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Mkhanya Community
Dr Cheryl & Manny Mvula - Founders
Mnkhanya Scouts with Dave

The High Five Club was co-founded by Dr Cheryl Mvula MBE & her husband Manny. They are based in the UK but spend a significant amount of their time in Africa working hand in hand with impoverished communities living in wildlife areas of Africa. Their prime source of funding is through an innovative membership scheme, where individuals pledge £5 every month to be used collectively to fund a community project in Africa. The charity runs entirely on voluntary contributions. 

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Cheryl introduced the Mnkhanya community to Dave Higgs, our OATOKE, when he was on one of his first trips to Zambia on OAT's behalf. Dave lived amongst the community scouts for some days and accompanied them on their anti-poaching patrols in the area. He was particularly touched by the fact that even though they were not properly equipped with uniforms or boots, many were de-snaring in the thick bush with nothing more than flip flops on their feet! He also noted that they had to travel some distance before reaching the patrol areas which was not time efficient and therefore minimised their effectiveness. By the time Dave was ready to leave, we had come up with a plan to help the people and in turn help the animals they were protecting and we decided to issue the Mnkhanya Community Resource Board with a grant. This has proved to be a huge success. The number of snares removed has increased significantly and the general welfare of the community scouts has been uplifted.  

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What High Five Club does for communities 

  • Poverty Reduction

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  • Education

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  • Health & Nutrition

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  • Environmental protection 

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  • Creating sustainable livelihoods

How Olsen Animal Trust helps

  • Enhance the working conditions of a team of Community Wildlife Scouts from Mnkhanya Chiefdom within the Luangwa Valley, Zambia

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  • Provision of uniforms, boots and bicycles to improve the scouts' efficiency and increase areas covered by the de-snaring team

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  • Improve living conditions for the scouts and their families with the construction of a borehole providing fresh, clean water for drinking and crop irrigation. OAT also provide supplementary food during the dry season​ and fencing to protect their vegetable gardens from wildlife

Project Images - hover over for details

Water borehole in the making
Isaac & the Scouts at the borehole
Dave with the community kids
HRH Chief Mnkhanya
The Mnkhanya Community
Snare Removal

For further information on the work of the High Five Club & the Mnkhanya Community please visit www.highfiveclub.co.uk

 © Mnkhanya, Olsen Animal Trust All rights reserved
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