Majete Wildlife Reserve

A success story in wildlife restoration 

Until the early 2000s, Majete was a little-known reserve where poaching had driven virtually all wildlife to extinction. Today, it stands as a beacon of hope for wildlife restoration and biodiversity conservation, as well as the first major success story for African Parks.

This transformation was made possible through the collaboration between local communities, the Government of Malawi and African Parks, which selected Majete Wildlife Reserve in 2003 as the first testing ground for its delegated management model.

Over the past twenty years, thousands of animals belonging to dozens of species have been progressively reintroduced. More than 2,500 individuals have returned to the reserve, including cheetahs, leopards, African wild dogs, eland, sable antelopes, waterbuck, nyala, zebras, warthogs, giraffes and the Big Five: lions, leopards, rhinoceroses, buffalo and elephants. The programme has been so successful that wildlife populations have grown significantly, allowing Majete Wildlife Reserve to provide animals for the restoration of other protected areas, including Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve.

Majete demonstrates what a thriving wildlife reserve can achieve: restoring biodiversity, creating employment opportunities for local communities and becoming a sought-after destination for travellers.