The Organisers of the annual Kirkwood Wildlife Festival have signed a three-year sponsorship deal with Absa. The festival is organised around the annual auction of top- quality game from the Addo Elephant National Park and other national and provincial parks and private reserves.
Last year the auction had a record turnover of R9,22 million, making it one of the biggest in South Africa. Johan Swart, long-standing chairperson of the festival, said the bank’s support is a vote of confidence in the economy of the Eastern Cape and in the Sunday’s River Valley in particular. “It means a lot for tourism, the local community and the game industry in the Eastern Cape,” he said. he seven-year-old Kirkwood festival – which attracted a record 35 000 people over three days in 2007 – is a community initiative run by a Section 21 Company. Surplus funds are invested in community projects and in promoting the Sunday’s River Valley as a year-round tourism destination. – Roelof Bezuidenhout. The game auction is scheduled for Saturday 28 June. For more information visit www.wildsfees.co.za
