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The importance of The Kaza TFCA
THE KAZA TFCAThe Importance of
IN A POST-COVID WORLD
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[WRITER: Shelley Cox – Africa Conservation Travel ] [ PHOTO: Freepix.com / Africa Conservation Travel ]
At an estimated 520,000 square kilometres, the Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA TFCA) is the world’s largest Transboundary protected area, occupying the Okavango and Zambezi river basins, and encompassing diverse habitats within the borders of Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe. KAZA TFCA includes 36 formally proclaimed national parks and a host of game reserves, forest reserves, wildlife management areas, communal lands, and conservation and tourism concession areas.
Formally established in August 2011, when the Presidents of all five countries signed a treaty, the KAZA TFCA vision was “to establish a world-class transfrontier conservation and tourism destination area within the context of sustainable development.” The concept of which is to sustainably manage the KavangoZambezi ecosystem, its heritage and cultural resources based on best conservation and tourism models for the socio-economic wellbeing of the communities and other stakeholders in and around the region through harmonization of policies, strategies and practices. Three clear dimensions were to be the focal priority of the KAZA TFCA
1. Species – improved habitat connectivity, especially for flagship species such as elephants and large carnivores
2. Habitat – improved management effectiveness and governance of the protected areas
3. People – Improved livelihoods for communities affected by human-wildlife cohabitation
Africa has nearly 2,000 key biodiversity areas and supports the world’s most diverse and abundant large mammal populations. The backbone of African conservation efforts is made up of an estimated 7,800 terrestrial protected areas covering 5.3 million square kilometres, with the Kavango-Zambezi making up one tenth of this, with many of the member states far exceeding the global average of protected areas.
In a post-COVID world, the concept and full implementation of the KAZA TFCA is going to be more important than ever. Biodiversity loss has been identified as one of the major threats to global prosperity and this has become even more evident under the current COVID-19 crisis. Progressive deforestation, inappropriate land use systems and poaching – combined with illegal trade in wildlife– are having a detrimental effect on the quality of the natural ecosystems globally. Besides the threat of more pandemics and disease, the loss of biodiversity has potential to cause climate change issues such as droughts and / or extensive and deadly flooding, clean water shortages, loss of crop pollination amongst a host of other serious risks.
By joining fragmented wildlife habitats to form an interconnected mosaic of protected areas and transboundary wildlife corridors, the KAZA TFCA allows for population and genetic exchange between core wildlife areas which are vital to the overall functioning of a healthy ecosystem, and in particular to endangered or keystone species such as Elephants and Lions, whilst also preventing damage to natural habitats. In addition, by re-connecting ecologically important areas for congested wildlife populations to move between, the wildlife corridors allow for an enlarged distribution range and free movement, which ultimately aims to reduce humanwildlife conflict.
There is a misperception that nature is “getting a break” from humans during the COVID-19 pandemic. The sad reality is that the COVID-19 pandemic is actually having a negative impact on conservation efforts. The loss of tourism has meant a lesser presence on the ground to deter poaching activities, and reduced resources across areas which have been economically dependent on tourism have put a strain on ongoing conservation efforts. People who have lost employment are returning to rural homes, further increasing the pressure on natural resources, and there has been a rise in bushmeat consumption across Africa. The integrated regional approach of KAZA TFCA allows for increased wildlife awareness amongst communities, strengthening of anti-poaching and surveillance capacities, improved knowledge on wildlife crime dynamics and impacts, and enhanced sharing of related information and data amongst law enforcement authorities. In addition, by pooling information and resources across the region through the KAZA TFCA programmes, there is potential to increase the “boots on the ground” for anti-poaching and surveillance. Given that one of the objectives of the KAZA TFCA is to increase and enhance sustainable socio-economic development to aid in alleviating poverty, the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the heavy reliance on tourism for a large portion of the communities living in the region, as well as the interconnectedness of various stakeholders and sectors, showcasing how vital collaboration is going to be for healthy ecosystems to be maintained, businesses to once again thrive, and for sustainable tourism economies and resilient livelihoods to become effective. Now more than ever strategies will need to be put in place to include increasing local employment, improving the skills of local employees, increasing the number of local tourism enterprises and supporting joint venture partnerships between the private sector and rural communities. Increasing local procurement, ensuring the equitable distribution of benefits, mitigating the costs facing rural communities living with wildlife and ensuring the provision of appropriate infrastructure and services will all be important components of a benefit maximising strategy in the recovery process. In addition, market research suggests that post-COVID-19 travellers will be seeking out safe and quality experiences in natural wide open spaces. Therefore, it is imperative that protected areas are prepared for directing this surge towards positive outcomes. The Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area, as the largest protected area in the world, with its natural diversity of landscapes and wide open spaces therefore sits as an ideal post-COVID destination for travellers.
According to Netsai Bollmann, AFC/Gopa Senior Regional Expert and Team Leader on behalf of the SADC/GIZ Transboundary Use and Protection of Natural Resources (TUPNR) Programme, “the KAZA Secretariat, in close collaboration with Partner States and private sector stakeholders, is working to support a ‘safe reopening and rebuilding of tourism destinations in KAZA’ through facilitating a ‘KAZA Safe Tourism Initiative’ . This initiative seeks to develop a framework of harmonised COVID-19 guidelines, protocols and procedures. Once finalised, and if approved through the official structures of KAZA Partner States, it is hoped that this framework will support lobbying and advocacy efforts towards the lifting of international travel warnings and restrictions, and also restore traveler confidence, particularly with respect to key long-haul source markets for the KAZA region.”
