In March 2021, we launched our first campaign to help people in need in Morocco - buying food for camels to protect the livelihood of their owners. We are so thankful to those who donated and helped make a huge difference for some who struggled during the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

It’s not uncommon to see a few camels wandering through the Sahara Desert. What is unusual, however, is to see all of a camel guide’s camels out in the desert because they need to find their own food. Typically they graze on the grasses as a bit of extra, with the bulk of their food being supplied by the owners, as each camel eats about 10-20 kg of fresh feed or 5-10 kg of dry feed per day. However, on our last visit to the Sahara Desert, this is what we found, along with camels with visible ribs and humps beginning to fall over. 

It has been nearly 12 months since Morocco’s borders first closed at the start of the pandemic. Though borders technically opened six months later, travelers in the Sahara have been virtually nonexistent. In Merzouga, 95% of the working population works for tourism in some way. This lack of travelers has been devastating to the region, where no help has been provided by the government. The camel guides were some of the hardest hit, as they are independent workers. These guides have struggled to maintain not only their family, but their camels as well. Though they were okay for many months, as we are closing in on a year, some are having to look at the choice between feeding their family and feeding their camels, the means of supporting their family. It is imperative that the camels remain healthy and fed so they are able to go back to work as soon as the travelers return. However, many are going hungry and risk illness, injury, or even death. The price of a camel is upwards of 10,000 MAD, over $1000 USD, an astronomical sum for people who have not worked in a year.  

Wanderlust Voyages would like to offer help to these guides who are struggling. To save them from having to make the agonizing decision between spending money on their families or spending it on their means of supporting their families, we would like to send a truck (hopefully more if we can) of food for the camels who are going hungry. Just $1,000 USD will cover the transportation (the food has to come from Meknes, where it is grown) and enough food to feed 90-100 camels for 1 month. With tourism not likely to resume in the region soon, this will go a long way to help ensure they can make it through to when work will resume. 

Wanderlust Voyages is working with Proper Thought For Development to carry out the logistics on the ground and with one of our partners in Merzouga to identify who is in need to ensure that the donation does the most good. 100% of funds received will go to Morocco for the direct benefit of the camels and their owners. 

If you are able to donate any amount, it will help the guides and the camels. If you would like to help, please click the “Donate” button below. When we have enough for a truck of food, we will update you on when it is being sent. If we are able to send more than one truck, we will be happy to do so. It is our hope we can continue the support monthly until tourism resumes, but any amount will help. If we are truly able to reach an incredible level of support, once the camels are fed, any additional funds will be provided as cash donations to help the families themselves.