The charitable arm of luxury travel company Abercrombie & Kent, Abercrombie & Kent Philanthropy (AKP), has reported record-breaking results in its 2024 Impact Report, marking a milestone in its six-decade commitment to community support.AKP delivered £2.1 million (US$2.7 million) in charitable funding, a 17% increase year-over-year, impacting nearly 400,000 people across 25 countries.“AKP’s mission is to ensure that travel creates lasting, tangible benefits in the places we visit,” said Keith Sproule, Executive Director of A&K Philanthropy. “We believe that the best way to protect our planet’s remaining wilderness is to invest in the people who live there.”This global effort was led by 17 full-time community development professionals operating in regions from “Peru to Kenya and Egypt to Cambodia,” Sproule noted.The report highlights a wide range of achievements in education, health, enterprise, and environmental programs, with a number of milestones achieved in 2024.More than 6,300 children were fed daily through school lunch programs in East Africa, which led to significantly improved attendance and a 270% increase in enrollment at one school.
In Cambodia, more than 800 students gained access to new classrooms at Kok Chan and Tapang Primary Schools, part of a broader initiative that has benefited over 1,600 students since 2018. AKP also funded the drilling of 90 new water wells in Siem Reap, bringing the total to over 2,000 since inception.Meanwhile, in East Africa, 107 LifeStraw filters were installed, providing safe drinking water to 108,000 students through the Safe Water for Schools Initiative, and more than 1,600 bicycles were delivered to women entrepreneurs in Uganda and Zambia, contributing to over 20,000 bikes shipped since the program began.Over in Peru and Sri Lanka, AKP supported guide training programs to promote women’s economic independence, with 12 women from the Village of the Flowers trained as trail guides, while in Sri Lanka, 13 local women joined the Pekoe Trail initiative.Environmental efforts included funding for a new flight aviary at Tasmania’s Raptor Refuge. The aviary now houses two white-bellied eagles and plans are underway for a second flight tunnel.Importantly, 100% of guest donations go to the cause, ensuring that all charitable contributions directly benefit selected programs.
