(The Explorer) “Back in 2005 – a mere ten years ago – there were less than 10 female safari guides in all of Botswana. Today, however, there are 14 that make up the guide team at Chobe Game Lodge – the first all-female guiding team in Africa.
The ‘Chobe Angels’, as they’re known, were recruited after the lodge realised that female guides seemed to be more in tune with their guests’ requirements, as well as being more careful drivers than their male counterparts. They found that having female drivers meant that ‘vehicle maintenance costs went down by about a third over a five-year period, fuel consumption dropped and [there were] less carbon emissions.’
70% of their guides were trained at Chobe Game Lodge and there is an emphasis on constant training with twice yearly refresher courses.
‘Chobe Game Lodge wanted to set an example for the industry and achieve what everyone, including most of the staff at the lodge, thought impossible,’ the lodge stated last year in regards to their all-female team of guides.
The lodge says that they have set a precedent for the industry to ‘break out of the mould and provide equal opportunity.’ You certainly can’t argue with the figures: there is now at least three times the amount of female guides in Botswana as there was in 2005. ”
