The Land Rover Defender has notched another mark on its legacy of durability, capability and humanitarian support, following the conclusion of the Kingsley Holgate Foundation’s Africa Odyssey Expedition. The 60,000km voyage through 24 African countries distributed insecticide-treated mosquito nets amongst vulnerable communities across the continent.
With a special focus on children under the age of five and pregnant women, the Kingsley Holgate Foundation, aided by its two Defender 130 D300s, successfully distributed a total of 15,880 mosquito nets over the 12 months of the expedition. Each net protects, on average, one mother and two children.
Affectionately known as Moyo and Isibindi, meaning heart and courage, the two Defenders also transported ‘Rite to Sight’ reading glasses and Wildlife Art templates, to under-resourced communities in countries including Angola, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Mozambique in Southern Africa, Rwanda, DRC, South Sudan and Chad further north, and Cameroon, Ghana, Nigeria and Togo in the West.
Expedition leader Ross Holgate said: “This expedition was particularly gruelling and took a toll on everyone in the travelling party on many occasions; our very lives depended on the reliability of our two Defender 130s to get us out of sticky situations, and they never failed us.
“From the floods of the Congo that tested the wading depth of the Defenders to the limit, to the treacherous pothole-ridden road to Juba. From rain-soaked dusty roads that turned into clingy mud pits, to makeshift bridges, we literally saw and conquered it all on this expedition.
“Throw into the mix the world’s largest desert, the Sahara, with temperatures that reach well into the 50s, this was a real test for man and machine. Maintaining adequate speed was of the essence to fly over the soft sand and endless waves of dunes. It’s amazing how the Defenders just kept going despite the scorching temperatures and the demand on the engine and cooling system.”
Holgate also praised the Defenders’ air suspension, which he said soaked up the road imperfections, allowing the drivers to endure the long hours behind the wheel.
“Having spent more than 10,000 hours in the driver’s seat of the Defender, it is definitely the vehicle of choice for the Kingsley Holgate Foundation, and the most capable vehicles we have ever driven.”
Completing more than 40 expeditions has given the Kingsley Holgate Foundation team a unique opportunity to test Defender across most of Africa and Europe.
Three of its most recent expeditions in the new Defender totalled over 150,000km. Before undertaking the Afrika Odyssey, the team completed the Mzansi Edge Expedition, an 80-day, 16,000km circumnavigation of South Africa. Launched at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, it aimed to distribute food parcels to those in desperate need.
This was followed by the Defender Transcontinental Expedition – Hot Cape to Cold Cape. A true test of endurance, the expedition saw the Kingsley Holgate Foundation team drive Defenders from the southern tip of Africa in Cape Town to Nordkapp in Norway – the northernmost point on the globe that can be reached by road.
The various expeditions included rutted gravel roads, off-road tracks, axle twisters, deep muddy trenches, rock-strewn mountain passes, swollen river crossings, towering desert dunes, swamp-filled forests, and precipitous Arctic cliffs.
Kingsley Holgate and his Foundation have been bringing Africa into the homes of people around the globe for many, many years, through his epic adventures and selfless dedication to empowering the people of this great continent. If he considers the Land Rover Defender to be the perfect vehicle for his adventures, then who are we to argue?
