usaid/nambia environmental threats and opportunities assessment

In addition to the overexploitation of certain species, other threats to Namibia’s marine and coastal
environment include: the petroleum industry, growing pollution, onshore and offshore mining, climate
change with its associated Sea Level Rise, sandy beach erosion, and an increase in storm/flooding events.
The rapid, poorly planned development of coastal towns is also a concern.
STRENGTHS AND OPPORTUNITIES
The three countries that share the BCLME are attempting to harmonize the management of shared
stocks, improve the predictability of extreme events, and address concerns related to increased fishing
pressure, harmful algal blooms (HABs), and pollution from ongoing seabed mining and petroleum
production. An effort to ensure Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) poses a tremendous
challenge for all stakeholders but does provide an opportunity to help ensure sustainable development
along Namibia’s coast.
CONCLUSIONS
Namibia has a collection of policies and laws that are largely conducive for biodiversity conservation and
sound natural resource management. However, the implementation of these laws and the use of
environmental safeguard instruments (including Land Use Planning and Environmental Impact
Assessment) are currently inadequate. Consequently, terrestrial habitats and resources (water, forests, and
wildlife) are under increasing pressure from a growing population that is experiencing increasing
unemployment and the impacts of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Intensifying development has resulted in
increasing concerns with respect to the sustainability of water abstraction, the expansion of large-scale
irrigation projects, and increasing coastal zone mining activity.
Land degradation, deforestation, and other threats to biodiversity in Namibia are partially offset by the
increasing tendency amongst some freehold farmers to invest in wildlife and remove fences which open
up the landscape and allow for more healthy wildlife populations. Furthermore, the development and
success of communal conservancies and the growth of the CBNRM movement, particularly in the
northwest and northeast, has helped to diversify livelihoods and has placed previously neglected biomes
within the protected areas network.
CURRENT USAID ACTIONS THAT ADDRESS THREATS TO
BIODIVERSITY AND TROPICAL FOREST
Although the current USAID-Namibia PEPFAR program does not directly address issues associated
with biodiversity and tropical forest conservation, the success of this program in helping to reduce the
Human Poverty Index in Namibia will have beneficial impacts on biodiversity conservation in the long
term.
Ongoing and emerging programs intended to address specific environmental issues include Conservation
Partnerships for Sustainability in Southern Africa (COPASSA) and Southern Africa Regional
Environmental Program (SAREP). If planned and implemented adequately, the land use planning
component of the SAREP program has the potential to address some fundamental conservation issues
identified in this assessment as ongoing threats to biodiversity conservation.
ACTIONS NECESSARY TO DECREASE PRESSURES ON
BIODIVERSITY AND TROPICAL FORESTS, AND
RECOMMENDATIONS TO USAID
The important communal conservancy component of Namibia’s protected areas network will
continue to need financial and technical support for the next 15-20 years in order to ensure that
its contribution to biodiversity conservation and tropical forest conservation remains sustainable.
8 USAID/NAMIBIA ENVIRONMENTAL THREATS AND OPPORTUNITIES ASSESSMENT