2025 hightlights

In 2025, the Camelthorn Foundation, thanks to you all, contributed specifically towards:

 

Supporting mobile dental and eye care clinics in rural Zimbabwean villages​

In 2025, the Camelthorn Foundation paid for prescription glasses and readers to reach villages in wildlife areas in Zimbabwe.

 

Over 2,500 pairs of prescription, reading and sunglasses were gathered by Specs for Africa. The Camelthorn Foundation supported the transport of the glasses to Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. Here they were distributed by the Water4Wildlife Trust / Imvelo Safari Lodges to people in need during the Smile and See Programme.

In 2025, the Smile and See Programme treated over 3,308 eyecare patients across 5 different mobile clinic days at Sipepa (2 days), Mlevu, Dhlamini and Ngamo.

Other impact numbers from the Smile and See programme include:

• 1,699 dental care patients

• Over 2,900 dental procedures carried out

• 1,410  children given fluoride

• Over 270 cataract cases identified

 

Over 3,500 glasses were distributed, most of which were donated by Specs for Africa and the transport of which was paid for by the Camelthorn Foundation.​​

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Support to the Community Rhino Conservation Initiative

The Camelthorn Foundation raised funds for the Community Rhino Conservation Initiative’s development throughout 2025. The Initiative made important strides in 2025:

• Continued rhino protection and monitoring; continued scrub clearing, habitat management and fence maintenance

• Integrated cattle/rhino grazing scheme in sanctuary 2

• Fencing of sanctuary 2a

• An additional 2000 hectares of community land allocated for rhino conservation

• Fifth recruitment round for scouts: 24 local people completed basic training, including 3 women (Cheetahs)

• 20 February intervention: Dr Mupondi and  Dr Chris Foggin treated 1 rhino’s eyes for habronema, rhino was then trained to receive eye medication to prevent future interventions

• 1 dog from Take Action Zimbabwe joined the k9 unit

•  Ten-day workshop with NUST and LSU students and community surveys on impacts of CRCI

• School and community workshops

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Impacts included:

• + $ 80,000 in direct community revenue

• + 70 local people employed as scouts or habitat management workers; + $ 200,000 community employment revenue

• 18km of wildlife proof fencing

• Monitoring and recording rhino behaviour: =138,000 data points

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Read more about the  Community Rhino Conservation Initiative 

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Supporting Mlevu school and community

The Camelthorn Foundation, with support from the Indigo Earth Foundation, supported the Water4Wildlife Foundation and its work in Mlevu, and in particular the community food garden and Primary school. 

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This work included:

• Renovate teacher cottage roofs: The current teacher cottages are in a state of disrepair, with the largest issue being that of leaking roofs, especially as the rainy season approached. Getting the roofs repaired was essential for the school.

• Install solar power at the school and at the teacher cottages: 150 solar lights were distributed to learners and a 6.5kva solar systems was put in at the school, to provide solar power to the 3 classroom blocks, 1 administration block and 4 teacher cottages. This is life-changing for the teachers in terms of their ability to work in the evenings as well as opportunities to use resources include computers.​

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2025 would not have been so successful without you...

Thank you!