Kirby, Wilderness safaris among presidential awards recipients
Staff Writer | Monday September 28, 2015 16:11
Wilderness Safaris, also known as Wilderness Holdings, is actually the only corporate entity to receive a Presidential award this year, while Ian Kirby’s honour of Presidential Award of honour, the highest in the awards, is bestowed on the man for his achievements as a private lawyer, wildlife conservationist, among others.
The president of the Court of Appeal, opened a first citizen private law firm in Botswana. He is the founder of Mokolodi Wildlife Foundation, which operates the Mokolodi Nature Reserve and an Environmental Education Centre which hosts over 10,000 children each year for live-in camps.
As a Judge, Kirby was the lead counsel in the Christie Commission that investigated corruption at the Botswana Housing Corporation (BHC) and I.P.M. Commission (school books), which led to the creation of the Directorate of Corruption and Economic Crime (DCEC).
Kirby also chaired the committee to re-draw mineral laws through which Botswana is consistently ranked as a leader in mineral exploration and development investment.
He has served as chairman or director of various private commercial companies including Debswana, Botswana Diamond Valuing Company and Mineral Policy Committee. He has also chaired a committee to re-draw General Orders governing the civil service.
Kirby served as Attorney General of Botswana, and was instrumental in the restructuring of the Attorney General’s Chambers, as well as piloted Constitutional Amendment on Composition and Expansion of the then House of Chiefs (Ntlo Ya Dikgosi).
He was also a member of a team that renegotiated Jwaneng lease to bring Diamond Aggregation to Botswana. He has served as an ex-officio Member of Parliament and of Cabinet and various Parliamentary Committees.
Wilderness Safaris - Wilderness Holdings, a Botswana based Company, receives the meritorious service award. The company is widely acclaimed as the continent foremost ecotourism operator. It operates 58 different Safari Camps and Lodges with a total of 30,000 guests per annum. It has presence in various African destinations.
The company has contributed significantly in the country’s tourism industry and holds global rankings in best travel company, global corporate reporting awards, travel and leisure, global vision awards for leaders. Its key performance areas include commerce; biodiversity conservations; environmental management, community empowerment and training and eco – clubs training.
Another notable recipient of the meritorious award is youthful wildife researcher Michael Chase, the founder of ‘Elephant Without Borders’, an environmental organisation, and a member of the African Elephant Specialist Group.
He has studied elephant ecology for more than 15 years and is the first Motswana to attain a doctorate in elephant ecology. He did the first aerial survey of wildlife in Botswana and was appointed an honorary wildlife officer in 2009 by the Minister of Environment.
Chase has contributed immensely to Eco-tourism activities in Botswana and researched elephant immigration across Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Angola and is continuously searching for novel and creative ideas for progressive research. Chase has provided new data on the status of elephants and other wildlife identified cross boarder corridors.
He is the principal researcher leading and coordinating the massive initiative of the Great Elephant Census which is currently being undertaken in 21 countries. Chase has established a Conservation Ecology Research Station in the Okavango Delta for students and is currently supervising 11 MA/PHD students in conservation.