Serengeti General Management Plan

Executive Summary
This 10-year (2006-2016) General Management Plan (GMP) has been produced according
to the TANAPA Strategic Planning Process, with some modifications to take account of lessons
learnt on previous TANAPA park planning exercises and to make the plan more relevant
to the day-to-day management needs of Serengeti National Park (SENAPA) managers.
A participatory approach has been adopted to develop the GMP, which has brought together
representatives from all the major Serengeti stakeholders: TANAPA (Headquarters and Park
management), TAWIRI, TATO, hotel operators, scientists, district government and local communities.
The process involved a series of specialist working groups and interdisciplinary
planning team meetings, which enabled the diverse interest groups to work together constructively
and where necessary to reach compromises, aimed at achieving a consensus that
will best protect the Serengeti ecosystem in the long term. Consequently, the final product
provides a strong foundation for the future management of the area that all are agreed upon.
The main structural innovation is the organisation of the GMP into four major Management
Programmes, each of which is aligned with different SENAPA Departments. These Management
Programmes are designed to facilitate plan implementation by building a sense of
ownership and accountability for delivering specific components of the GMP in the concerned
Department. Each programme consists of a long-term strategy, with management objectives,
targets, actions and, where appropriate, management prescriptions for the full 10-years of
the GMP. Potential environmental impacts of major Programme actions are also evaluated,
with mitigating measures identified to reduce, eliminate or offset any adverse effects.
Each Management Programme also has an associated practical management-oriented 3year
Action Plan, designed to be regularly rolled forward throughout the implementation of
the GMP. This will ensure that the GMP remains a dynamic plan, with the required flexibility
and responsiveness to changing Park and TANAPA management needs and priorities. It will
also help ensure strong linkages between the management actions prescribed by the GMP
and the Annual Operations Plans developed by SENAPA management.
The other key innovation in this GMP is the application of the “Logical Framework Approach”
(LFA). The main feature of the LFA is the explicit and logical linkages established
between the GMP’s 10-year management objectives, targets, the 3-year Action Plans and,
ultimately, the management tasks in the Park’s Annual Operations Plans. The application of
the LFA has helped develop a GMP that can be effectively and efficiently implemented, as
well as more easily monitored and evaluated.
To complement these innovations, the Serengeti GMP has been produced in a loose-leaf
format to ensure that the plan remains a dynamic document able to incorporate future additions,
such as the Technical Detail Plans, and amendments and updates to the 3-year rolling
Action Plans as required. This adaptability will help keep the GMP up-to-date and better able
to guide park management activities throughout its 10-year lifespan.
Park Purpose and Exceptional Resource Values
The purpose of SENAPA as defined through a workshop process is:
To conserve and protect the Serengeti ecosystem, its habitats, biodiversity, migrations
of large mammals and birds, and its endemic and threatened species
This purpose statement is derived from the Park’s Exceptional Resource Values (ERVs),
which have been divided into four categories: Natural, Scenic, Social and Cultural. The most
important of SENAPA’s ERVs as identified by stakeholders include: the large mammal migra-
iv