The River Guardians

Over the past three months, more than 76 km of fishnets have been confiscated from illegal fishermen and burnt by the Sikunga Fish Guards, while 14 arrests have been made in conjunction with these illegal fishing practices.

“Altogether 13 makoros were confiscated along with the nets, and by destroying these illegal nets the fish guards have most certainly conserved more fish stocks in the Zambezi River,” says Amy Blair who runs a tourism operation along the Sikunga Fish Protection Area, and assists in managing the Fish Protection project.

Blair adds that in June and July illegal netting increased as the level of the river began dropping. “Our team did a fantastic job on their patrols. We are also happy to report that the Ministry of Fisheries and the Namibian Police joined the fish guards on their patrols and have been doing a great job. They intend to join the fish guards for more patrols in the future.”

FNB, through the FirstRand Namibia Foundation, donated N$200 000 to the Gondwana Care Trust’s Sikunga Fish protection project in the Zambezi Region at the beginning of the year. This is the third year that the foundation has supported this worthwhile initiative.

Revonia Kahivere, FirstRand Namibia’s Corporate Social Investment Manager, says: “Our planet is one of the focus areas of the Foundation’s CSI strategy and this means that we assist in guarding the natural resources of our country which includes its rivers and our ocean.”

Kahivere said that they were well aware of the numerous challenges faced by the Sikunga Fish Guards such as fear for their safety due to possible exposure to the illegal, armed fishermen. “We are honoured to assist them in their quest of safeguarding and protecting our fish stocks for future generations.”

The Sikunga Fish Guards project was implemented as a voluntary endeavour in 2018 and has since grown to a permanent programme with ten dedicated employees, who patrol 8 km of the river and backwaters where fish are protected and allowed to breed undisturbed. The Sikunga Protection project is run by the Sikunga Conservancy and supported by the Masubia Traditional Authority and various tourism enterprises. The protected area covers a small section of the Zambezi River.