Zimbabwe, Hwange National Park

The David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation successfully applied to Just a Drop for assistance with the Hwange National Park's Painted Dog Conservation in Zimbabwe.
Poaching remains the biggest threat to painted dogs and wildlife in general. This threat stems from many different sources, however the impoverished villages need for food and water is the strongest driving force.

Just a Drop will fund a bore hole for Lupote Village to serve the 400 villagers and save them the 14km round trip just for water to survive.

Just a Drop and the Scientific Exploration Society are working on the project to provide:

• Two boreholes to produce water for staff and animals at an elephant rescue centre.

 Brief background about the Project

Communities in the rural areas bordering Hwange National Park suffer from malnutrition and poverty. Poaching becomes a way of life which in turn becomes the single biggest threat to the wildlife in the area and to painted dogs in particular. Lack of economic development, a semi-arid climate leading to water shortages and overpopulation due to poor family planning strategies are significant factors.
Painted Dog Conservation is facilitating community development initiatives in sixteen communities mainly engaged in nutritional gardens, placing an emphasis on producing alternative sources of protein, improved nutrition and income generation.

In 2006 Painted Dog Conservation facilitated a participatory baseline survey in one ward and came out with a list of community needs. On of the list of priorities, the need for water came up first with all villages in the ward.

The water problems vary from village to village. In some cases there is need to deepen wells, in others the need is to drill new boreholes and in yet others, fitting of pumps and finding parts for broken down water boreholes.

In Mpakathi the need is to drill a new borehole, and fence it for community use. This community was identified by the chief and his village heads as the community most in need of a borehole.

Benefits of the project to the community

The Mpakathi community walks 7 kilometres to get water for their existing garden project. Bringing water to the Mpakathi community through the provision of a borehole will create a hub of activities for community development. It will motivate farmers to increase their produce and diversify into new crops, as well as influence people to move away from a reliance on bush meat The 62 households who currently do not have water will start to realise benefits brought about by the availability of water in their community. The orphaned and disadvantaged children will also start to receive the benefits of the full involvement of their guardians and parents in nutritional garden projects.

In brief, the benefits will accrue to the community as improved nutritional garden yields, improved local nutrition and improved income generation through more effective gardening.