Survivor heads to Africa

Kenya's Shaba game reserve is the location for Survivor III

Kenya's Shaba game reserve is being readied for a third series of the hugely popular American version of Survivor.

Show producers CBS confirmed the location on Tuesday. Most of the reserve has been closed to everyone but the production crew.

Mark has learned through trial and error how to return the land to the same condition, and in some cases better condition, than it was when he started.

Chris Ender, CBS Spokesman

The reserve is about 140 miles north of Nairobi, Kenya's capital, and is the location where the film Born Free was shot.

The first two editions of Survivor were on a South Pacific island and in the Australian Outback respectively.

Secrecy

On both occasions, CBS managed to keep the set closed and identity of the eventual winner secret until the programme was transmitted.

Local Kenyans involved in the production have allegedly signed confidentiality agreements.

Some were asked to take part in test filming at the park, to test challenges being devised, according to CBS spokesman Chris Ender.

For the locals lucky enough to get work on the production, Survivor is a source of valuable income.

James Gituanja, the manager of a nearby hotel, said he was already looking forward to the increased number of tourists resulting from the show's transmission.

"We are very hopeful, if it shows the park in a positive way," Gituanja said.

Survivor III's contestants will have plenty of company

Kenya has featured prominently in international corruption tables and the economic situation was made worse in 2000 by power rationing and water shortages caused by the worst drought in 30 years.

Despite the boost to the depressed economy, local environmentalists have expressed concern.

Respect

Representatives of the Waso Trust Land Project and several Kenyan journalists entered the area which was off limits, and were detained by the security staff as a result according to Amos Marenya, editor at The East African Standard newspaper.

The delegation of environmentalists and journalists then met with the Survivor production team to discuss their concerns.

In response, CBS spokesman Chris Ender insisted that the series executive producer Mark Burnett has always respected the environment in which the shows are filmed.

"Mark has learned through trial and error how to return the land to the same condition, and in some cases better condition, than it was when he started." Mr Ender said.

Ultimately, many Kenyans will find it hard to understand what the fuss is about. The programme has never been shown on Kenyan TV.

The Shaba game reserve's senior game warden, Abdi Boru, had never heard of Survivor.