South African National Parks

South African National Parks
Agency overview
Formed1926
JurisdictionGovernment of South Africa
Headquarters643 Leyds Street, Muckleneuk, Pretoria
25°45′59″S 28°12′8″E / 25.76639°S 28.20222°E / -25.76639; 28.20222
Employees4,027 (permanent)
1,405 (temporary)[1]
Annual budgetR2.046 billion[2]
Minister responsible
Agency executives
Parent agencyDepartment of Environmental Affairs
Key documents
  • National Parks Act, 1976
  • National Environmental Management: Protected Areas Act, 2003
Websitewww.sanparks.org

South African National Parks (SANParks) is the body responsible for managing South Africa's national parks. SANParks was formed in 1926, and currently manages 19 parks consisting of 3,751,113 hectares (37,511.13 km2),[3] over 3% of the total area of South Africa.[4][a]

Many parks offer a variety of accommodations. The best known park is Kruger National Park, which is also the oldest (proclaimed in 1898), and the largest, at nearly 2,000,000 hectares (20,000 km2). Kruger National Park and Table Mountain National Park are two of South Africa's most visited tourist attractions.[6]

Though not designated as National Parks, other protected areas exist, such as game and nature reserves.

  1. ^ South African National Parks Annual Report 2015/16 (PDF). South African National Parks. p. 125. ISBN 978-0-621-44439-1. Retrieved 23 August 2017.
  2. ^ South African National Parks Annual Report 2015/16 (PDF). South African National Parks. p. 140. ISBN 978-0-621-44439-1. Retrieved 23 August 2017.
  3. ^ South Africa National Parks. "Brief History". SANParks. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
  4. ^ South African National Parks Annual Report 2015/16 (PDF). South African National Parks. p. 6. ISBN 978-0-621-44439-1. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
  5. ^ South African National Parks Annual Report 2015/16 (PDF). South African National Parks. p. 15. ISBN 978-0-621-44439-1. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
  6. ^ "National Parks Tourism Income Breaks the Half-a-billion Rand Barrier". Siyabona Africa. Retrieved 18 June 2024.


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