KALEPA Community Trust uplifts locals

MONKAGEDI GAOTLHOBOGWE
Staff Writer | Tuesday February 23, 2010 00:00

 

The KALEPA Community Trust, for the three villages of Kasane, Lesoma and Pandamatenga seems to be taking a lead, proving that community trusts can add value in a special way.

But the CBNRM Conference is being held amidst concern that many community trusts have collapsed, ceased operations because a few individuals pocketed the millions raised from their localities, leaving the general communities despondent and impoverished.At a time when government is worried by rampant maladministration, corruption, and financial misappropriation at many community based trusts, the KALEPA trust appears to be miles apart from these unfortunate doings.

The KALEPA Community Trust has been empowered to manage the wildlife resources in the Chobe area by granting hunting and photographic licenses to the highest bidder.  According to the youthful chairperson they generate around P2.3 million during the hunting season which runs for only six months in a year, from April-September.

The government awards the community trust a quota of wildlife they can trade with, while the community trust decides on the price for the various wildlife they have at their disposal.

To date the KALEPA Community Trust have a tractor, a planter and a plough, which last year started taking advantage of the newly introduced government arable farming program, known as ISPAAD.  Not only was the tractor used to benefit the communities, the community trust also made a profit in the process. According to the KALEPA chairperson, Thabo ' Pinky' Tuelo, 28, the tractor was initially bought to ferry river sand and firewood, before the government introduced ISPAAD late 2008.

Perhaps one of the amazing projects the KALEPA Trust undertook has been the revival of arable farming in an elephant infested Lesoma area, near the border with Zimbabwe.

For years arable farming ceased in the area as wildlife such as elephants, buffalo, kudus, Zebras and baboons destroyed farmers crops.  The KALEPA Community Trust however invested part of their tourism returns to fence 12km of arable land. Last year the Lesoma community planted their fields for the first time in decades, in that year the country reported an all time harvest.

The community trust also has remarkable properties; two land-cruizers, a VVT 2.7 hilux van, and two buses. While they have been operating from rented space, three months ago they started construction of a P300,000 headquarters in Kazungula. Meantime the trust has also managed to build a  community hall in Pandamatenga. At Kazungula the trust invested in a P1.5 million lodge, which the chairman told Mmegi they have requested the Botswana Tourism Board to find a management company to run it.

Tuelo, says the community trust last year also bought football kits, nets for the village communities. They also introduced a funeral scheme for the less privileged who receive P1,500 each to enable them to give their dearly departed a decent send off. During the independence celebrations, the trust  donated P5,000 cash for festivities in the three villages.

Two university students who had failed courses at the University of Botswana were sponsored by the trust to complete their degree programmes, while they also built a two-bedroomed house for a destitute at Kazungula.

They are currently fighting to get a permit for their bus so that it can generate income through the proposed Kasane-Kazungula route.