EMPOWERING COMMUNITIES TO CONSERVE NATURE

Wilson Chinda

GRI-Communications Officer

In the heart of Zambia’s breathtaking landscapes, where communities and wildlife share the same space, there is a growing need to cultivate an environment that fosters harmonious coexistence. Achieving this delicate balance requires sustainable solutions that empower local communities while safeguarding the wildlife that defines Zambia’s heritage. 

Our Community Outreach Programme empowers local communities with access to information, livelihood security and the means to coexist peacefully with wildlife, enabling them to become active stakeholders and beneficiaries in wildlife conservation. By supporting sustainable livelihoods, education, and infrastructure, we ensure that people and wildlife thrive together. 

All smiles as the shachiwondwe women receive the hand plough donated by our volunteer alumni Kathryn Wooters.

In Zambia, many communities adjacent to national parks face significant socio-economic hardships, often driving them to engage in illegal wildlife activities like poaching as a means of survival. This dependence on wildlife crime places immense pressure on already vulnerable species, threatening their existence and disrupting the delicate balance of nature. 

The urgent need to earn a living disproportionately affects women, who must provide food, shelter, and support for their children's education. This vulnerable position can drive them to offer information or accommodation to poachers in exchange for money, food, or other necessities. 

Addressing these challenges requires commitment and collective responsibility. We believe that empowering rangers and local communities to conserve nature involves providing sustainable livelihood alternatives that shift the focus away from illegal wildlife activities and highlight the benefits of protecting the rich biodiversity around them. 

As part of our grassroots commitment to community empowerment, we established three women-led groups in Shantumbu Village, a community adjacent to Lusaka National Park. We continue to support 32 women through these groups to ensure their sustainability and growth. 

The three women’s groups—Shachiwondwe, Kakhutula, and Shamuvula - engage in income-generating activities such as vegetable gardening, tailoring, poultry farming for egg production, and baking for sale in local markets and households. 

We remain committed to helping women in rural Zambia thrive by providing essential tools, equipment, and resources such as seedlings for gardening, flour for baking, and feed for poultry farming. We assist them with business skills, mentoring and finding fair markets to sell their goods at reasonable prices. 

However, mobility remains a major challenge in rural communities. Women often walk up to 25 kilometres carrying heavy loads on their heads, leading to exhaustion, swollen legs, and severe headaches. 

Shachiwondwe women carry a 30kg bag of farm produce on their way to the market.

To ease this burden, we facilitated the purchase and distribution of three bicycles generously donated by our volunteer alumna Kathryn Wooters, to provide these women with a reliable mode of transport to access markets, healthcare facilities, and educational opportunities.

Upon receiving the donation, Shachiwondwe Women’s Group Chairlady, Naomi Daka, expressed her gratitude, saying: 

"We are honoured by the continued support from GRI, who have helped us since our group's inception. Today, we are blessed with bicycles that will greatly assist us in transporting our products to the markets and accessing healthcare facilities without having to walk kilometres."

Kathryn further empowered the women with a second donation of a motorized hand plough intended to intensify their agricultural efforts, boost productivity and enhance food security. The plough will allow the women to cultivate their land more efficiently, reducing the physical strain of manual labour, increasing crop yields, and ensuring a more consistent and productive farming season. 

GRI-Community Outreach Ranger Victor Watala handing over the hand plough to the women's group representatives in Shantumbu village.

During the handover, the women expressed gratitude for Kathryn’s generosity and GRI’s continued support. Juliet Hampande, one of the beneficiaries, shared: 

"We cannot describe the happiness of receiving all these donations. In the past, preparing our fields during the farming season was a struggle, taking us up to two months to clear a 25-yard portion. But with this donation, it will only take us about 45 minutes to get our fields ready for planting." 

Meanwhile, GRI Community Outreach Ranger, Victor Wotala, encouraged the groups to make full use of the hand plough and bicycles for their intended purposes, emphasizing the benefits of conservation. 

"What you have received today is evidence of the benefits of protecting wildlife and wild spaces. With the combination of bicycles and the hand plough, these women now have the tools to build sustainable livelihoods that will help them provide for their families—ensuring food security, clothing, and sufficient resources to send their children to school," said Victor Wotala. 

When communities begin to see the tangible benefits of conservation through initiatives such as empowerment programs, job creation, better education, or improved infrastructure, the motivation to protect wildlife grows stronger. 

Supporting women with credible markets to sell their products.

We remain committed to empowering the communities bordering Zambia’s protected areas with sustainable sources of income through skills training, peer-support networks, economic opportunities, and conservation education, reducing their reliance on natural resources and enabling them to thrive as guardians of wildlife.

A huge thank you to our volunteer alumni and donor, Kathryn Wooters, for her incredible support towards our conservation efforts by empowering local communities to conserve wildlife and wild spaces.