Helping keep poachers at bay
Ivory and rhino horn poachers operating in the landscape are backed by international trafficking networks and possess sophisticated weaponry, communications, and tactics. To support these critical populations, we help strengthen the Savé Valley Conservancy's operational efficiency and management. Better rhino protection benefits other species and the habitat as well.
Conserving rhinos in the Savé Valley
The private conservancies of Bubye, Savé, and Malilangwe host the largest population of black rhinos in Zimbabwe, with over 300 animals combined. We support rhino monitoring and landscape management; in 2021, we provided funding and strategic support for the landscape’s first rhino audit. Thanks to concerted conservation interventions, the rhino population is stable as of 2022.
Southeast Lowveld
Zimbabwe’s Southeast Lowveld region, located within the Savé and Limpopo Valleys, is a critical landscape for black and white rhinos, wild dogs, lions, and elephants. For these populations to thrive, they must overcome threats including poaching, human-wildlife conflict, and unsustainable mining.
We have worked here since 2001. Our current objectives are part of an ambitious strategy designed to build community resilience and safeguard biodiversity. They include:
- Maintenance of ecosystem integrity, with viable populations of AWF’s focal and other species
- Cross-border collaboration in service of conservation objectives
- Progress toward a vibrant wildlife economy
- Human-wildlife conflict mitigation
- Improved community access to natural resources for sustainable use
- Support for community livelihood projects
