2005/2006 - SANParks

2005South African National ParksKRUGER NATIONAL PARK (KNP)KNP REGIONAL REPORTS:Nxanatseni Region:Over and above the normal maintenance and upkeep of existinginfrastructure, the period under review saw the Northern region, recentlynamed ‘Nxanatseni’ undergoing major renovations. Some of the completedrenovations within this region include:• two family cottages;• two a-circle huts at Letaba;• four cottages at Shingwedzi;• three huts at Punda Maria;• two huts at Olifants camp;• replacement and bat-proofi ng of thatched roofs of four units;• the collapsed terrace retaining wall at Olifants Camp was replaced;• safety balustrades were erected;• Shimuwini camp received new kitchen units in three cottages;• Mopani Resturant’s wooden deck was replaced;• Personnel quarters at the TEBA facility at Pafuri were renovated;• a walk-in safe was constructed at Woodlands Section;• huts and furnaces at the Masorini Archeological site were replaced;• the Letaba Elephant Hall was renovated with the introduction of a fullelephant skeleton (sponsored by Bushveld Region Honorary Rangers);and• at Punda Maria Gate, a cattle grid was installed at the outer gate tokeep cattle from neighbouring communities out of the park.Completed new visitor infrastructure includes the Punda Maria Day Visitorsite and Environmental Education (EE) centre as well as the Letaba DayVisitor site with a swimming pool. Another new project in process is theSAEON and park administration offi ces at Phalaborwa Gate.Nkayeni Region:In its endeavour to contribute towards the broader strategy of the KNPand SANParks as whole, the Central Region of the KNP implementednumerous tourism projects. This was done in order to increase occupancylevels and as a result tourism in general has improved within the regionas compared to the previous year.There were several poaching incidents that were reported in the region,which resulted in 11 arrests. Some poachers were tried in court and thosewho were found guilty were fi ned or jailed. Some 66 illegal immigrantswere arrested and 172 human tracks were spotted. Several patch burnswere made in the region with some of the fi res being started by illegalimmigrants.In the period under review, 4,285 learners and 285 educators visited theCentral Region through Orpen Gate to learn more about the park and itsinhabitants. A total of 731 people attended fi lm shows in the region.46