Where resilience meets hope on the edge of the wild.
Just beyond the Luangwa River, not far from Lion Camp, lies Mkasanga — a remote village full of life, resilience, and stories.
It is a place of contrasts: where elders carry generations of wisdom in their words, where children race through the dust with bright smiles and big dreams, and where family bonds run deep. In many ways, Mkasanga is the heart that beats just outside the wild.
(A young Mother and her Newborn)
LION CAMP & MKASANGA
For Lion Camp, the connection with Mkasanga is personal. Many of our staff hail from this village — guides, chefs, waiters, housekeepers, and mechanics — bringing with them not only their skills, but also their culture, their traditions, and their stories.
Through employment, the lodge helps sustain livelihoods that ripple outward into the community. Each job supports entire families. Each opportunity strengthens the village. In a place where options can be limited, this connection between camp and community is vital.
THE FOUNDATION OF HOPE
Education is the foundation of hope in Mkasanga. It is the most powerful way to ensure young people are equipped not only with knowledge, but with the confidence and skills to imagine lives full of possibility, and to carry those opportunities back into their community. For many, completing school opens the door to university, and ultimately to lifting their families and those around them.
(Children in Class at their School)
With support from the Mkasanga Hope Foundation, led by Lion Camp guide Mukupa, the village school now has a computer lab and internet access, giving students the tools to connect with the wider world and stay up to date with modern technology. For a community this remote, these resources are transformational — helping shape a generation ready to dream bigger, reach further, and build a stronger future. Education — particularly for girls — is at the heart of this mission. By ensuring young women complete their high school studies, the foundation is helping break cycles of early marriage and lost opportunity. Today, the school in Mkasanga supports around 800 children, offering not only education but, for many, the reassurance of at least one meal each day.
But education alone isn’t enough when basic healthcare remains out of reach.
(Students from the school before their break time)
THE CLINIC PROJECT
Healthcare remains the greatest challenge. Mkasanga’s current clinic is too small and under-resourced to serve the community of 3,500 people. Each rainy season, the village becomes completely cut off, isolated like an island. In emergencies, families are forced to make impossible journeys — hours by foot or bicycle, sometimes sleeping overnight in the bush — just to reach the nearest hospital in Mfuwe. Too often, these delays result in preventable loss of life.
(A group of Mothers outside the current Clinic)
In response, Lion Camp, has committed to building a new community clinic.
The first wing — a maternity and women-and-children’s ward — is already taking shape, with the structure up and roof complete. Work has also begun on the second wing, with the foundation laid for expanded healthcare facilities to follow.
The goal is to raise enough funds to complete the project in time for the next season, ensuring that the people of Mkasanga have access to something every community deserves: safe, reliable healthcare.
(Current Clinic Structure)
A VILLAGE OF RESILIENCE
Mkasanga is more than its challenges. It is a place of laughter, youth, and resilience. It is where hope lives in the eyes of children, and where stories of the past are carried forward by the elders.
It reminds us that just beyond the boundaries of the National Park — beyond the lions, leopards, and elephants — are people whose lives are deeply intertwined with this landscape. Their struggles, their joys, their futures are part of the same story of South Luangwa.
At Lion Camp, we are proud to stand beside them.
JOIN US IN SUPPORTING MKASANGA
Many of our guests leave Lion Camp not only with memories of wildlife, but with deep bonds formed with our team — bonds that connect directly back to Mkasanga.
If you feel called to support this journey, we invite you to join us. Please reach out to vi***@******mp.com to learn how you can donate directly to the clinic project.
And know that every stay already makes a difference: a portion of all bookings at Lion Camp is directed towards this partnership. By choosing to stay with us, you are helping build a healthier, stronger future for the people of Mkasanga.
From all of us — thank you.
