James Macilwaine
Born and brought up in Zimbabwe, James is the security and logistics face of W4L. Having attended Ruzawi and Peterhouse schools in Zimbabwe, he did a stint in the British military before settling into a life of providing management, security and logistics services in Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. These are areas that James has considerable experience of.
James also has huge experience of Lake Kariba and its surrounding area, having first worked for a large company with operations on both the Zimbabwean and Zambian sides of the lake and then spending two years as the Operations Manager for the Matusadona Anti-Poaching Project (MAPP), which he helped to establish, in Matusadona National Park, on the Zimbabwe side of Lake Kariba.
Matusadona National Park is 1,740 square kilometres in area and since the inception of MAPP in 2013, the project has been responsible for over a thousand arrests and convictions of poachers, including ivory and pangolin crimes, as well as the seizure of illegal weapons and drugs. MAPP is not just about arresting poachers, though and it works closely with local communities in the fight against illegal wildlife trade. This led to it being the recipient of an award, in 2015, from the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority, for environmental awareness and action.
All of this experience of Lake Kariba and its environment has made James the ideal “go to” person for the rest of the W4L team when it comes to understanding some of the potential problems and hazards to be faced during the walk.
When not at work, or involved in the immense task of planning the route, security and logistics for W4L, James enjoys playing golf, rugby, cricket and some water sports in the little spare time that is left to him.
James also has huge experience of Lake Kariba and its surrounding area, having first worked for a large company with operations on both the Zimbabwean and Zambian sides of the lake and then spending two years as the Operations Manager for the Matusadona Anti-Poaching Project (MAPP), which he helped to establish, in Matusadona National Park, on the Zimbabwe side of Lake Kariba.
Matusadona National Park is 1,740 square kilometres in area and since the inception of MAPP in 2013, the project has been responsible for over a thousand arrests and convictions of poachers, including ivory and pangolin crimes, as well as the seizure of illegal weapons and drugs. MAPP is not just about arresting poachers, though and it works closely with local communities in the fight against illegal wildlife trade. This led to it being the recipient of an award, in 2015, from the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority, for environmental awareness and action.
All of this experience of Lake Kariba and its environment has made James the ideal “go to” person for the rest of the W4L team when it comes to understanding some of the potential problems and hazards to be faced during the walk.
When not at work, or involved in the immense task of planning the route, security and logistics for W4L, James enjoys playing golf, rugby, cricket and some water sports in the little spare time that is left to him.