becoming less and less of an asset to the country. When African Parks first arrived, Majete was in a poor state of neglect following years of under-funding. Uncontrolled poaching of animals saw Majete emptied of most of its large mammals by the early 1990s.
Since 2003 already more than 3,000 animals have been introduced. These include black rhino, sable antelope, buffalo, waterbuck, eland, impala, nyala, warthog,zebra, hartebeest and elephants. Restocking will carry on in national parks in Malawi, but many were also purchased from game ranches in Zambia and South Africa. African Parks carried the capture and transport costs. One of the goals is to re-establish Majete as a Big 5 Game Reserve, which means that once there is enough game, the big predators like lion, leopard and cheetah will also be brought back.

Visitors are welcomed at an attractive entrance gate where they can enjoy refreshments at the scenic Heritage Centre. Overnight stays are possible at the Community Campsite or in en-suite Tented Chalets at Thawale Camp. More and more tourists are attracted to the many activities and comfortable accommodation in Majete Wildlife Reserve.

Majete is really worth a visit. Not only because of its beauty, but also to remember what damage we can do to our natural environment. Lucky for Majete, something has been done about it to reverse the damage.