!Xaus Lodge – Economic Benefit Case Study

A case study on reporting the local economic benefit of community-owned lodges and a government-owned hotel. Three pilot studies have been developed to test a methodology for reporting local economic benefit  as  part of the audited accounts of accommodation providers. The pilot was undertaken in !Xaus Lodge, Witsieshoek Mountain Lodge in South Africa and Piggs Peak in Eswatini.

This is a case study for !Xaus Lodge and further case studies will also be published.

!XAUS LODGE – AN INTRODUCTION

!xaus Lodge is owned by the ‡Khomani San and Mier communities and operated on their behalf by Transfrontier Parks Destinations (TFPD), a tourism partner experienced in community-owned lodges. Located at  Dune 91, off the Auob River Road, Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, in the Kalahari this is a remote lodge. Supplies – especially food and drink – are trucked in from Upington – a 720km round trip.

!Xaus was built as part of the !Ae!Hai Kalahari Heritage Park Agreement, South Africa’s first land claim settlement which in 2002 awarded the Mier and ‡Khomani San (Bushman) communities access to their ancestral lands. The settlement was that it was expected to give economic opportunities to these two marginalized communities

!Xaus Lodge has been operating since 2007. When TFPD presented its plans for the operation of !Xaus in   July 2006, Sophie Coetzee, Mayor of Rietfontein and senior representative of the Mier Community asked whether it would be a “white elephant”. Far from it, !Xaus Lodge has accommodated 19,500 guests and employed 180 members of the local !Khomani San and Mier communities who have worked at !Xaus Lodge over the past 18 years. Sophie Coetzee is now the Chairperson of the !Xaus Lodge Joint Management Board that represents the two owner-communities and SANParks,

!Xaus Lodge is the only successful commercial operation arising from the land claim settlement. In addition to the percentage of revenue that the communities earn as rental, local employment and procurement is prioritized. Guests provide a significant market for local crafters.  Fifteen community members are employed in the lodge, and sixteen crafters work in the camp.

!XAUS LODGE – CREATING ECONOMIC VALUE

!Xaus Lodge has maintained records identifying the financial benefit to the community of its operations by tracking the value of locally sourced goods and services. Any expenditure is recorded in the purchasing process and included in the audited accounts.

Local expenditure is defined for !Xaus Lodge as purchases of locally sourced goods and services in the Askham/Upington area, a large area because of the remoteness of the lodge.

The figures below are extracted from the !Xaus Lodge audited accounts, 2008-2025

Please note these figures do not include construction and refurbishment expenditure, where unless contractors are required to provide the data, it is more difficult to determine who the beneficiaries are.

Local Sourcing Tracking

So, over the 17 year period of the operation of the lodge from 2998 to 2025 !Xhaus Lodge has recording and audited that it has sourced 9.1 million Rand (USD$5.43 million), of goods and services in the Aksham/Upington area. That equates to an average of 541,000 Rand, or USD$32,000 annually.

Economic Contribution

In addition, over the same 17 year period, the economic contribution of the lodge includes community lease payments and employment and a sales outlet for local craftspeople, as well as leases and guest entrance fees for South Africa National Parks. This is broken down as follows:

• South Africa National Parks conservation revenue 9,390,335 Rand (USD $555,438)
• Khomani San & Mier communities: 26,468,491 Rand (USD $1,565,611) – including lease fees, employment and curio sales

Totals

Therefore, in total, !Xaus Lodge calculates that money entering the local economy as a result of its activity over a 17 year period has totalled 45million Rand (USD$2.6 million), which averages 2.65 million Rand (USD $156,769) a year.

Under the Communities’ Agreement with the Joint Management Board, TFPD has the right to request an extension of its management contract for a further twenty years. TFPD has indicated that it wishes to exercise this right and is willing to improve the terms of its offer for the extended period by increasing the Communities’ share in the operating company from 23% to 40%. This community equity, together with TFPD’s black shareholding, would make !Xaus Lodge (Pty) Ltd a 51% Black-owned Company and allow for access to a mix of grant and commercial funding to enable !Xaus Lodge to undertake a major refurbishment programme. Other than this significant change in the communities’ shareholding the terms of the current agreement would remain the same for the extended period. As at March 2026 no decision has been made about the future of the lodge.