The development of an Inclusive Tourism Eco-lodge within theGorongosa National Park, Mozambique

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Gorongosa Inclusive Tourism Initiative
The development of an Inclusive Tourism Eco-lodge within the
Gorongosa National Park, Mozambique

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Contents
Executive Summary 3.
Mission Statement/Vision 4.
Market Opportunity 5.
Background: Gorongosa National Park 6.
Proposed Eco-Lodge Development 7.
Accommodation and Operations 8.
Activities 9.
Access 10.
Future Expansion by Endeavour Safaris Mozambique 10.
Original employment opportunities 11.
Marketing Strategy 11.
Management Summary 12.
Company Summary – Endeavour Safaris 13.
Ownership of Endeavour Safaris Mozambique 13.
Potential Concerns 14.
Human Rights Treaty 14.

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Executive Summary
Mozambique has one of the fastest growing tourism sectors in Africa and is fast becoming a top tourist
destination in southern Africa. It has traditionally been a beach and diving destination, however, this is
set to change as one of the biggest National Park resurrections in history occurs within its boundaries;
the restoration of the majestic Gorongosa National Park. The Carr Foundation, a non-profit organization
established by the world renowned philanthropist Greg Carr to promote the protection of natural
resources, is working closely with the Mozambique government to return the park to its former standing
as one of the premier wildlife havens in Africa, and as such as top safari destination. This development
will give Mozambique the “perfect” combination of top quality wildlife safari destination and a tropical
beach experience, undoubtedly making it a top holiday destination within Africa.
Endeavour Safaris Mozambique is currently involved in a tender process to develop an ecotourism lodge
within a prime, private 28,000 hectare concession within the National Park. Uniquely, our lodge will be
accessible to both able-bodied and disabled guests, and as such will be the first “Inclusive Tourism”
operation in Mozambique. The lodge will form a perfect balance between offering a space that is
accessible to both the able-bodied and disabled, in terms of both accommodation facilities and safari
activities, whilst still being an attractive, aesthetically pleasing and ecologically sensitive holiday
destination.
Our project will also offer both training and employment to disabled people from local communities,
demonstrating to others within the hospitality industry the substantial capabilities of this, often
discriminated against, sector of society.
This business plan was constructed to encourage investment in this pioneering Inclusive Tourism eco-
development.

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Mission Statement/Company Vision
Endeavour Safaris Mozambique aims to provide the best Inclusive Tourism experience within southern
Africa. Utilising the latest green technology, we will give both able-bodied and disabled guests an
exceptional safari experience; providing high quality, ascetically pleasing yet fully accessible eco-lodge
accommodation and safari activities.
Through Inclusive Tourism, Endeavour Safaris Mozambique aims to provide training and employment
opportunities for disabled people within Mozambique, and ultimately increase their employment within
the mainstream hospitality industry.

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Market Opportunity
Mozambique has one of the most rapidly growing tourism sectors in the world (WTCC). Between 2004
and 2009 the number of tourists visiting Mozambique more than tripled from 711,000 to 3.1million.
However, the number of hotel beds increased by only 7,000 in the same period, suggesting that there is
sufficient room for growth within sector. In 2009 the sector generated $195 million for Mozambique, a
figure that the Tourism Minister expects to increase to $2 billion within the next five years.
Our unique design of an eco-lodge that is attractive and accessible to both able-bodied and disabled
tourists will allow us to target a larger market compared to a typical safari operator. Inclusive Tourism;
the provision of tourist accommodation and activities accessible to both able-bodied and disabled
people is experiencing substantial growth. Within Europe, 127million people are disabled and up to 70%
of these people have sufficient economic funds to travel. In the United States, where Inclusive Tourism
is more established it is estimated that people with disabilities spent $13.6billion on 31 million trips last
year. A study into travel by people with disabilities undertaken by Deloitte & Touche found that
disabled people rarely traveled alone, the majority travelling with at least one other person. Our
experience has demonstrated this multiplier effect, in fact around only 20% of our clients are disabled,
the majority being friends, family or carers of that individual who have no disability themselves. This
effectively multiplies the number of people who require Inclusive Tourism destinations, creating a
tourism market worth an estimated Euro 166billion worldwide.
However, the provision of accessible tourist destination within southern Africa remains highly limited.
To make an area an attractive destination for people with disabilities it must contain facilities that allow
their basic needs to be met. This includes the provision of accessible accommodation with suitable
toileting and washing facilities, accessible transport, medical facilities as well as accessible activities and
excursions. Whilst some hotels and guest houses within southern Africa provide a limited number of
adapted rooms suitable for disabled guests, few lodges are accessible to disabled people and none are
wholly inclusive. Rooms adapted for disabled guests are often viewed as unappealing for able-bodied
guests due to their differing layout and presence of specialist equipment, limiting the number hotels
wish to install, whilst the adaption of vehicles and other equipment for activities and excursions is often
expensive. The lack of accessible hotel and lodge rooms makes travel complicated for disabled tourists,
especially when travelling in groups. As experienced operators, and market leaders, of Inclusive safaris
within Botswana, Namibia and South Africa we have demonstrated that once accommodation needs are
met and activities made accessible to all, disabled tourists enthusiastically travel to remote and
previously considered inaccessible areas. We believe that the development of a Inclusive eco-lodge
within the Gorongosa National Park, the first of its kind within the sub-region, will provide an exciting
group travel destination to both disabled and able-bodied guests including the lucrative group and
family travel sector.
After detailed discussions with integral personal involved in the Gorongosa TDA development,
Endeavour Safaris Mozambique has been encouraged to tender for a prime 28,000 hectare private
concession. The concession will be secured on a 20 year renewable contract, with an automatic first

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role over, guaranteeing an initial 40-year lease. In this concession Endeavour Safaris Mozambique will
development a ground-breaking Inclusive Tourism eco-lodge with a variety of safari activities.
Background: Gorongosa National Park
Gorongosa National Park, lies within the Sofal Province of central Mozambique. Covering 4,000km2 this
diverse and beautiful park lies within the southern extension of the East African Rift valley system.
Map illustrating the location of Gorongosa National Park and the stunning Lake Urema
www.gorongosa.net
The park protects a vast area surrounding the imposing Lake Urema. The ebb and flow of the rivers
flowing into the valley from the Barue Plateau, the Cheringoma Plateau and Mount Gorongosa, creates a
rich mosaic of temporally flooded savannah grasslands and woodlands, supporting a wide variety of
flora and fauna species. These include apex predators such as lions, leopards, African wild dogs and
spotted hyena, numerous herbivore species including elephants, hippo, zebra, buffalo, hartebeest, sable
and oribi, over 400 bird species and many species of reptiles including the Nile crocodile.
Whilst the park’s wildlife population substantially decreased during the Mozambique civil war,
historically mammal densities were among the highest in Africa; aerial surveys during the 1960’s
recorded 200 lions, 2,200 elephants, 14,000 buffaloes, 5,500 wildebeest, 3,000 zebras, 3,500
waterbucks, 3,500 hippos and hundreds of eland, sable and hartebeest within the 4,000km2 reserve.
Since the end of the civil war the Mozambique government has worked hard to restore this majestic
park to its former glory. In 2004 the Mozambique government entered into a partnership with the Carr
Foundation, a US-based non-profit organization, to rebuild the Park's infrastructure, restore its wildlife
populations and promote local economic development. Through the investment of over $10 million
between 2004 and 2007, with another $40 million pledged over the next 20 years, the foundation is
working closely with local communities and government departments to re-establish the Parks integrity

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as a wildlife haven and tourist attraction and ensuring its long-term preservation through the
development of a 5,000km2 Sustainable Development Zone, buffering the park through protection of
forests and watersheds along its boundary.
Wildlife populations are already recovering, more recent aerial surveys show a steady increase in many
herbivore populations, including approximately 450 elephants. Natural population growth is being
accelerated by the annual re-introduction of many of the crucial herbivore species including buffalos,
wildebeest and zebra. The park is also now well protected against illegal activities due to the
deployment of a well trained and dedicated team of 144 game rangers. Trained in conservation law
enforcement these rangers, employed for local communities, patrol the park protecting wildlife from
poachers, illegal fires and bush clearance.
With such support, the naturally highly productive Gorongosa ecosystem will, without doubt, in time
return to its former glory, supporting substantial populations of wildlife within a beautiful and varied
ecosystem.
Proposed Eco-Lodge Development
As part of the Tourism Activity Development initiative that is currently underway within the Gorgongosa
Naitonal Park, Endeavour Safaris Mozambique plan to construct a 3-4*24 bed eco- tented lodge within a
designated Tourism Development Area (TDA) in the western region of the Park. The 28,000 hectare
concession lies between the Barue Plateau and the shore of Lake Urema, providing access to a wide
variety of habitats and therefore the opportunity for our guest view the widest possible variety of
wildlife. The area is equally well suited to game drives, boat tours, canoe excursions and guided walks,
making it an excellent safari destination where guests can experience the African bush in many different
ways.

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Uniquely the our development will be a fully Inclusive Tourism destination, providing accommodation
and activities that are equally accessible for disabled as well as able-bodied tourists.
Accommodation and Operations
The lodge will be built in an attractive, yet ecologically sustainable Mozambique style utilising
sustainably harvested wood and grass thatch. The lodge will comprise of a 270m2 communal guest
dining and lounge area, adjacent to extensive decked areas for bird watching and relaxing, a swimming
pool, curio shop and guest toilets. Eight standard guest units, of 70m2, will comprise of a large open plan
bedroom area and en-suite bathroom facilities, whilst two larger family units, will comprise of two
bedroom areas with shared en-suite bathroom facilities. In keeping with the Inclusive Tourism theme all
areas will be designed for both ease of use by able-bodied and disabled guests as well as aesthetic
appeal. The communal guest areas will be large and on one level to ensure easy access for wheelchair
users and the visually impaired. The guest rooms will be large and open plan, utilising moveable hoists
to assist mobility impaired guests. Such a design will allow hoists to be temporarily installed in
predetermined locations within the guest units when needed by disabled guests, but removed when not
needed, ensuring that rooms are equally appealing to all types of guests.
We believe Responsible Tourism is key to all tourism operations within Africa and our development will
strive to achieve a lodge that is ecology sensitive and socially responsible. To maximise the lodge’s eco-
credentials, it will utilize the most up-to-date solar energy technology to both generate power and heat
water, minimizing the use of fuel hungry generators. Power will be generated through a new Sanyo HIT
technology, a combination of crystalline and thin film technology. Solar photovoltaic panels will be used
to charge 2Volt deep cycle batteries, enabling the system to cope for up to three days without solar
input. In the event of sustained overcast weather the system would switch to a super silent back-up
generator. All hot water will be generated using evacuated tube solar geysers. Sewage and waste
water will be fully treated on site in an above ground sewage treatment plant that processes black liquie
waste to better than WHO drinking stanadars, ensuring there the output from the lodge does not
negatively affect groundwater quality and the surrounding environment. All aspects of lodge operations
will be assessed through an environmental management plan, allowing any potential negative impacts
to be identified and minimized.
All our employment and staff management will be base on socially responsible principles. We will work
closely with the local community to maximise
employment and training opportunities. Our ability to
include disabled members of community within the
staff contingent will ensure that this typically
discriminated sector of community is not excluded
from this capacity building.

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Activities
The diverse nature of the Gorongosa ecosystem allows a wide variety of guest activities. Day and night
game drives, within especially adapted vehicles, will allow guests to observe the wide variety of wildlife
found within the Park. The vehicles, fitted with hydraulic lifts and removable chairs, make them suitable
for all guests including those with impaired mobility. Please see the attached information about how we
adapt our vehicles.
Lake Urema and its tributaries make the area ideal for water activities, including motor boats and
canoes, and these will be offered as daily activities at the lodge. Both are easily adapted for disabled
access, with non-slip ramps and removable chairs.
Other optional activities will include canoeing and guided game walks.

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Access
The park is easily accessible by both land and air.
Beira’s International Airport is only three and a half hours drive from the Park, all on well maintained tar
roads. This receives daily flights from Johannesburg in South Africa (journey time 2hours), a major
international hub, as well as flights from
other regions of Mozambique.
As part of the development we will build a
light-aircraft landing strip within our
concession, dramatically decreases transfer
times to and from the lodge. Guests would
also be able to use the Chitengo airstrip
within the southern regions of the Park.
Alternatively guests could be driven in from
Beira airport or further afield.
Future Expansion by Endeavour Safaris Mozambique
Once we have established our Gorongosa eco-lodge we plan to further develop the Inclusive Tourism
market in Mozambique by providing a
beach destination which tourists may visit
before or after visiting their safari
experience. Safari/beach combination
holidays are very popular within the
industry. As this would be the first such
itinerary to be fully Inclusive for disabled
tourists we believe it would be well
received and very popular.

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Original employment opportunities
One of the most exciting aspects of this project is the opportunity to provide employment for disabled
member of the local Gorongosa community, a commonly discriminated against sector of society.
In keeping with the accessible design of the lodge’s front of house, back of house will also be designed
with disabled accessibility in mind. Examples include lowered work tables in the kitchen, a spacious
restaurant with large gaps between tables to allow easy waiting, modified tray tables to assist
wheelchair bound waiters, standardized room layouts to allow visually impaired people to work in
housekeeping and the laundry, strobe light alarms for the hearing impaired and adapted transport.
Once the lodge has been developed and is fully operational we aim to develop an associated training
area to train disabled people in the hospitality trade. A training classroom, kitchen and workshop will
allow us to train disabled individuals in safari guiding, lodge cooking, waiting, bar-work, housekeeping,
laundry and maintenance. We hope that through this training provision we will be able to increase the
employment of disabled people within the hospitality industry across the whole of southern Africa. In
time we plan to establish a charity to support these activities, allowing interested guests to donate time
or knowledge to this vital project.
Marketing Strategy
The lodge will be marketed as a pioneering Inclusive Tourism eco-lodge through our head office in Cape
Town. The company directors and marketing team will also make use International travel fairs,
specialized disabled tourism trade shows and road shows to maximise exposure.
The lodge will be marketed separately to its two markets, the traditional able-bodied safari market and
the disabled tourism market. Separate marketing literature will be drawn up for both markets ensuing
maximal exposure and highlighting the number of facilities available to both able-bodied and disabled
guests.
We plan to utilize other established safari companies within the region to maximise uptake by the
traditional safari market and to date have received positive feedback regarding the inclusion of the
lodge as part of a major companies lodge portfolio. Such inclusion would ensure maximal exposure of
the lodge in the lucrative American and European eco-tourism market, ensuring higher occupancy rates
from opening.
Our marketing strategy will target variety of disabled people, as well as their families and carers,
through specialized marketing channels. These will include those with:
• Mobility Impairments (Paraplegics, quadriplegics, other related physical movement)
• Hearing Impairments. Deaf or impaired hearing

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• Visual Impairments. Blind or low vision
• Kidney Dialysis.
• Oxygen users
• Senior travelers
Through our Inclusive Tourism operations over the last 10 years we have established close relationships
with the specialized agencies promoting disabled travel for individuals, families and larger groups.
Approximately 70% of our agent bookings come from specialist disabled travel companies from both
Europe and the USA. We also benefit from an extensive past client database, many of whom have
already been on more than one of our trips. We will also use the internet to advertise the lodge; this
avenue presently accounts for 40% of our safari bookings. Utilising our image as a company able to
offer unique, high quality, yet personal holidays we believe successfully market the lodge as the primary
Inclusive Tourism eco-lodge destination within southern Africa.
Management Summary
Within camp we will have a staff of 44, with 5 guides and four managers. Due to a lack of qualified local
people we will employ experienced hospitality employees from surrounding countries to establish camp
procedures and train local staff. All junior staff will be employed from local communities around the
Gorongosa region, where possible people with disabilities will be employed. With good training it is
hoped that over time people from the local communities will up to management structure, maximizing
local capacity building and economic empowerment.
We will establish a head office in Maputo to deal with:
• Reservations
• Local marketing
• Accounts
• Ordering and arranging delivery of camp consumables
• Handling of medical emergencies

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Company Summary – Endeavour Safaris
Endeavour Safaris was borne out of the vision of making Southern Africa accessible to all! With the
vision of making Africa accessible for all, regardless of age or disability, we have adapted vehicles and
use specialized en-suite tents making our trips accessible to those with a wide variety of disabilities,
including those with impaired mobility, visual and hearing impairments and oxygen users. Uniquely our
facilities are just as comfortable for able-bodied guests, making our safari experiences truly Inclusive
regardless of ability.
Utilizing this equipment we guide tours across South Africa, Botswana and Namibia, exploring a wide
variety of the regions most spectacular areas, including the Okavango Delta, Chobe, Etosha National
Park, the Kalahari Desert and Kruger National Park. With both set-date departures for our most popular
itineraries and private fully personalized itineraries for families and groups, we offer a world-class, high-
end safari experience suitable for all.
Since its establishment in 2001, we have experienced rapid growth during the last 10 years and enjoy
excellent client loyalty, both at individual and travel agency levels. Many of our clients are repeat guest,
and some have travelled with us over four times, whilst 20% of our new bookings come through word-
of-mouth. Of the remaining 80%, half come through agents and half through internet bookings. We
believe we are in an excellent position to increase our safari destination portfolio by adding our
Gorongosa eco-lodge to our already popular portfolio or safari destinations.
Please see the additional document for additional information and CVs.
Ownership of Endeavour Safaris Mozambique
Laurindo Saraiva – Mozambique Citizen
Laurindo Saraiva completed his PhD in political science and economics at the University of Milan and
LSE, and is a fully trained and certified lawyer. He moved to Italy and was employed by the Mozambique
Ministry of Tourism to promote tourism and investment within Mozambique. He is extremely
experienced in both international marketing, fund management and company processes in
Mozambique.
Michael Hill – South African Citizen.
Mike has worked in the safari industry since leaving school, working his way up from safari guide to
senior management before setting up Endeavour Safaris in 2001. Through his passion for the African
bush and his belief that it should be accessible for all, regardless of disability, he has established
Endeavour Safaris as the market leader of Inclusive Tourism safaris within southern Africa. As well as
being a highly experienced guide, he has extensive experience in safari logistics, camp management,
mechanics and business management.

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Potential concerns
High cost of the holiday due to expensive international and national flights.
• Whilst these will increase holiday costs they are not likely to differ substantially from costs
associated with visiting Botswana, where tourism is very successful.
Malaria and Tsetse flies.
• However, these are found in most safari destinations and with suitable prophylactics and insect
repellant may not cause a problem.
Current Wildlife experience when compared with neighboring countries such as Botswana and South
Africa.
• Whilst wildlife concentrations are presently lower than parks in neighboring countries, they are
expected to rise steadily though the Carr Foundation Gorongosa restoration project. Historically
this park had some of highest mammal densities in Africa and with support and investment is
will undoubtedly return to its former state as a premier wildlife viewing destination.
• Development opportunities within this region are highly limited. By taking advantage of the
opportunity of developing an attractive eco-lodge during the early stages of the restoration
project we are ensuring that we are in place and ready for the market surge that should occur
once wildlife populations are returned to their former levels. Additionally, once all concessions
are allocated new development opportunities within the National Park will not be available for
at least 40years.
Human Rights Treaty
The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its Optional Protocol were adopted by the
United Nations General Assembly on 13 December 2006, and opened for signature on 30 March 2007.
On 30 March, 81 Member States and the European Community signed the Convention, the highest
number of signatures of any human rights convention on its opening day. 44 Member States signed the
Optional Protocol, and 1 Member State ratified the Convention. The Convention was negotiated during
eight sessions of an Ad Hoc Committee of the General Assembly from 2002 to 2006, making it the
fastest negotiated human rights treaty. The Convention aims to ensure that persons with disabilities
enjoy human rights on an equal basis with others.