Mushroom Lodge

From January to December, the year comes to an end and it has been yet a fantastic year for Mushroom Lodge. And now to end the year with out latest event, we recently held a lunch with a delegation of about 80 people approximately. It was a major event organized by ZAWA and Mushroom Lodge as hosts in South Luangwa on 9 November to celebrate 27 years of Norway-Zambia cooperation for wildlife conservation and community development.

The event was attended by Zambia’s Deputy Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture Honourable Keith Mukata, together with Director-General of Zambia Wildlife Authority (ZAWA), representatives of tour operators and the tourism industry, local traditional chiefs, high government officials, and local community leaders. All underlined the importance and impressive results of Norway’s long term support amounting to NOK 200 million. Still, a challenge remains to maintain good management of the wildlife-people conflicts, and make maximum use of the valuable lessons for future development of the wildlife and tourism sectors for mutual benefits today and future generations. Norway’s ambassador Arve Ofstad said that Zambia should be proud of its achievements, and that Norway is very pleased that we have contributed to this success story.

Above: 

Norwegian Ambassador to Zambia Arve Ofstad with Deputy Minister of Tourism and Arts, Honorable Keith Mukata, Director—General of ZAWA  Mr. E. Motokwane and the 6 Local chiefs of the area, Chief Nsefu, Chief Kakumbi, Chief Malama, Chief Msoro, Chief Jumbe and Chief Mnkhanya all enjoy a beautiful cultural show done by SEKA.

Above:

Honorable Keith Mukata giving his speech during the celebration at the Mushroom Lodge.

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Luangwa Safari Association chairperson Adrian Coley with safari guide Asheed Makukula stand in front of the Zambian and Norwegian National flags. Mr. Coley also appealed to the government to quickly address the human –animal conflict in the South Lungwa national park which was on the increase. Despite the tourism sector playing a major role in the stimulating of national economic growth, the sector has continued to face a number of challenges over the years.