Dear friends of Central African Wilderness Safaris,
We hope you all had a wonderful Easter weekend, resting and spending quality time with loved ones. As April draws to a close, we have been contemplating what has been our busiest month since pre-Covid times! To all those who have recently visited us, and to those who continue to visit time and time again, we are eternally grateful for the support. The team at Mvuu has been thrilled to host as many guests as we have over the past month and we can only hope this pattern continues.
Once again, a new month also brings a new season and, although the end of the rains marks the end of a particularly special time in the bush, we are left with lush, green landscapes, plenty of happy and healthy animals, and the long-awaited return of the elephants! This time of year is one of our favourites.
More recently, the celebration of Earth Day (22nd April) left us reflecting on our role as conservationists within this park we like to call home, and we would like to share some thoughts on this key pillar of our business.
A Cause for Conservation
Central African Wilderness Safaris was founded upon a passion for conserving wildlife, nature and the pristine wilderness environment we stumbled across in Malawi those thirty-some years ago. The core of our mission has always remained the same – to protect the natural world alongside the community, helping humans and wildlife co- exist peacefully. A lot of the work we do in terms of environmental conservation remains relatively hidden but it is important to bring light to a cause that not only recognises the beauty of our earth – but recognises the flaws in humankind’s treatment of it and actively seeks to change them.
“If you take care of nature, nature will take care of you.” – Maasai Proverb
We always strive to create a tangible, positive impact through the work that we do. This manifests as dedicated emotional and material investment into community and environmental conservation initiatives – Children in the Wilderness and Root to Fruit – as well as collaboration with other parties in this field. We responsibly source local and seasonal produce wherever possible, recycle nearly all our waste on-site, embrace the use of solar-powered water geysers and lights, and are in the process of setting up a fully sustainable compost pit to nurture our very own vegetable and herb garden. We have also eliminated the need for single-use plastic water bottles by installing dedicated water refill stations around camp in an effort to encourage guests to use reusable bottles. Central African Wilderness Safaris is proudly sustainable, purpose-driven and inextricably part of the local community; ensuring that our actions consistently align with our philosophy and ethos.
Extraordinary Sightings at Mvuu
If anything, the pandemic has demonstrated the quiet resilience of nature amidst human chaos, and the recent perk in wildlife sightings in Liwonde as we come out of a difficult period illustrates this. Of late, we have been especially lucky in terms of cheetah and wild dog sightings. On many occasions throughout the month, cheetahs have been sighted with their kill – with one kill on the river banks even witnessed from a boat safari! We were over the moon to be the first to spot two new additions to the cheetah population in Liwonde, a sighting reported to Lilongwe Wildlife Trust which maintains records in collaboration with African Parks. These sweet cubs, no older than 2 months, were spotted playing and chilling with mum very close to camp! Wild dogs have also been seen frequently close to camp relaxing in the grass and are impressively comfortable around vehicle presence. As the interior of the park slowly dries out, large herds of elephants frequent the river banks and are often seen playing, swimming and dunking under the water which has been a treat for many safari-goers.
Mvuu Lodge & Camp Updates
Alongside the rejuvenation of tourism and wildlife in Liwonde, our guides were in high spirits after a refresher guide training with visiting guide, Wikus. Team morale was certainly boosted and they are excited to continue guiding with a refreshed perspective and knowledge on their passion. In terms of business updates, we are so pleased to welcome back to the Mvuu Team Wayne – our valued food and beverage manager – and new addition Florence – our front of house waitress.
As dry season approaches, guided bush walks have began to resume. Nothing quite compares to an immersive walk through the park – learning about various flora and fauna on the ground. Don’t forget to look down every once in a while…!
If the sight of the blue skies filles you with joy, if a blade of grass springing up in the fields has power to move you, if the simple things of nature have a message that you understand, rejoice, for your soul is alive” – Eleonora Duse
Stories from the Community
Solar Water Pump Installation
At the end of March, Central African Wilderness Safaris, in collaboration with the GIZ MIERA (More Income and Employment in Rural Areas) program, finalised the installation of a solar water pump in Balaka. The GIZ MIERA program encourages smallholder farming and business enterprise within Malawian communities. As such, the 10,000-litre solar water pump irrigates an entire plot of land that will provide both food and income for the local community. Projects like these are crucial in keeping pressure off the park as they create employment, crops and alternatives to poaching.
We were identified as a key partner to GIZ because of our local knowledge and extensive experience in working with communities around the park. During our time here, we have always nurtured relationships with the community whether that be through the staff we employ or engaging with local chiefs, school teachers, village headmen and the like. As such, we are ideally placed to identify and suggest viable projects that we feel will make a tangible difference and hope that this project will stand testament to that. The community was beyond pleased to receive the pump and the handover ceremony was a great success.
Watts of Love
We were also fortunate to have the brilliant team at Watts of Love visit Mvuu as returning guests during their trip distributing solar lights across the western lakeshore region of Nkhata Bay in Malawi. Nancy and her team kindly presented to our Mvuu team who were moved by their stories and myriad of successful testimonies.
Watts of Love’s incredibly unique, patented solar light has been thoughtfully designed in light of extensive, on-the-ground research. It features a versatile lanyard that allows the light to be used as a head torch, handsfree hanging light or necklace that enables the light to be charged on the owner’s chest or back. Moreover, the light’s flashing setting has been used to communicate in situations of emergency between scouts and local communities – a relationship that is often strained due to the conflict between these two groups. A recent testimony from Dedza also highlighted the instant effectiveness of the flashing feature in deterring hyenas from stealing goats.
“Where the road ends, Watts of Love begins”
Their core belief remains the notion that change begins within the home and can be initiated by a simple, but wildly effective, solar light. The impact of light has been phenomenal in communities referred to as the “hidden poor” i.e. communities that are often left behind politically and infra-structurally. To the Watts of Love team – we were blown away by your sheer passion and altruism and applaud the brilliant work you are doing out here in Malawi.
In sum, it is so heartwarming to witness a renewal in tourism and wildlife over the past month, after much time to recharge. There are new faces all-round whether that be adorable cheetah cubs or invaluable additions to our Mvuu team. As the bush continues to thrive despite hardship, and business slowly begins to restore, our passion for sustainability and conservation is consistently reaffirmed, making all the hard work worthwhile.
Yendani bwino (go well),
The Central African Wilderness Safaris Team
