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15 July 2010

Media Release: Arid region… Jou lekker ding!

The Arid region, which includes |Ai-|Ais/Richtersveld Transfrontier Park, Augrabies Falls National Park, Kgalagadi Tranfrontier Park, Mokala National Park and Namaqua National Park walked away with three deserving Chief Executive Awards.

The Chief Executive”s (CE) Awards are presented to SANParks employees and parks that have shown dedication beyond duty towards the vision of SANParks: “Connecting to Society”. According to Dr David Mabunda, SANParks CEO, “The Kudu Awards is an important initiative that recognises external stakeholders for their contribution and internal stakeholders (for) efforts in making South African National Parks the custodian of choice for the national parks system.”

Danny Zandamela, CEO FNB Public Sector Banking, added that the Kudu Awards were fundamental to the practice of recognising, acknowledging and praising the people who have, over the years, created and maintained a conducive and enabling environment for nature conservation projects to be managed effectively. He further expressed that the individuals that have been recognised are at the forefront of inspiring, educating and mobilising their peers through their commitment to environmental issues.

Mokala National Parks came out tops in the CE Awards to win the Best Performing Park for 2013. Mokala National Park also had another winner from their Park, Sarah Letsoalo, the People and Conservation Officer who won the Best Constituency Builder Award as she always sets an example of what can be achieved if you are willing to go the extra mile.

Nicholas De Goede, Park Manager of |Ai-|Ais/Richtersveld Transfrontier Park, was awarded the Overall Best Performer Award as he displayed resourcefulness in overcoming many challenges and still excelled as an example.

“The winners are all honoured for their meaningful contribution to the protection of the environment and we applaud them,” concluded Dr Mabunda.

Issued By

South African National Parks (SANParks) Arid Region Communications
Tel: 012 426 5170

Enquiries

Gabrielle “Gabby” Venter
SANParks Manager: Media and Stakeholder Relations
Tel: 012 426-5065; Cell: 083 8259435
Email: [email protected]