One hundred and twenty Southern White rhinos have been translocated to the Greater Kruger Environmental Protection Foundation (GKEPF) member reserves in Mpumalanga and Limpopo.

This boost to the Southern White rhino population in the Greater Kruger area is part of African Parks’ Rhino Rewild initiative, an ambitious plan to rewild 2 000 southern white rhinos into secure protected areas in Africa over the next ten years.

GKEPF, established in 2016, is an alliance of nine private reserves, one provincial park, and one national park to service the protection needs of the western and eastern buffers of the Kruger National Park and the Greater Limpopo Transfrontier National Park.

This translocation comes at a time when poaching rates within GKEPF reserves have significantly declined, indicating the effectiveness of security and anti-poaching measures.

In September 2023, African Parks purchased the world’s largest captive rhino breeding operation in a bid to rescue 2 000 Southern White rhinos following a failed auction, with one main objective: to rewild them all to well-managed and secure protected areas, to establish or supplement strategic populations, ultimately helping to de-risk the future of the species.

Through Rhino Rewild, African Parks is dedicated to bolstering healthy Southern White rhino populations in South Africa and recognises the country's efforts in rhino conservation for the benefit of the African continent.

“Moving 120 rhinos under the Rhino Rewild initiative to GKEPF will augment the existing rhino population in the Greater Kruger and ensure that these rhino are fulfilling their role in their natural environment, which has been our vision from the start,” said Peter Fearnhead, CEO of African Parks. 

“Despite significant pressures, GKEPF members have played a critical role in the conservation of the Greater Kruger landscape providing an important buffer to the Kruger and we support their commendable progress in protecting rhino populations in their native range,” Fearnhead added.

Sharon Haussmann, CEO of GKEPF, said: “The rewilding itself bears testament to the cumulative knowledge, partnerships, and insights of a protracted period of anti-poaching efforts in the Greater Kruger landscape. That the benefits so clearly outweigh the risks presents a significant opportunity for rewarding the efforts of everyone who has remained committed to safeguarding rhino populations amid extremely challenging circumstances over the past 10 to 15 years.”

Collaboration is at the heart of GKEPF’s mandate. While rhinos will not be released into the KNP itself but into private game reserves along its western boundary, the project could not have taken place without consensus, collaboration, and expert inputs from KNP and South African National Parks counterparts. 

This strategic placement to private reserves bordering the KNP strengthens the rhino metapopulation and lays the groundwork for potential future collaboration as the Kruger continues its fight against poaching.

This region of South Africa is an ideal habitat for Southern White rhino. The fertile and water-rich grasslands of the selected release areas are ideal for ensuring optimal rhino health and population growth.

Through a decade-long collaborative effort to combat rhino poaching, reserves and stakeholders have developed and shared a wealth of expertise. This has significantly bolstered their ability to proactively and effectively address poaching threats and safeguard the species.

“The rhino will come in dehorned, which is a very effective way to decrease the poaching risk in this landscape. We're at a point where this risk is well calculated. This will be the first reintroduction of rhinos into this landscape in about 50 years,” said Markus Hofmeyr, wildlife vet and Director of the Rhino Recovery Fund.

African Parks is donating the animals to the reserve, with GKEPF donors contributing to the translocation costs and the subsequent ongoing monitoring of the rhinos, a critical element for the project's long-term success.