Birds and People newsletter

The latest Birds and People newsletter from Birdlife Botswana features stories about a proposed flamingo sanctuary in Sua Pan, IBA branding of national parks, studies in the Makgadikgadi, Birdlife's new avitourism book, Community Escort Guide training in Chobe National Park, and the proposed listing of the Okavango Delta as a World Heritage Site. You can find more details on the Birdlife Botswana site.

Recent natural resources management resources from ELDIS

ELDIS has alerted us to several recently posted publications about natural resources management relevant to southern Africa.

People, protected areas and global change: participatory conservation in Latin America, Africa, Asia and Europe, a synthesis of papers about sustainable conservation in protected areas, recommends alternative conservation pathways with new participatory conservation approaches in place of the "fortress approach".

The status and distribution of freshwater biodiversity in Southern Africa by W.R.T. Darwall, K.G. Smith, D. Tweddle and P. Skelton, is a response to the inadequate representation of biodiversity in southern Africa because of a lack of readily available information on the status and distribution of inland water taxa.

Pro-Poor Tourism strategies: making tourism work for the poor: a review of experience reviews practical experience of ‘pro-poor tourism strategies’ to identify useful lessons and good practice. The report synthesises findings from six case studies of pro-poor tourism interventions, in South Africa, Namibia, Uganda, St Lucia, Ecuador and Nepal.

Environmental policymaking in Zimbabwe: discourses, science and politics, by J. Keeley and I. Scoones, asks why policy processes in Zimbabwe have consistently reinforced a highly technocratic approach to natural resources management, while excluding alternative perspectives and framings of problems for policy.

Observations on the intersections of human rights and local practice: a livelihood perspective on water by B. Derman and A. Hellum also looks at Zimbabwean policies, exploring how local water management practices incorporate water within a broader right to livelihood framework.

You can view the full text of all these resources from the ELDIS site.

Benefits to African Ramsar wetlands

A recent issue of the Georgetown International Environmental Law Review featured an article based on the findings of a survey carried out by Gardner, Connolly and Bamba: African wetlands of international importance : assessment of benefits associated with designations under the Ramsar Convention. The article offers a brief description of Ramsar sites surveyed in 18 African countries, findings about the perceived benefits of Ramsar status, and recommendations for strengthening the convention in Africa. The authors found that Ramsar designation in the African context has led to improved protection and management, increased scientific study, increased access to funding, increased ecotourism and more alleviation of poverty. To build on these benefits, they recommend better promotion of the Ramsar designation, more emphasis on the links between wetland conservation and poverty alleviation, and more support for local management plans. You can find the article online on the Ramsar Secretariat's Wise Use of Wetlands page and in HOORC's Library.

Water and protected areas

Kruger National Park from the report

A new publication by the IUCN about the benefits of protecting watersheds, contains a case study of South Africa's Kruger National Park that briefly describes the impact of interventions that have controlled detrimental effects of water shortages and pollution on animals, plants and natural features in the park, made more water available for rural communities and emergent farmers, and improved the condition of rivers for better game viewing. You can read the case study online.

Government notices of interest to the Okavango community

From the Botswana Government Gazette, Vol. XLVII, no. 21, 20 February 2009

Government notice no. 79 of 2009: Water Act, Water Regulations, application for water rights: Tawana Construction Company: river draw off – Thamalakane River at Maun (Northwest District) 90 cubic metres per day for construction purposes
684
Republic of Botswana: Tender: Service contract for the provision of a consultancy to carry out a needs assessment study on skills training programme
739

From the Botswana Government Gazette, Vol. XLVII, no. 13, 27 February 2009

Republic of Botswana: Tender: Consultancy services for detailed design, materials investigation, tender documentation and construction, supervision of Nata-Gweta Road Project
799
Ghanzi District Council: Tender: Maintenance of Hanahai, New Xade, Grootelaagte and Qabo roads,
827

From the Botswana Government Gazette, Vol. XLVII, no. 14, 27 February 2009

Supplement B – Pandamatenga Agricultural Infrastructure Development (Loan) (Authorization) Bill 2009 – Bill No. 4 of 2009
B53-54

From the Botswana Government Gazette, Vol. XLVII, no. 15, 6 March 2009

Republic of Botswana: Tender: Proposed construction and maintenance of non-lethal electric game proof fence at Makgadikgadi (Gweta Game Park boundary side) national game park boundary for the Department of Wildlife and National Parks
894
Republic of Botswana: Tender: Proposed construction and maintenance of non-lethal electric game proof fence at Makgadikgadi (Gweta – Kanixao Game Park boundary side) national game park boundary for the Department of Wildlife and National Parks
895
Republic of Botswana: Tender: Proposed construction and maintenance of non-lethal electric game proof fence at Makgadikgadi (Gweta -- Dikubi Game Park boundary side) national game park boundary for the Department of Wildlife and National Parks
896
Republic of Botswana: Tender: Consultancy services for Tribal Land Integrated Management System (TLMIS) data collection and conversion; Gumare Sub-Land Board and Nokaneng Sub-Land Board
932
Republic of Botswana: Tender: Development of groundwater resources for – Komana, Mababe, Mogotlho and Semolo villages (North West District)
939

Tender announcements and documents may also be found on the Government of Botswana web site. The entire issue of the Government Gazette may be read in HOORC’s Library.

Southern African Wilderness and Transfrontier Programme

Louis Leibenberg with San tracker, photo by Moses Selebatso, CI

The first newsletter of Conservation International's Southern African Wilderness and Transfrontier Programme, which assists in the creation of corridors and linkages to achieve larger scale benefits and longer term resilience within ecosystems, has arrived in HOORC's Library. The newsletter reports project highlights from 2009, including the use of digital devices by San trackers to record observations in the bush, environmental education work related to human wildlife conflict, guide training programmes, and a new CD recording of Nama hymns, as well as an update on the Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area. You can find the newsletter in HOORC's Library, and get on the mailing list by contacting the project.

Mining licences for CKGR

The issuing of mining exploration licenses granted by the Botswana government for work in the Central Kalahari Game Reserve has been featured in various news reports. See Mmegi, the South Africa Mail and Guardian and AFP, with more background from MineWeb.

Transboundary parks

AllAfrica.com recently republished a story from The Namibian about the proliferation of transfrontier conservation areas in southern Africa. Based on an interview with the Peace Parks Foundation, the story reports that 14 of 22 transfrontier conservation areas have been identified in the region as most viable for development, and mentions the The Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KaZa-TFCA) -- covering 280 000 square kilometres, including 22 protected areas -- among Namibia, Botswana, Angola, Zambia and Zimbabwe as unique because five countries are involved. You can read the article online, and in HOORC's library, you can read Peace parks : conservation and conflict resolution edited by Saleem H. Ali.

Okavango new year news

Cloudy skies over Makgadikgadi Pans January 2009

The new year has begun in Ngamiland with thundershowers and a miscellany of news about the Okavango region. Local news at the end of the year and in the first week of 2009 included Mmegi's stories about Botswana's Geological Survey's Seismo-tectonic study of the Okavango Delta Region with the University of Botswana, the Ngamiland foot and mouth disease relief fund and the NewOpenWorld Foundation's inclusion of the Kalahari and Okavango Delta as candidates in the New 7 Wonders of Nature online contest, as well as an invitation to tender for hunting in the CH 1 and 2 areas by Chobe Enclave Conservation Trust and, in the Botswana Gazette, the Botswana Department of Tourism's notice about illegal tourism enterprises. The Angola Press reported on plans for the cross-border conservation area of Kavango-Zambezi -- see also an item on the Tourism ROI site.

At HOORC, upcoming seminars have been announced for January 15th at 09:00h:

Dr. Lapologang Magole: A tragedy of the commoners: Creating a lose-lose situation in the process of bargaining and negotiating access to Botswana’s grazing lands

Dr. Joseph Mbaiwa: Policy Challenges, opportunities and implications for Okavango Delta fishery in Botswana

Barbara N. Ngwenya, B. H. Cangas, N. Moleele: ‘Fishing’ for the inclusion of women in co-management structures of the Okavango Delta fishery: implications for biodiversity conservation in Botswana.

Presentations will be made in the HOORC Seminar Room: all are welcome.

Kwai River bridge

Khwai River, 2006

The Palapye.com weblog has alerted us to news from the Botswana Press Agency (BOPA) about progress of construction of a more durable bridge over Khwai River to facilitate movement of tourists in and out of Moremi Game Reserve through the northern Khwai gate, part of a wildlife conservation and management project co-funded by the government of Botswana and European Union.

Revised protected area guidelines publication

Photo from Aquarap 2000

After several years of consultations, the IUCN has published Guidelines for Applying Protected Area Management Categories, a revision of its internationally recognized categories of land and resources that include national parks, biological corridors and heritage and sacred sites.
The publication attempts to provide clarity for the meaning and application of the categories, providing definitions and discussing applications in particular biomes and management approaches. The guidelines are intended for use in facilitating planning of protected areas and protected area systems, improving information management about protected areas, and helping to regulate activities in protected areas. You can find the entire report online, and read more about development of the guidelines on the web site of the World Commission on Protected Areas.

Heritage tourism development in California

Historic fruit crate label from the Sacramentao San Joaquin Delta

Visiting scholar Alex Westhoff has been in Maun for the past two weeks talking to people about tourism in the Okavango Delta. Alex works for the Delta Protection Commission near Sacramento, California, and is engaged in developing a plan to designate the Sacramento San Joaquin Delta as a National Heritage Area, highlighting local natural, agricultural and cultural legacy resources. His stop in Maun included making a presentation about this work to HOORC's researchers. He now moves to to visit the Ebro River Delta in Spain, the Danube Delta in Romania and the Nile Delta in Egypt, courtesy of the Scott Travelling Fellowship from the University of California Berkeley Department of Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning. You can follow Alex's tour through his web log.

Corridor tourism conservation planning in the Kalahari

Map courtesy of Hisso Sebina, Conservation International

HOORC tourism specialist Dr Joseph Mbaiwa has just returned from a Conservation International workshop in Kang where this week participants from government, NGOs, local experts, tourism businesses and researchers discussed opportunities for tourism development within the Western Kgalagadi Conservation Corridor. The Corridor runs between the Central Kalahari Game Reserve and the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. Discussions focused on animal movements between the two parks and their potential to attract tourists. Mr Moses Selebatso at Conservation International’s Botswana office is the contact person for more information about the project to manage the corridor .

Protected area monitoring tools

The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in early 2004 produced a Programme of Work on Protected Areas, in which Parties to the convention are called to assess at least 30 per cent of their parks and their networks of protected areas, by 2010. To assist parties in this, the Worldwide Fund for Wildlife (WWF) has created two management effectiveness tools: the tracking tool and WWF’s RAPPAM methodology. The tracking tool has been developed to provide a quick overview of progress in improving the effectiveness of management in individual protected areas, to be filled in by the protected area manager or other relevant site staff. You can read more about the tools on the WWF's web site.

World Conservation Monitoring Centre

The World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), a collaboration between the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and WCMC 2000, a UK-based charity, has a mandate from the UNEP Governing Council to provide a range of biodiversity-related services to UNEP, the biodiversity-related conventions and their constituent party-states and other bodies in the non-governmental and private sectors. The Centre is working on the World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) and its web site provides an interactive map service that allows the user to create customised maps online or specific regions, incorporating information on environmental sensitivities such as protected areas, breeding areas, species and background information.

Publications available for download from the site include A Global Review of Protected Area Budgets and Staff, Freshwater Biodiversity: A Preliminary Global Assessment, Biodiversity Conservation in the Tropics - Gaps in Habitat Protection and Funding Priorities, Biodiversity and Poverty Reduction; The importance of biodiversity for ecosystem services, and Private protected areas : a preliminary study of private initiatives to conserve biodiversity in selected African countries.

Government notices of interest to the Okavango community

From the Botswana Government Gazette, Vol. XLVI, no. 35, 6 June 2008

Tender: Republic of Botswana: consultancy services for regional integration of Botswana’s transport sector study
2819
Tender: Tawana Land Board: tourism related sites identification in the Okavango Delta Ramsar Site (ODRS) second publication
2863

From the Botswana Government Gazette, Vol. XLVI, no. 36, 13 June 2008

Statutory Instrument no. 46 of 2008: Wildlife Conservation and National Parks Act: Wildlife Conservation and National Parks (Hunting and Licensing) (amendment) regulations, 2008 definition of problem animal; discovery and transport of elephant tusks
C.351-352

From the Botswana Government Gazette, Vol. XLVI, no. 40, 20 June 2008

Tender: Republic of Botswana: consultancy services for the review of the national land use map
3133
Tender: Chobe District Council: rehabilitation of water interconnection supply scheme for five villages in the Chobe Enclave
3158

From the Botswana Government Gazette, Vol. XLVI, no. 42, 27 June 2008

Tender: Republic of Botswana Dept. of Water Affairs: supply of equipment for pollution control laboratory mobile unit
3202
Tender: Republic of Botswana: consultancy services for the preparation of the Ngamiland integrated land use plan second publication
3214

Tender announcements and documents may also be found on the Government of Botswana web site. The entire issue of the Government Gazette may be read in HOORC’s Library.

Namibian game auction

AllAfrica.com has a story about the Namibian Ministry of Environment and Tourism's planned auction of rare and high-demand game species from State-owned game parks towards the end of this month. The auctions, which take place every two years, support the government's conservation programmes. The story reports that game for this year's auction is being captured in Waterberg Plateau Park and Etosha National Park. In HOORC's Library you can find Wildlife conservation by sustainable use edited by Herbert H.T. Prins, Jan Geu Grootenhuis and Thomas T. Dolan.

University of Florida graduate research

Masters and doctoral graduate students from the University of Florida's Faculties of Natural Resources and Environment and Geography are in and out of HOORC’s Library until the end of June. Led by Professor Mike Binford, the students are working on integrated research projects about land use and land cover change, socio-economic and livelihood strategies, and governance and institutional development in communities in and near Chobe and Moremi national parks. Their work will also result in policy briefs for the Government of Botswana.

ODMP process overview

Seasonal dwelling, Okavango Panhandle

Dr Kelebogile Mfundisi, HOORC ecologist, recently published an overview of the Okavango Delta Management Plan process in an article in the journal Wetlands. Note : overview of an integrated management plan for the Okavango Delta Ramsar site, Botswana, describes the three phases of the ODMP work, and concludes that the project was a demonstration of the Botswana government's capacity to carry out integrated planning for protected areas; the remaining challenge is to maintain the level of commitment for the plan's implementation. You can find the article in HOORC's Library.

Safari awards

The Good Safari Guide, a commercial travel site, has announced its 2008 awards. The winners include Botswana's Jack's Camp for the best ecological safari property in Africa (Camps), Kwando in second place for the best safari guiding team in Africa (Lodges), and Moremi for the best wildlife reserve in Africa (Reserves). In HOORC's Library, you can find The hotel book : great escapes Africa , published by Taschen.