Anathi Wonga Pama is a Section Ranger at West Coast National Park. He has been working in the nature conservation and biodiversity management sector for the past six years. Born in 1991 in a township near Cape Town called New Cross Road, Wonga and his family later moved to Makhaza in Khayelitsha where he started and finished his primary and secondary schooling. He spent some time in the Eastern Cape during his early childhood, and he volunteered in the City’s nature reserves while in Cape Town. This is where he discovered and nurtured his interest in nature conservation.
Wonga matriculated in 2009 and in 2010 he enrolled at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) to study Nature Conservation. In 2014 he graduated with his national diploma and in the same year he kick started his career as a Field Ranger at SANParks’ Tankwa Karoo National Park. He was quickly promoted to Ranger Sergeant within six months. At the time, Tankwa was an emerging park, which gave Wonga the opportunity to assist in conservation operations and administration necessary for the development of the park.
For two years in a row he was honoured with SANParks’ Excellent Performance in the Workplace award and in 2017 he joined the Eastern Cape Parks and Tourism Agency (ECPTA) as a Section Ranger in the Great Fish River & Mpofu Nature Reserve where he would spend the next three years. His Key Performance Areas in the role were anti-poaching operations, community liaison, biodiversity management and reserve management. Finally, in February 2020, re-joined SANParks where he is currently employed as a Section Ranger at West Coast National Park.