Semonkong Lodge in Lesotho has released a short film, Rona Re Semonkong (“We are Semonkong”), highlighting community-led sustainable tourism in the Maluti Mountains.
Filmed over a year and concluding in the summer season, the project focuses on the partnership between the lodge and the Semonkong community, moving beyond adventure tourism to examine local collaboration and economic participation.
The film is centred on the Sesotho proverb “Motho ke motho ka batho” (“A person is a person because of other people”), reflecting the lodge’s operating model within the community.
It features local supply chains and livelihoods linked to the lodge, including farmers providing organic produce and horse and donkey owners supporting pony trekking and “pub crawl” activities.
“I rely on farming to send my children to school and the farming has helped me build rooms for rental,” explains Motlatsi Manaka, farmer and Chief of the Ha Leteketa Village, who resides in Ha Lepae.
The film also documents daily operations at the lodge, introducing the people behind its activities and illustrating the interdependence between the business and the surrounding community.
Semonkong Lodge Owner Armelle Halse said: “We are excited to show how, over the past 35 years, we have grown and developed our tourism industry in Semonkong alongside our community. It has been a fun and adventurous journey, working together and using all our strengths to create a sustainable industry for everyone.”
Watch the film below:
