A visit to the local village, Musampa, is a must if you want to learn more about the way of life of the Tonga people who inhabit the shores of Lake Kariba.
Musango Safari Camp has been heavily involved in the development of the community of Musampa for 27 years now and is proud to offer guided tours to meet the locals who themselves will show guests around their village and demonstrate their way of life. Visitors learn how the villagers live a subsistence lifestyle, reliant entirely on the land and the water to survive.
Musango Safari Camp itself has proudly built a school, provided desks, supplied chairs, built a clinic, created water wells and even paid for teacher’s salaries for this community. As a result, the school has put many children through a formal education programme from Grade 1 through to O ‘ Level and has proudly produced teachers, cooks, mechanics, and managers. Musango also offers an intern programme which accepts teenagers from the community and teaches them professional skills in and around the camp for future job opportunities within the hospitality and safari industry.
Teaching life skills and building awareness within the community of the importance of conservation is paramount and a key role of Musango’s work there. At the end of the day, the wildlife attracts visitors who in turn leave donations to the school and various upliftment projects so the Tonga people need to understand that in order to value it and protect it going forward. The locals are taught about erosion control, organic gardening and composting too as other examples.
Additionally, Musango routinely provides food for orphans, clothing for babies and general welfare for those children less fortunate.
As a sign of the utmost respect, the camp has incorporated Tonga artifacts into décor within the facilities and accommodation. For example here {first photo} we have used an old Tonga door as a dressing table top and the ‘legs’ are the pestles used for crushing grain. The chair is an old Tonga stool with wrought iron around it and a fish backrest as the Tonga people are fisher people after all.
Contact Musango Safari Camp
Web. www.musangosafaricamp.com
Email. steve.edwards.musango@gmail.com
Tel. +263 772307875 or +263 777664299
