Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve

Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve is Malawi’s oldest and largest protected area - covering a vast, rugged 1,800km2 (180,000 hectares). The reserve extends east from the edge of the escarpment of the Great Rift Valley to just five kilometres short of the shoreline of Lake Malawi.

Nkhotakota wildlife

Species to look for include lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo, crocodile, hippopotamus, hyena, sable and roan antelope, eland, impala, waterbuck, zebra, kudu, impala, bushbuck, common duiker and warthog. Smaller species include side-striped jackal, honey badger and several species of mongoose.

Over 280 of bird species have been recorded - including palm-nut vultures, bat hawks, Hildebrandt's francolins, scaly francolins, Boehm’s bee-eaters, Schalow's turacos, crowned eagles, Pel's fishing owls and Taita falcons.

This is a great conservation success story.

By 2014, years of ivory poaching had reduced the elephant population to a mere 100 animals; what was once a sanctuary for wildlife had become an empty, silent forest. In 2015, the Malawian Government invited African Parks to sign a long-term agreement to manage the reserve and assist the Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW).

Since then, the reserve has initiated several historic reintroductions, including 500 elephants and 2,000 other animals.

With a well-trained and equipped ranger team and strong community engagement, poaching has become a thing of the past. Employment and enterprise activities, such as beekeeping, fish farming, and chilli production, together with investment in education, healthcare, nutrition, and infrastructure, benefit thousands of people.

With Nkhotakota’s wildlife restored, tourism is helping to generate employment, livelihoods and revenue, and building long-lasting value for local communities.