About Us. . . .

Okonjima, meaning 'place of the baboon' turned from cattle farming to tourism in 1993 and shortly after launched the animal welfare foundation, Africat.

Okonjima is home to a 4,000 hectare (10,000 acre) Cheetah Rehabilitation Reserve giving previously non-releasable cats a second chance to be wild and free. Okonjima's total expanse encompasses a 22,000 hectare (55,000 acre) operational private nature reserve. Other game to be seen include : leopard, giraffe, oryx, kudu, zebra, impala, eland, wildebeest, red hartebeest, duiker, steenbok, dik-dik, and warthog. Also nocturnal animals such as porcupine, honey badger, brown hyaena, spotted genet, aardvark and over 200 bird species may be seen.

Since being registered as a non-profit organisation, Africat has grown significantly and what started out primarily as a welfare organisation has over the years identified the need to include a focus on education and research as being essential in accomplishing their mission - 'the long term conservation of Namibia's large carnivores'.

Africat concentrate on the following programmes :

Rescue & Release Programme
Since its inception Africat has released over 800 cheetahs and leopards back into the wild.

Welfare Programme
Africat provides a home, food and care for over 100 large carnivores that cannot currently be released. These are mostly orphaned cubs.

Cheetah Rehabilitation Programme
This programme was initiated to give some of the captive cheetahs an opportunity to return to their natural environment. Although hunting in carnivores is instinctive, many of the cheetahs at Africat lack experience due to being orphaned or removed from the wild at an early age. The 5,000 hectare Cheetah Rehabilitation area
provides these cheetahs with the opportunity to hone their hunting skills and become self-sustaining.

Education Programme
To educate youth about large carnivores and environmental awareness.

Research Programme
To research large carnivores, particularly cheetahs and leopards on farmland and in captivity.

The Working Holiday Programme . . . .

Alas, as with vast areas of Namibia the last 100 years of cattle farming has left its scar. Bush encroachment is destroying Nambian flora and fauna. Our goal, with your help is to reverse mans influence. Over-grazing has led to topsoil erosion decreasing the survival of natural plants and grasses and therefore the game dependent on them. Sickle bush (Dichrostachys Cinerea) previously limited to mountain fringes has over the years encroached onto the plains and taken over. Believe us you will be getting up close and personal to this menace.

Your mission should you choose to accept it is to eradicate this bush, opening up the land once more.
Over time the indigenous plants and grasses will recover and the game will return.
Once again the cheetah will have its natural environment back to hunt and run like the wind. . . .

 

 

 

 

Day to Day. . . .

Our normal working day will start at 06.00, coffee and breakfast made and then off to the work site by 7am. Bush clearing will be the main daily activity but this will be flexible. We will work with breaks until 12noon then lunch and siesta in the shade until 1.30pm. Work continues until 4pm when we down tools and head off to our afternoon activity i.e. tracking, game walks etc. Our non-working day will consist of a well- deserved lie-in, a visit to Africat to meet the team and join on the feeding-run of over 100 cats in welfare. You will come away with a better understanding of what you are helping towards and how Africat aids predator and farmer alike. Evenings will be based around the campfire listening to the sounds of the wild and reliving our day.

 

 

Our camp located in the heart of the bush is basic with dome tents, shower, toilets, no electricity and no TV. . . !

Daily rotas will be in place and everyone gets involved in day-to-day camp activities including wake-ups and the preparation of all meals.

Live the wild side for a time…get back to your roots. . . . feel like a bushman in our own little community. . . .

 

 

 

 

Other aspects that team members can be expected to be involved in include :

- Cheetah & leopard tracking and monitoring for research
- Game counts at waterholes
- General reserve maintenance
- Fence patrols
- Plant & animal studies
- Tracking and bush crafts
- Soil erosion control
- Game drives / walks
- Star gazing
- Africat tour including the feeding-run and meeting the team. Animals seen include cheetah, leopard, caracal and lion.