WINDHOEK – The outspoken councillor for the Kahenge Constituency in Kavango West Region, Joseph Sikongo, wants the Ministry of Environment and Tourism to review laws pertaining to human-wildlife conflict, claiming the current laws are “colonial” and promotes poverty amongst communal farmers.
Laws regulating human-wildlife conflict in the country are not in the interest of people, said Sikongo yesterday during a telephonic interview.
He added: “Communal farmers are subjected to meager compensation while commercial farmers are not entitled to compensation should their crop fields or livestock be destroyed by wild animals.”
According to Sikongo, people in communal areas are currently compensated N$800 for every half hectare destroyed by elephants or hippos. While for livestock, N$1 500 per cow, N$500 per horse, N$200 per goat and N$250 for a sheep or pig are paid.
The new Minister of Environment and Tourism Pohamba Shifeta yesterday said his office has not been alerted about the situation in the region.
“My office is not aware of it, maybe the directorate is informed but this side we have no information regarding those complaints,” Shifeta told New Era.
“This is peanuts when compared to the market prices because farmers will not be able to continue farming, whether it is livestock or crops, because they cannot afford to replace the lost crops or livestock,” charged Sikongo.
Sikongo called on the new environment and tourism minister to consider reviewing the compensation accorded to people who continue to lose crops and livestock as a result of wild animals.
Wild animals, especially elephants, have in recent months caused huge destruction in the region as they move towards homesteads and the river in search of food and water.
He also blasted the ministry’s policy that states commercial farmers will not be compensated if their crops or livestock are damaged by wild animals.
“How does government expect farmers to succeed if these farmers are not catered for? We must remember that our farmers contribute significantly to the GDP [gross domestic product] of this country and therefore they should also be protected to ensure that they continue with their farming,” he said.Sikongo is adamant the current laws will see farming grow at a snail’s pace.
He said the ministry lacked capacity in the region to attend to cases of human-wildlife conflict and assess the extent of the damage.
“Sometimes it takes three to four days before ministry officials attend to cases reported by the public because the staff members in the region are not enough, yet the government policy states that cases must be reported within 24 hours,” he said.