Zim rangers participate in Tusk wildlife challenge

STAFF WRITER

At least 100 ranger organisations across African countries, including Zimbabwe, last Saturday took part in the third edition of the Tusk Wildlife Ranger Challenge 2022  in Kasane, Botswana, meant to raise funds for men and women working on the front line of conservation.

The Conservative and Wildlife Fund (CWF) and Painted Dog Conservation joined rangers around the pan-African Wildlife Ranger Challenge to achieve the ultimate goal of raising funds to support thousands of their colleagues in the field.

All participating teams completed the gruelling half marathon race while also carrying weight equivalent to an average fully packed check-in suitcase (22kg).

The event also witnessed an elite team of four wildlife rangers attempt to set the fastest known time for completing a half marathon while carrying 22kg.

The team was comprised of the strongest athletes from the two previous years.

The challenge aims to build upon the last two years of fundraising, amounting to more than £10 million raised to date.

The common drive that united them was to raise vital funds for frontline conservation efforts at a time when resources are more thinly stretched than ever before.

Wildlife rangers play a critical role in protecting natural, cultural and historical heritage.

“The Wildlife Ranger Challenge brings the vital work of rangers to the fore by providing an opportunity to generate crucial funding for the men and women working on the front line of conservation. The campaign has to date supported over 9,000 rangers across 24 African countries, becoming a springboard from which the entire “rangering” profession can be recognised and developed,”Charlie Mayhew MBE, the CEO of Tusk said.

An average ranger, according to a Global Survey of the Working Conditions of Rangers conducted by WWF, the average ranger works almost 90 hours a week, with over 60% surveyed having no access to clean drinking water on patrol or at outpost stations, and almost 40% reporting they regularly have no access to shelter while on patrol at night.

However, all too often, rangers operate under poor and dangerous working conditions.

The lack of resources is compounded by extremely dangerous working conditions, with threats, violence, injury and disease all too common.

Up to 70% of rangers surveyed by the WWF have contracted malaria within a 12-month period, and over 40% have received threats from community members.

Tragically, a number of rangers pay the ultimate price, as reflected in the Roll of Honour screened during the annual Tusk Conservation Awards.

The Wildlife Ranger Challenge comes in to alleviate present challenges and offer support by raising vital funds, which will widen access to essential equipment, enhanced training and protective measures.

The Challenge is also playing a catalyst role needed for the development of the “rangering” profession by increasing recognition for the critical roles’ rangers play.

Too often, wildlife rangers are deeply misunderstood.

However, the rangers that participated in the Wildlife Ranger Challenge half marathon reflected the great diversity within the profession, with many playing wide-ranging roles as conservationists, teachers, community support workers and leaders, contributing not just to protecting wildlife and supporting their immediate communities, but to global UN Sustainable Development Goals.

This year’s race day coincided with the African Ranger Congress taking place in Kasane, Botswana, at which Tusk and its partners, the Game Rangers’ Association of Africa, and NATURAL STATE, brought together delegates to take part in the Challenge.

Public participation in the event however, stretched far and wide, with members of the public from across the globe running in solidarity with the rangers in their home cities.

The race was preceded by a series of mental and physical trials, with a new mini-challenge featuring this year for ranger teams with canine units, in which dogs and handlers demonstrated their tracking skills.

The Wildlife Ranger Challenge has real power to impact change.

With matched funding from the Scheinberg Relief Fund and the vital partnership of the Game Rangers’ Association of Africa, Tusk looks forward to seeing this initiative of Africa, for Africa, transform and reach even greater heights.

George Kamasiai, an anti-Poaching Unit team commander, Lewa Wildlife Conservancy said: “I’m proud to be part of the all-star team representing the Wildlife Ranger Challenge at the African Ranger Congress this week.

“My work as a ranger is complex and wide-ranging. While we are often thought of as working solely out in the field, we know how important it is to engage local communities in conservation through development, education and advocacy. It is my hope that the team’s race on 17th September, 2022 helps highlight the critical work of my colleagues across Africa as they stand between wildlife and extinction.”

Bear Grylls, an adventurer and Tusk ambassador,  weighed in saying:  “The time achieved by the all-star team in Kasane is extraordinary, reflecting the exceptional calibre of individuals working across the front lines of Africa’s protected areas. Despite facing enormous challenges, rangers continue to go above and beyond, and could not be more deserving of our support.”

Mark Scheinberg, Founder of Scheinberg Relief Fund  said was “proud to support the Wildlife Ranger Challenge”.

“Its an important event that highlights the incredible efforts of rangers across Africa and raises vital funds to support their livelihoods, the conservation areas in which they live and the iconic wildlife that they work so hard to protect. It was a personal pleasure to meet dozens of rangers in Kenya last year – truly local heroes. Without their daily dedication, wildlife in the region and across Africa would not survive,”Scheinberg said.

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