08 Aug 2024

Some stakeholders have called on the government to install more water points in protected wildlife management areas and maintain as well as electrify the buffalo fences to deter elephants from encroaching into human settlements.

Human-wildlife conflict, they said remained a serious threat to communities living adjacent to wildlife areas.

As such they believe that electrification of buffalo fence and provision of water within the wildlife habitat could effectively mitigate the issue.

Stakeholders aired their views during a consultative meeting on the mid-term review of the National Elephant Management Plan and Action Plan (NEMAP) 2021-2026 in Maun on Tuesday.

Launched in 2021 in Maun, the plan aimed to address challenges brought about by the high population of elephants in the country.

However, stakeholders argued that the electric fence was the most effective barrier to protect fences from damage by elephant in search of water.

While they appreciate efforts by the government to put measures in place to address human-wildlife conflict and promote co-existence between humans and wildlife, they said elephants were notorious for causing conflicts due to their high population and the overlap between their habitats and human settlements.

“We are going to co-exist with elephants, hence the government should consider maintaining and electrifying the existing buffalo fence to separate elephants from us. Currently, our movement is limited at night because of fear of the giant animals,” said Mr Baingapi Setimela of Shorobe Development Trust.

Killing of animals, he said, was not a solution considering their significant economic benefits and stressed the need to safeguard the natural wonders for future generations.

He proposed that the Department of Wildlife and National Parks could redirect the compensation budget towards electrification and maintenance of the buffalo fences.

Principal veterinary officer, Dr Bruce Mafonko concurred that elephants were causing havoc, citing that currently, they had damaged the Makalamabedi quarantine fence.

He, therefore, supported the idea of electrification of the fences and provision of water along the hotspots.

He said over 100 elephants had been spotted around the quarantine in search of water and good vegetation, noting that such frustrated their efforts to keep cattle in quarantines as they ended up mixing with other animals.

Nxaraga Development Trust vice chairperson, Mr Othusitse Marewa proposed that the government should facilitate trusts in concession NG 35 to benefit from hunting quotas.

At the moment, he said, the concession was made up of four community trusts of Shorobe, Chanoga, Nxaraga and Matlapana, but they were not benefiting from hunting tourism, yet the concession was overwhelmed by a high population of elephants from wildlife protected areas, which caused a lot of destruction in ploughing fields and farms.

Kgosi Oateng Setlhodi of Chanoga shared the sentiments, saying the issue of community beneficiation needed to be thoroughly looked into with a view to resuscitate some community trusts so that they benefitted from hunting tourism and natural resources.

Some trusts, he said, had not registered because of financial constraints, adding that some legislation and policies also needed to be reviewed to enable the communities to have access to financial assistance.

Kgosi Setlhodi also underscored the need to empower community trusts so that they operate effectively and efficiently for the benefit of the communities.

Giving the overview of the NEMAP, deputy director from the Department of Wildlife and National Parks, Mr Matshelo Makondo said the plan aimed to ensure optimal elephant populations while ensuring the maintenance of habitats and biodiversity, promoting the contribution of elephants to local economies and to national development while minimising their negative impacts on rural livelihoods.

To ensure the survival of the species, he said all stakeholders should collaborate towards their protection, hence the meeting to share views on how best they could maintain a viable population of elephants and ensure they did not adversely impact on the community livelihoods and biodiversity conservation goals. Ends