By Gys Reitz
WALVIS BAY
Residents of the southern regions of Hardap and Karas will next week make an input on the future utilisation and conservation of natural resources of the Namibian coast despite having limited or no access to the coastal assets.
Everyone in these two regions can participate in eight consultative meetings to formulate a coastal vision, which should eventually express a national agreement on the future of the coast, its values and uses in the medium- to long-term run.
“The meetings are part of a process to formulate a vision and then to draft a Namibian Coastal Management White Paper on how the conservation, sustainable use and mainstreaming of biodiversity in Namibia’s coastal and marine ecosystems should be managed and promoted over the medium- and long term,” said Timo Mufeti, Coordinator of the Namibia Coast Conservation and Management (NACOMA) Project.
The Government is planning long-term management and protection of the coast. The NACOMA Project was introduced to assist the Government and the people to achieve this.
“The Namibian Coastal Management White Paper (NACOWP) will be a Government document that would incorporate the needs and aspirations of Namibia’s people, setting out the country’s future policy on coastal management.
Policy-making should be a collaborative process between the Government and civil society and as many Namibians as possible should be involved in this process,” he emphasised.
The Namibian coast from the Kunene River to the Orange River is rich in biological diversity, has a variety of features and many special areas that are worthy of protection.
These offer tourist attractions and other economic benefits. The coastal resources are, however, threatened by human activities along the coast and should therefore be protected through wise use and conservation.
Valuable inputs were received from the public during 12 meetings held in the Erongo and the Kunene regions over the past two weeks.
Residents from the Karas and Hardap regions are invited to raise their concerns, views and aspirations about the future use of the coastal zone in these two regions. Their only access to the coast is at Lǟ