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“These awards are a vehicle for SANParks to say thank you to the staff who tirelessly work at keeping this organisation a leader in its market. A special thanks to everyone who has received an award, you are living up to the request to establish a legacy that will live on forever. Also tonight is a special night for Mokala National Park, SANParks” “baby” park, which turns 6 years old today”, said the Mokala Park Manager, Deon Joubert in his welcome address.

The Awards were adjudicated by the Arid Regional Management team and were judged on areas such as overall performance, implementation of various systems, financial performance and management, guest complaints and compliments, compliance to policies and general neatness of the facility. Awards were given to individual staff members who have excelled in various categories.

Ranger of the Year went to Albert Bojane and Petrus Schreuder. Albert hails from Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park and despite a disability resulting from a lion retrieval, Albert has displayed excellent service delivery as a field ranger. Petrus, from Namaqua National Park, and his willingness to go the extra mile is an example to all staff and made him the other winner in this category.

Outstanding Service in the Workplace went to Maria Pieriga from Namaqua National Park, Andries Renoster from Mokala National Park, Hendrik Prins from |Ai-|Ais/Richtersveld Transfrontier Park, Carmen Cloete from |Ai-|Ais/Richtersveld Transfrontier Park and Rawline Bezuidenhout from Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. All of these winners stood out in their respective fields of Tourism and service delivery to internal and external clients.

The Constituency Builder Award went to Sarah Letsoalo from Mokala National Park. She always sets an example of what can be achieved if you are willing to go the extra mile.

The Leadership Award went to Nicholas De Goede, Park Manager of |Ai-|Ais/Richtersveld Transfrontier Park as he displayed resourcefulness in overcoming many challenges and still excelled as an example.

The Regional Managers Award was awarded to Katrina Neels from Augrabies National Park and Willem De Wet of |Ai-|Ais/Richtersveld Transfrontier Park. Katrina was recognised for her continued excellent client service, efficiency and always giving her best. Willem was recognised for his hard work, passion and commitment to SANParks.

The Business Partner of the Year went to The Department of Economic Development and Tourism, Northern Cape, for their enormous support in jointly developing and supporting tourism in the Northern Cape.

The winner of the Entrance Gate/Reception of the year went to Groenrivier Entrance Gate, Namaqua National Park.

The Rest Camp of the Year went to Mosu Lodge, Mokala National Park and the Park of the year went to Mokala National Park.

The final award of the evening was the Park Manager of the Year Award and this went to Deon Joubert from Mokala National Park. He received this award for his significant progress in research of the conservation and constituency building functions while exceeding financial and tourism targets under difficult circumstances.

“The winners from tonight are a proud example of the work that SANParks strives to do on a daily basis and we hope that they will be an inspiration to those they work with and meet every day,” concluded Park Manager of the Year winner, Deon Joubert.

Issued By

South African National Parks (SANParks) Arid Communications
Tel: 012 426 5065

Enquiries

Gabrielle “Gabby” Venter
SANParks Acting Regional Communications Manager: Arid Region
Tel: 012 426 5065; Cell: 083 825 9435
Email: [email protected]