Two Namibian tourism companies won gold and silver at the WTM Africa Responsible Tourism Awards 2026 in Cape Town, South Africa, on Wednesday.
In a press release issued on the same day, SANParks board member Rachel Nxele says the awards recognise real work, commitment and impact among organisations building dignity, protecting nature and honouring heritage.
RuralRevive Namibia received a gold award in the regenerative tourism section for its Building a Desert-Based Economy initiative, conceptualised and driven by the Wolwedans Foundation.
Nxele says the judges recognised RuralRevive for addressing deep-rooted structural challenges by rebuilding local food systems, restoring dignity through work and creating a resilient desert-based economy.
“It is transforming the tourism economy around Maltahöhe through climate appropriate horticulture, local enterprise development and systems that reconnect tourism with community livelihoods,” Nxele says.
Elephant Human Relations Aid Namibia received a silver award, again in the regenerative tourism sector, for its work in addressing human-elephant conflict.
“Through their work, human-elephant conflict incidents have fallen from 92 in 2023 to just 12 so far in 2026, with no elephants shot as problem animals in 2025 across more than 2 million hectares,” Nxele says.
The WTM Africa Responsible Tourism Awards 2026 recognised 22 organisations across 13 countries delivering measurable impact for people, places and nature.
The awards span five categories: championing cultural diversity, diversity, equity and inclusion, local economic benefit, nature positive, and regenerative tourism. They are run in partnership with the International Centre for Responsible Tourism.
Ele Collection Zimbabwe won a gold award in the nature-positive category for transforming plastic waste into construction-grade aggregate, providing income to community collectors and educating visitors through factory tours.
Table Mountain Aerial Cableway Company South Africa received a gold award in the local economic benefit category for increasing local procurement from 29% in 2017 to 89% in 2026 and supporting more than 150 small businesses.
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