Kasungu National Park forms part of the trans-frontier conservation area between Malawi and Zambia. The area used to have a thriving wildlife population but due to poaching, it was left depleted with the resident elephant population coming close to extinction.

A translocation plan, put in place by the Malawian government, IFAW and African Parks, has returned the elephants to the park. Despite a positive long-term vision, the short-term effects have resulted in a number of human deaths, animal predation and crop damage – and with the country’s economy being agriculture-focussed, this aspect of human wildlife conflict is a particular concern in Malawi.

Fences are also proving to be a contentious issue. An area being fully-fenced goes against the principles of landscape-scale conservation and prevents free movement but it does provide extra protection to local communities. The tensions are laid bare in this episode.

Malidadi Langa is an economist and retired public servant with extensive experience across decentralisation, rural development, natural resource management governance and public policy – and community based natural resource management, otherwise known as CBNRM. He’s currently Chairman of the Board of Trustees for the KAWICCODA community association, represents Malawi CBNRM associations in the Southern Africa Community Leaders Network, advocating for community rights around sustainable use and benefit sharing.

Senior Chief Lukwe describes a highly populated country in comparison to its neighbours, the need for civic education of the risks from wildlife, and the importance of compensation for victims of human wildlife conflict.

Catherine Chunga is education and extension officer at the Department of Parks and Wildlife, Leonard Moyo is Education Division Manager and Ndaona Kumanga is National Park Manager at Kasungu. They describe Malawi’s unique relationship with wildlife, the challenges the local communities face, and what they are doing in their roles to manage and resolve human wildlife conflict.

We speak to them all, beneath the baobab.

Visit the website https://jammainternational.com to explore more international projects.

The video of this episode can be seen here: https://youtu.be/YCNrvMNfGQ0

Elephant Conservation in the Context of High Human-Wildlife Conflict | African Parks

ifaw's response to elephant tragedies in Malawi

https://www.voanews.com/a/villagers-in-central-malawi-face-attacks-from-elephants-/7280441.html

https://www.malawitourism.com/regions/central-malawi/kasungu-national-park/

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In this episode, we meet the Chizvirizvi community in Zimbabwe – a latecomer to the CAMPFIRE programme, compared to the Mahenye featured in episode 5.

Chizvirizvi is somewhat different as it’s not operated by the Rural District Council. Instead, authority for the utilisation and management of wildlife has been conferred to the community or collective resettlement scheme plot holders. And with the authority only designated in 2003, their CAMPFIRE programme is relatively in its infancy, with the infrastructure only just beginning to grow.

A survey in 2013 discovered the 77% of the population said they had experienced human wildlife conflict between the year 2000 and 2010. With this background, we expected a very different conversation to the one we had at the Jamanda Conservancy but as we’ve found throughout this series, there are always surprising – and often uplifting – stories to hear.

We start with a shocking story of bravery in the face of a crocodile attack from Morina and her son Gideon. Thankfully, the story ends well.

Mr Chirhilele is a farmer and rancher and describes how scouts and monitors go some way to protecting residents’ cattle but could do more. He asks that the wildlife population be maintained at an optimal number to ensure coexistence for him and his family, and for future generations.

Dr Shylock Muyengwa is Managing Consultant at the Centre for Impact Evaluation and President of the Zimbabwe Evaluation Association and since 2007, has studied community-based natural resource management systems (CBNRM). Kevin Mfishani is a member of Community Leader’s Network and a project officer with the Zimbabwe CAMPFIRE association.

They discuss the past, present and future of life alongside wild animals and the importance of empowering communities to make decisions and revenue, utilising their natural resources.

We speak to them all, beneath the baobab.

Visit the website https://jammainternational.com to explore more international projects.

The video of this episode can be seen here: https://youtu.be/-0fYvwrhQoo

https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Chizvirizvi-resettlement-area-Chigonda-2017_fig1_328048741

https://twitter.com/forevaluation?lang=en

https://www.communityleadersnetwork.org

https://campfirezimbabwe.org

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In this episode, we visit the Mahenye community and Jamanda Conservancy in Zimbabwe where the hope is that tourism revenue will aid those living alongside dangerous, and sometimes life-threatening, wildlife.

The Jamanda Conservancy is the location for the first Communal Area Management Programme for Indigenous Resources (CAMPFIRE) and today boasts an upmarket tourist lodge called Chilo Gorge Safari Lodge. This has resulted in an increase in revenue for the community and employs many of their members. The creation of the conservancy created a 10km border with Gonarezhou National Park and has re-established the ancient elephant migration route between Gonarezhou and Chimanimani in Mozambique.

Maxwell was the victim of a horrific crocodile attack on the Save River, but 20 years after, shares his story and his relationship with wildlife after such a life changing event.

Chief Mahenye represents every family in the community as part of his role. He explains how the challenges of coexisting with wildlife match up with the monetary benefits that come from hunting and tourism.

Liberty Chauke is a CAMPFIRE community association board member and feels that changes in land management, herding and accessibility to water would go a long way to improving the quality of life for the Mahenye.

And Clive Stockil is a wildlife expert and partner in the lodge and warns that unless mechanisms can be put in place to maintain and improve coexistence, the people’s wishes will win over the wildlife.

We speak to them all, beneath the baobab.

Visit the website https://jammainternational.com to explore more international projects.

The video of this episode can be seen here: https://youtu.be/PX-QPUGW0Ws

https://www.communityleadersnetwork.org/tag/mahenye-community/

https://campfirezimbabwe.org

https://chilogorge.com

https://gonarezhou.org

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.