Mala Mala Game Reserve
Mala Mala is a game reserve located within the Sabi Sand Game Reserve, Mpumalanga province, South Africa. It is the largest and the oldest private big five game reserve in South Africa, It covers around 130 km² or 15 000 hectares of land. In Xitsonga, the name Malamala means Kudu, it was named so because of the abundance of these animals within the game reserve. The Tsonga people, who occupied the land before the establishment of the game reserve, were forcibly removed from this land during the early 1900s and were dumped at Bushbuckridge. The Nwandlamhlarhi Community successfully claimed Malamala game reserve and the land was restored to them in 2015 when President Jacob Zuma handed them their land in a Government ceremony. The Tsonga people were also forcibly removed from neighbouring game reserves such as Skukuza, Satara, Ulusaba, Manyeleti, Protea Hotel Kruger Gate, Hoyo Hoyo Tsonga Lodge and may more in Southern Kruger. The Tsonga people are still waiting to be given back these lands by the Government after the finalization of their land claim.[1]
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The Sabi Sand Game Reserve borders the Kruger National Park, which together with some other parks make up the Greater Kruger National Park.
Wildlife
This reserve is home of the Big Five. It was the home of Tjololo, a famous leopard. Cheetah, hyena, wildebeest, zebra, hippopotamus pods, giraffe, and Cape wild dog are other animals that roam here.
Accommodation
It is composed of many camps:
- Mala Mala main camp
- Mala Mala Sable camp
- Mala Mala Rattray's camp
The nearest airport is Mala Mala Airport and regular commercial flights can be boarded from Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport.