I've wondered about this. Suppose I pay $50,000 USD to the booking agent in the USA before a trip to Zimbabwe. It stays in the USA until after the trip. On the last night of the hunt, the PH and I agree I owe them $40,000 including tips, so I get a "refund" of $10,000 from the booking agent.

Where does the $40,000 go? The booking agent takes his share and forwards the rest to the safari company. The safari company's Email address puts them in RSA, not Zim, but they have several employees in Zim, mostly white, including the PH. The camp staff, as near as I can tell, are contract employees they hire each season through a recruuiter who does that. The trackers seem to stay with the PH and are not contract employees. The safari company has leased the hunting area from a tribal native autonomous nation. So who gets what?

Then, there is the central government in Harare. Do they get something or just get taxes based on the safari company's income? The safari company has a lot of expenses, such as the concession lease--they pay for animals, i.e. so many buffs a year whether they "resell" them to hunters or not, and, as near as I could tell, most of the food that I ate but didn't shoot was packaged in South Africa.

I would like to think that, when all is said and done, my friends and the local people get most of the money, not Dr. Bob. Some of my non-hunting friend go "Tsk-tsk" when they here that I've been to Zimbabwe and think I am supporting the government.

Indy,

We get invoiced from the safari operator post safari and we pay or refund depending on that invoice.

Some of a safari's cost in Zim does go to the government but of course that is not unique to Zim. Tell your friends that the $50,000 from just your safari raises the standard of living for literally hundreds of poor Zimbabweans in addition to the safari operator. Very few people who have not been exposed to safari have any idea how many people work for a safari company and how many people these employees support or the benefit received from the meat killed by the hunters. When you consider the enormous benfit to the locals from a safari the few dollars that goes to the government seems fairly insignificant.

Mark

a double amen to that. a few weeks ago in moz. both myself and the other U.S. hunter in camp shot a hippo the same day. i got to think we feed a lot folks for a while, in addition to whatever money changed hands with the local tribal council/chief.

2% of your money goes to ZTA- ie bobs travel fund. The rest...depends on where you hunted.

In tribal areas, The community take 45-50% of the income stated on the TR2 form, and the safari company gets the rest.

Trakers come with the PH. Mostly the PH, His Vehicle and crew are contracted for the safari, sometimes for the season...

National Parks takes 2% of trophy fees when you do your export.

If you hunt in a parks area arround 50% of the money goes to parks in the form of trophy and concession fees.

On private land...It's mine, all mine (and thank you Ian Khamer for stopping lion hunting on my boundary, it has done my trophy quality no end of good )

Thanks, Ganyana. That's about what I was hoping for.