Wildlife translocated to Khaudum A total of 200 impala, 50 blue wildebeest and 50 eland are being translocated to the Khaudum National Park in north eastern Namibia and three neighbouring conservancies. The translocation is being carried out by the Ministry of Environment and Tourism and supported by the German Federal Government through its Development Bank KfW.
According to a statement issued by KfW, the impala have just been successfully released into Khaudum National Park in the Kavango East Region and this will soon be followed by the Blue wildebeest and eland. Some of the impala have come from the Von Bach Dam which was overstocked and the rest have come from private game farms. The eland and wildebeest are coming from Waterberg National Park, which has surplus populations of both species.
Khaudum National Park is part of a “complex” which includes Nyae Nyae Conservancy to the south, and George Mukoya and Muduva Nyangana Conservancies to the north.
The new animals will be free to move between the park and these conservancies.
According to a statement issued, these animals will benefit the local communities in conservancy and tourism.
Wildlife populations in the Khaudum National Park complex - including the neighbouring conservancies in Kavango East and Otjozondjupa East regions will be enriched.
Ecosystems will be restored through the re-introduction of locally extinct species – which used to be found in the area in historic times, says the statement.
Also, the livelihoods of the people living in neighbouring conservancies will be improved through sustainable use of wildlife. “This is because they will be able to offer their joint venture partners a bigger range of species for tourism and trophy hunting.”
Furthermore, tourists in Khaudum will have a better experience as there be more wildlife to observe and photograph.
Human-wildlife conflict in nearby farms will be reduced, because there will be a wider range of suitable prey species for lions, cheetahs, leopards and hyenas.
Tourism concessions and hunting projects undertaken by communities in the north east generate more than N$17.5m per year in local benefits, which are directly linked to the successful management of the parks.
The four national parks in north-eastern Namibia (Khaudum, Bwabwata, Mudumu and Nkasa Rupara) are at the heart of the Kavango-Zambezi (KAZA) Transfrontier Conservation Area. KAZA has a total area of 520,000 square kilometres with wonderful natural attractions and a largely untapped tourism potential.
The five neighbouring countries (Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe) decided to develop KAZA for the benefit of the whole region. Namibia plays a major role in KAZA and enables the free movement of wildlife between Botswana and Angola.
STAFF REPORTER