Wilderness Safaris Proudly Supports Botswana's COVID-19 Vaccination Drive
Wilderness Safaris staff based in the remote Linyanti Wildlife Reserve in Botswana proudly received their COVID-19 vaccinations on 25 August 2021, demonstrating they are indeed #ArmReady. The effort comes as part of a dynamic vaccination drive led by the Chobe District Health Management Team (DHMT) in Kasane to ensure people living in remote wilderness areas have access to the vaccine. With some 150 people receiving the vaccination, the drive was a great success, and just the start of the company’s support of the National vaccination campaign.
Arno du Preez, Wilderness Safaris Linyanti Concession Manager added that it was so encouraging to see so many people waiting in socially distanced lines to get vaccinated, despite falsehoods and myths being posted on social media about the vaccines. “Our staff members couldn’t wait to pose with their ‘new Passports’ as they call the little blue vaccination booklet received once injected. We didn’t encounter any staff not wanting to be vaccinated, and all are extremely grateful for the ongoing efforts and support from our Risk and HR teams to help allay any fears in this regard and provide the necessary education and awareness as part of our wider staff COVID-19 drive to support Government’s and the Ministry of Health and Wellness’ pandemic education efforts”.
Kutlwano Keadimilwe, a waitress from Wilderness Safaris DumaTau Camp, noted that she was happy to have received the vaccination: “I heard so many stories but I am now happy and can be more confident when working with our guests. I barely had any side effects”. Karol Kebadile, a barman at DumaTau added that he was thankful to have received the vaccine. “I’m sure our guests will feel more comfortable knowing we are vaccinated; we can hopefully return to normal now”, he said.
With stringent COVID-19 health and safety protocols in place, wide open spaces, and vaccination roll-outs across all Wilderness Safaris’ regions of operation well underway, the company continues to create impactful journeys in this new world of travel.
A dedicated task team driving all COVID-19 related safety has been set up to ensure that all the latest advice is followed. Park Doctor, a not-for-profit medical organisation working to initiate and facilitate partnerships between medical and conservation professionals, provides this medical support. Medical staff can also be flown into our camps in Botswana at an additional cost, allowing guests to travel simply and easily and to enjoy their safari with complete peace of mind.
Click here for more information about Wilderness Safaris’ health and safety procedures, and COVID-19 FAQs.