News

Staff from Addo Elephant and Karoo National Parks walked away with spoils from the 19th annual Kudu Awards, held at the Gallagher Convention Centre in Midrand on Thursday, 27 November 2025.

The awards celebrate both internal and external stakeholders who have demonstrated exceptional commitment to sustainability, community development and the protection of South Africa’s natural heritage. Through their passion and dedication, they have made a tangible difference in promoting responsible conservation practices and improving livelihoods across the country’s national parks.

The Chief Executive Awards category recognises dedication and selfless efforts of SANParks employees towards achieving the goals of SANParks’ mandates.

Current Park Manager of Addo Elephant National Park, Roland Januarie, won in the Leadership category for his tenure at Karoo National Park outside Beaufort West. He received the award in recognition of his exceptional leadership in managing programmes and staff, including his strategic thinking, high motivation and successfully implementing innovative solutions to complex problems.

There were two winners in the Excellent Performance in the Workplace category.  The first award went to Addo’s Heston McCabe, a Research Assistant in the Scientific Services team.  This was in recognition of his outstanding service in various elephant, black rhino and carnivore management interventions within the Park and his contribution to the efficient management of satellite collars deployed in the four national parks which make up the Frontier Region of SANParks.

Karoo National Park General Worker, Damon Frieslaar, also received an Excellent Performance in the Workplace award for his continuous display of unwavering dedication, exceptional work ethic and positive attitude.

The Kudu Awards are made possible thanks to sponsors First National Bank (FNB) and TotalEnergies.