Land & Lake Safaris 2011

 The Lilongwe Wildlife Centre

The Lilongwe Wildlife Centre was set up in 2007 as a People and Wildlife Centre, the first of its kind in the world, taking over a 120 hectare wilderness area right in the heart of Malawi’s capital city.  Not only is it the sole wildlife sanctuary for orphaned and rescued wild animals in Malawi it is also a centre for the people, operating extensive community outreach and education programs.   

We believe we can make a real difference working with the local communities in terms of raising awareness of the importance of respecting our environment and keeping wildlife in the wild, whilst also providing alternatives to practices such as deforestation and the illegal bush meat trade. 

There have been some fantastic achievements at the Centre within the last couple of years – there’s the rescue and rehabilitation of hundreds of animals including lion, leopard, antelope, baboons and crocodiles.  The sale of wild animals on the side of the roads in Lilongwe has now been eradicated thanks to local campaigning.  The PAW (People and Wildlife) clubs in 12 of the poorest communities are fully supported by the chiefs and officials, with whom we have developed various income generation projects and we even have support from the UNDP and City Assembly for our city wide aforestation project plan.  

As a pilot ‘People and Wildlife’ project we also hope that our success will be used as a model for others around the world. In years to come we will be able to showcase the benefits of addressing conservation issues in partnership with the local communities through education and outreach, and become a true centre for the people and wildlife of Malawi.