The Camelthorn Foundation supported work carried out at Steve's Pan in Jozibanini in the south western part of Zimbabwe's Hwange National Park, a hotspot for thousands of elephants every dry season.

The Camelthorn Foundation has supported pumping water for wildlife efforts during the dry season across 6 solar hybrid water pumps in southern Hwange. Each waterhole supports about 1,000 elephants and a number of other important species. Hwange National Park has very little natural surface water and access to water and food becomes difficult for wildlife with the progression of the dry season. Proactively pumping water for wildlife is one of the only short-term options for avoiding mass wildlife deaths.

While proactive solar hybrid pumping takes place during the dry season, repairs to infrastructure and pumps, such as those that were needed at Steve’s Pan in Jozibannini, are required throughout the year.

The Camelthorn Foundation provided some funding towards work carried out at Steve’s Pan in Jozibannini, with the local Water4Wildlife Trust spearheading the project. The Steve’s Pan project at Jozibanini was commissioned in 2021 by donors of the Water4Wildlife Trust, to expand the water supply system there. Since then, it has provided great relief for the huge thirsty herds coming from the west, every dry season.

But last year, it was obvious that water was insufficient in the late dry season, and that erosion around the troughs from overspilling water and elephant pressure was creating a muddy and even dangerous situation, particularly for elephant calves.

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So, this year, the Water4Wildlife Trust, with the help of the Camelthorn Foundation, set out to rectify the problem, in two ways.

Firstly, by relaying pipes with larger diameter that increased water delivery by 120% - pushing it up to 6,900 litres of water per hour -  and secondly, by reinforcing the concrete ‘Elephant Drinking Pad’ around the troughs, to provide all elephants and in particular the youngsters, with a firm, non-slip surface on which they can stand, whilst they quench their parched dry season thirsts.

Steve's Pan has daily visits from a number of animals, including large herds of elephants and buffalo as well as lions and wild dogs. This work is incredibly important, especially during the dry season!