GARC’s February Featured Platform User: Cheetah Conservation Fund, Namibia

 

We are excited to introduce you to this month’s Featured Platform User, the Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF), Namibia. Founded in Namibia in 1990 by Dr Laurie Marker, CCF is dedicated to saving the cheetah in the wild. CCF’s mission is to be the internationally recognized center of excellence in the conservation of cheetahs and their ecosystems.

In 2019, CCF launched an initiative to bring life-saving rabies vaccinations to underserved, remote communities in Namibia. Where veterinary services are scarce, the risk of rabies transmission between domestic animals, humans, and wildlife is high. What began as a small, determined effort has grown into a recognized One Health program, reaching over 10,000 vaccinations of domestic carnivores in 2025. Through their efforts, the communities they serve now participate more actively with an increase in families asking for their animals to be vaccinated. CCF believes that building trust within their communities really is the first step towards long-term impact and success. Every animal they vaccinate not only gains protection, but also contributes to the larger goal of stopping rabies from infecting endangered species like cheetahs and African wild dogs. Their work directly supports Namibia’s national rabies strategy and the global “Zero by 30” initiative, which aims to eliminate human deaths from dog-mediated rabies by 2030.

 

Although CCF have been running their vaccination program since 2019, they only became active GARC Data Platform users in 2023. Since 2019, they have recorded the following impact:

• Dogs vaccinated: 9 338.
• Cats vaccinated: 2 449.
• In a collaborative campaign with the local State Vet, CCF vaccinated a further 675 dogs and 266 cats in 2025

 

 

We spoke to Dr Anahi Hidalgo, Biomedical Research Associate and Rabies Programme Coordinator, and Dr Anne Schmidt-Küntzel, Director for Animal Health and Research, about how CCF uses the GARC Data Platform and the benefits they have experienced since partnering with us.

 

Briefly explain what rabies-related work you do?

CCF implements rabies vaccination campaigns targeting domestic dogs and cats in the Eastern Communal Conservancies of the Greater Waterberg Landscape (GWL) in Namibia. Our work integrates a One Health approach, combining rabies prevention, community engagement, and data-driven planning to protect wildlife, livestock, and human health.

In addition to protecting wildlife indirectly by preventing rabies transmission from dogs, the rabies vaccinations also help keep dogs healthy and active in their important role as cheetah protectors

 Historically, farmers in Namibia commonly killed cheetahs as their first response to protecting their livestock. As part of our work, we aim to create awareness and offer practical, non-lethal solutions. Livestock Guarding Dogs (LGDs) complemented by the use of bomas and kraals at night, daily health checks, and managing breeding seasons, play a pivotal role in reducing livestock losses to cheetahs, helping us to protect the cheetahs from extinction. Our LGDs, revered for their natural instincts and unwavering loyalty, stand as the brave protectors of the farmers’ herds. Their fearless disposition alone serves as a powerful deterrent to potential predators. Protecting these LGDs from rabies becomes an obvious priority within this context.

 

How long have you used the GARC Data Platform?

We reached out to GARC in 2022 and have been actively using the GARC Data Platform since 2023.

 

What benefits have the GARC Data Tools provided you?

The GARC Data Platform has significantly improved the way we collect, manage, and analyze our rabies vaccination data. Standardized digital data collection has:

• reduced errors,
• improved consistency across field teams,
• saved time,
• made post-campaign analysis much more efficient, and
• enabled us to link our work to the government reporting system, allowing our efforts to contribute to Namibia’s national figures on rabies prevention.

The visualization tools are valuable for internal reporting, and external reporting.

In addition, the GARC team has consistently been very responsive and supportive, especially Dr Andre Coetzer, GARC’s CEO. The team always promptly assists us whenever we have technical questions or specific requirements. This has greatly enhanced our ability to use the platform effectively.

 

Which of the GARC Data Tools have been most beneficial to your work and why?

The Vaccination and Sterilization Tracker (VST) has been the most beneficial tool for our work. Although we do not sterilize animals in the communities, the VST allows us to capture detailed demographic information for each vaccinated animal, as well as relevant information about owners and households. These details are valuable for our records and to estimate revaccinated animals.

 

 

Are you working towards rabies elimination? Do you want to benefit from improving your data collection process? Do you want to be able to visualize this data to engage with potential donors in a more meaningful way? Contact us to become part of our growing network of GARC Data Platform users – click here.

Alternatively, if you are already actively using our GARC Data Platform, send us an email to support@rabiesalliance.org and you could be our next featured user!

 

Cheetah Conservation Fund’s work is funded by generous donors. Its rabies prevention programs are funded in part by grants from Foundation for Human Rabies Education & Eradication (FHREE) and Community Conservation Fund Namibia (CCFN). To find out more about how CCF is saving the cheetah in the wild or to support CCF’s important work please visit <cheetah.org>.