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Issue 00437 |
September 16 - 22, 2006 |
issn 0856 - 9135 |
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Features |
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By Our Correspondent September 1961 Prime Minister Dr. Julius Nyerere addressing The Symposium on Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources in Modern African States (organized by CCTA/IUCN-Arusha) said: “ The survival of our wildlife is a matter of grave concern to us all in Africa. These wild creatures amid the wild places they inhabit are not only important as a source of wonder and inspiration but are an integral part of our natural resources and of our future livelihood and well being. In accepting the trusteeship of our wildlife we solemnly declare that we will do everything in our power to make sure our children’s grandchildren will be able to enjoy this rich and precious inheritance”. Where are we now 45 years later? Tanzania has an enviable record having expanded the area under close protection, i.e. National parks. It now has nearly 42,000 sq kms. of national park with 14 national parks the newest being Kitulo in the Southern highlands. Tourist arrivals in 2006 are predicted to reach about 700,000 tourists. About 25% of Tanzania’s land area is given over to some form of protection of Wildlife and or natural resources such as Forests. The Annual Serengeti Migration sets Tanzania apart from other wildlife spectacles the world over. The annual migration witnesses the movement of more than 2 million animals of which the Wildebeest population may be in excess of 1.3 million. When Serengeti was gazetted in 1951 there were probably ¼ million wildebeest. The quantum leap to the highest population level on record is attributed to the control of the bovine disease, rinderpest, in the cattle population surrounding the park in the late 50’s and early 60’s. The phenomenon could not exist without a sufficiently large landscape to nurture such a healthy population and the Serengeti eco-system is a combination of many parts including a larger proportion of land outside the park, much of it inhabited by people. Challenges We have overcome the challenge of the near demise of elephant having been poached to near extinction while our ‘rhinos are on the knife-edge of survival. While poaching in general and the bush meat trade are very worrying it is the demands of a growing human population that poses the biggest challenge to conservation. Loss of habitat to agricultural expansion is rapidly reducing the large landscapes required by wildlife to survive. A mosaic of agricultural development is blocking migration routes and dispersal areas. This is happening right at our doorstep in the Simanjaro and surrounding areas. Tarangire National Park is 2,600 sq kms. in size but the area that constitutes the Tarangire eco-system covers more than 20,000 s. kms. It is diminishing every year. In the last decade about 30 % of the eco-system has been turned over to agriculture. Simultaneously the number of Wildebeest and Zebra has dropped dramatically and it is almost impossible to find Eland in the area any more. This points at a combination of bush Meat trade & poorly regulated resident hunting but loss of habitat is probably the most serious culprit. As a case study Tarangire and its surrounding eco-system demonstrates the problems all parks experience to a greater or lesser extent. We live in the knowledge that the situation can only get worse. Tarangire is just the thin end of the wedge. Next week we look at ways of meeting the Challenges facing Conservation Do something good for conservation and join the Wildlife Conservation Society of Tanzania (Arusha ) branch contact Cosmas Nguya Executive officer e. mail cosmas@wcstarusha.org
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