HWCM - Ministry of Environment and Tourism

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National Workshop on Human Wildlife Conflict Management 2005 Executive Summary Most Namibians depend on the land for their subsistence. But the presence of many species of large mammals, combined with settlement patterns of people, leads to conflict between people and wildlife. A balance is needed between forming systems of protected areas in Namibia and possibilities for community empowerment to manage and benefit from wildlife and other natural resources. Human Wildlife Conflict (HWC) refers to conflict between wild animals and humans. This ranges from the destruction of crops and water installations to loss of livestock, homes and human life. Friction between park managers and neighboring communities living on the perimeters of protected areas potentially weakens the effectiveness of projects and programmes, for example the Conservancy Programme. A stakeholder meeting was held in Windhoek in July 2001 to discuss mechanisms to reduce conflicts between people and wildlife. Among decisions taken was to replace the term ‘problem animal’ with the more appropriate term ’Human Wildlife Conflict (HWC)’. Stakeholders identified elephants as the most challenging and destructive of all HWC species, along with lion, hyena, hippopotamus and crocodile. Damage assessed included crop damage to farmers’ fields and loss of human lives. The meeting also discussed different measures of mitigating human wildlife conflict. Building on the successes of the 2001 workshop, the Strengthening the Protected Area Network (SPAN) and Integrated Community-based Ecosystem Management (ICEMA) projects organized a workshop on 16 – 17 May, 2005 in Windhoek. This meeting was funded by USAID and hosted by the Ministry of Environment and Tourism. The objectives of the workshop were: 1. To develop a framework for future Human Wildlife Conflict Management (HWCM) policy directions in Namibia; 2. To initiate the development of a standardized monitoring system for HWCM; 3. To discuss best practice mitigation measures in Namibia and throughout the region; and 4. To launch a survey on HWC situations in two areas. Namibia does not have a HWCM policy and the workshop enabled stakeholders to take the first steps in identifying essential ingredients for policy formulation. To achieve objectives, field experts and researchers were invited to share their experiences and knowledge and discuss lessons learnt from the field. Presentations tackled the issue of HWC from a variety of perspectives, including detailed economic, socio-economic and institutional viewpoints. They focused on demonstrating the impacts of HWC from: • A crop-farming perspective; • A livestock farming perspective; and • A parks’ management perspective. The workshop also analyzed successful mitigation and monitoring methods for the creation of best mitigation measures and explored requirements and design implications for a standardized monitoring system for HWC. 4
National Workshop on Human Wildlife Conflict Management 2005 The meeting incorporated presentations on regional perspectives and lessons learnt from monitoring HWC situations and various deterrence methods, their effectiveness and suitability in different situations. Two working group sessions were facilitated: the first session enabled participants to brain-storm issues relating to the development of a framework for the decentralization and devolution of wildlife management, determining best-practice mitigation measures and self-insurance and developing a standardized monitoring and reporting system. The second session focused on the development of a policy framework to be included in the new Parks and Wildlife Management Bill regarding HWC and to develop an Action Plan. In line with the fourth workshop objective, two surveys were launched at the end of the meeting. The first survey will consist of a situation analysis report of HWC situations, with special reference to Kavango, Caprivi, North-Central Namibia and Otjozondjupa regions. The second survey will entail a detailed study of the state of HWC in three areas: Omatendeka and Ehirovipuka conservancies and the northern boundary of Etosha National Park. This report is a detailed account of the presentations and ensuing discussions. It covers methods used to arrive at the final Action Plan to take forward all activities agreed upon by stakeholders. 5
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HWCM - Ministry of Environment and Tourism

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