George Sanzila
KHORIXAS – Namibians in rural areas continue to benefit from the conservation of natural resources.
The Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism says the Community Based Natural Resources Management programme continues to empower rural communities with over 230 community members having been involved in the conservation of their own natural resources.
The programme resulted in the creation of 5 000 full time and part time jobs and generating over N$130 million in revenue since its inception.
This information was revealed in Khorixas, Kunene region last week by the director of wildlife and parks in the ministry of environment and tourism, Bennett Kahuure at an information sharing meeting between the subcommittee on tourism and conservation under the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Natural Resources and stakeholders in the tourism and conservation sector.
The subcommittee is part of four subcommittees set up recently by the main parliamentary standing committee to ease the workload by looking into specific areas of interest related to the management of Namibia’s natural resources and challenges faced by the sector.
Kahuure noted that, the enactment of the communal conservancy legislation in 1996 culminated in the Community Based Natural Resources Management (CBNRM) programme, that has paved the way for community members to directly benefit from the management and conservation of natural resources through the creation of conservancies.
He noted that supporting policies have also been set up such as the National Policy on Management of Natural Resources, the Concessions Policy on Tourism and the 1998 revised Policy on Human and Wildlife Conflict Management. CBNRM gives exclusive rights of use and management of valuable natural resources to rural communities to benefit in a sustainable manner.
Kahuure further stated that the protracted Wildlife and Protected Areas Management Bill envisaged to replace the outdated Nature Conservation Ordinance of 1975 and aimed at addressing a wide range of shortcomings in the management of natural resources, is also expected to be passed into law early this year.
According to Kahuure, to date, there are about 86 registered conservancies in Namibia, with 38 of these found in the Kunene region. This is a stark contrast to only four conservancies that existed in 1998, when the initiative was incepted.
Despite the growing benefits associated with this sector, Kahuure bemoaned poaching, particularly the illegal trafficking of rhino horns as a major challenge, that has resulted in the dwindling numbers of this highly endangered species that today can only be found in the four African countries namely South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Kenya.
“Illegal trafficking of rhino horns is a major challenge for us. In 2021, we had 40 cases of poaching and that number increased to 87 in 2022, especially in Etosha National Park. As a way to enhance the protection of this species and to involve community members in conservation, we have started to give rights and custodianship over key species to commercial farmers as well. 50% of income generated by communities under the CBNRM come from trophy hunting,” noted Kahuure.
There have also been cases of misappropriation of monies generated by conservancies by members and Kahuure appealed for concerted efforts aimed at addressing this challenge.
Climate change, which has increased cases of human/wildlife conflict also came under the spotlight. “Kunene is a semi-arid area and although we have recently received some rains, the region experienced long spells of drought over the years leading to wildlife resorting to destroying people’s homes, infrastructure and attacking domesticated animals,” said Kahuure.
As a result, Kahuure added, community members have been appealing to the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism to increase the quota for trophy hunting, especially on lions, they say this would help to curtail increased losses they suffer due to this predicament.
However, Kahuure noted that an animal census that was recently conducted by the ministry, put the number of lions in the area at only 56, with fewer adults, and that this information was shared with community members.
As part of efforts to find solutions to human wildlife conflict, Kahuure who appealed to lawmakers to advocate for an increased budget, further implored international conservation pressure groups to equally get involved in matters of losses suffered by community members due to human/wildlife conflict.
“We appeal to international conservation groups, that have put up so much effort in the conservation and preservation of our wildlife and natural resources to equally do the same when cases of human wildlife conflict arise within our communities,” appealed Kahuure.
He further suggested that conservation funding opportunities by richer countries should be explored. He also stated that other revenue generating initiatives such as exploring renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar power energy and green hydrogen that are abundant in rural areas, could help communities generate additional income for their livelihood.
At the same meeting, Namibian Association of CBNRM Support Organisations (NACSO) representative, Maxi Pia Louis echoed similar sentiments adding that financial constraints have been worsened by the impact of Covid-19 pandemic and the classification of Namibia as an upper middle-income country.
The latter, has resulted in funding challenges for civil society organisations. NACSO is the umbrella organisation that serves as a link between communities and organisations that manage and conserve Namibia’s natural resources in communal areas and assists conservancies in setting up governance structures and strategies to generate income.
On their part, MPs felt entrusting key species in the custodianship of commercial farmers was detrimental to conservation efforts and bemoaned selective conservation law enforcement they say tend to be more stringent on communities living in communal areas than their counterparts north of the cordon fence.
“How can we give custodianship to commercial farmers? This is how we are losing our natural resources. When it comes to communal areas, the ministry seems to be more serious with their monitoring of poachers while that’s not the case with our communities in the commercial farm areas,” lamented Natangwe Ithete, one of the MPs on the visit.
Other concerns were inadequate compensation for community members who suffer losses due to wildlife. “Our communities have not been happy with the amount that is compensated to those that suffer losses,” complained Agnes Kafula who is leading the delegation.
The benefits derived from conservation activities were also questioned as to whether they are indeed directly benefiting locals. “You spoke about millions generated from conservancies but we don’t really see these benefits translating into tangible form. Are these monies been mismanaged by members?” queried Ithete rhetorically.
Both Tangeni Iijambo and Mike Venaani, who also form part of the oversight visit, suggested that important heritage sites found in the area retain their original ancestral names. Iijambo further suggested that the mooted Wildlife and Protected Areas Bill include the protection of infrastructure and gravesites that are being vandalised by wildlife in protected areas. He was also of the opinion that in the age of information technology, it was prudent for the ministry to incorporate the usage of state-of-the-art technologies in its efforts to conserve natural resources.
“We are living in the era of information superhighway. It’s high time the ministry uses technologies such as cameras and drones to monitor the movement of animals and potential poachers,” stated Iijambo.
Kahuure agreed with the suggestion of renaming of important heritage sites and sympathised with the public outcry over limited compensation for losses as a result of wildlife but added that the limited budget allocated to the ministry has been hampering efforts to rectify this anomaly.
“The rising population of both people and wildlife is a time bomb that we have been trying to manage. The ministry faces resource constraints that have resulted in insufficient compensation. There have been significant budget cuts of close to almost 50%. The ministry is willing to amend the policy anytime, provided there is money. Previously, we paid N$5 000 as assistance for loss of life and we have amended that to N$100 000. So far, we have paid more than N$40 million in compensation since the inception of this fund,” noted Kahuure. Kahuure admitted that the ministry currently does not use technology in its conservation efforts but added that plans to do so are already at an advanced stage.
Other stakeholders that were present at the meeting include the, Integrated Rural Development and Nature Conservation (IRDNC), Namibia Nature Foundation (NNF) and Save the Rhino Trust Namibia (SRT). The subcommittee will further hold meetings with community members, conservancy members and regional and traditional leaders.
* George Sanzila works for the National Assembly in the division: research, information, publications and editorial services.