Ecologist Hails Botswana For Great Conservation Efforts

Baboki Kayawe | Monday October 17, 2016 19:37

 

The Gaborone International Convention Centre was last Friday decorated with well-dressed, mesmerising conservationists and all those who are for environmental protection.

As much as the attendants were eye-catching, dinned and wined, so was the essence of the message of the lit night, calling for a continuum in preserving and sustainable use of the natural environment.

The night opened with a Rhino Youth Project documentary sponsored by Barclays Bank, produced jointly with KCS. President Ian Khama, an internationally acclaimed conservationist, was the guest of honour.

In his keynote address, Richard Fynn- rangeland and grazing ecosystem ecologist commended Botswana for conservation milestones attained since independence. “In 1966, the country had a total area of 70, 000 km2 under conservation, today there is over 280, 000 km2 of land under conservation with 100 relic sites proclaimed in 2006,” he added.

He said as a benefit to communities, 147 Community Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) organisations are in existence. Moreover, Fynn applauded these efforts as well as the contribution of the tourism sector to the economy. Ecotourism contributes 12% to the the country’s gross domestic product (GDP). 

He added that Botswana supports the worlds largest elephant population at around 130, 000, as well as supporting some of the last remaining herbivore migrations in southern Africa and that some of Africa’s most important populations of roan, eland and wild dog are found here; highlights great conservation success story.

Fynn said the northern conservation area of Botswana is special for its great wilderness as well as its relatively unfragmented and open to conservation areas in Zimbabwe, Namibia and Angola.

“It also has functional heterogeneity of seasonal habitats. It is a region where herbivores have the ability to forage adaptively in a manner that enables them to meet their high resource demands for protein, energy and minerals for growth and reproduction,” he said.  He said consequently, this minimise loss of body stores over the dry season, especially in drought years as well as lessening levels of predation.

For his part the chief executive officer of De Beers Botswana, who is also KCS chairman, Neo Moroka said Botswana has a great record of nature conservation initiatives that were undertaken since independence.

“Some of the landmarks include the listing of some of our places as UNESCO World Heritage Sites; signifying their importance not only to Batswana but also to the global community at large,” he said.  He advised that as the country looks ahead over the next 50 years, it is important to note that there are huge challenges that face our natural environment. These include among others, climate change, pollution, desertification, decline in biodiversity and water shortage.

To optimally tackle these challenges, Moroka called for cooperative efforts by all stakeholders; government, business, civil society and international cooperating partners. “We should all aim for sustainable and optimal use of our natural resources in order to transform Botswana’s economy and uplift the livelihoods of our people,” he appealed.