Delta lease fallout as Trust accuses gov’t of betrayal :: Mmegi Online

A bitter land dispute is brewing in the South-Eastern reaches of the Okavango Delta after the Okavango Kopano Mokoro Community Trust (OKMCT) served the government with a 30-day statutory notice, threatening to drag the matter to the High Court over the stalled renewal of its NG32 lease. NG32 is a community-controlled wildlife management area.

In the Statutory notice seen by Mmegi, the Trust accuses the Tawana Land Board and the Ministry of Lands and Agriculture of acting in bad faith, irrationally and in violation of constitutionally protected rights by halting a lease renewal that had already been resolved in its favour in February 2023.

The Trust, which represents residents of Xuxao, Xaxaba, Xharaxao, Boro, Ditshiping and Daonara, says the government has effectively reneged on a relocation agreement under which villagers vacated NG32 to pave the way for tourism development in exchange for rights to manage and economically benefit from the wildlife management area.

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