Campfire Realises U.S.$3m

The Herald (Harare)

June 9, 2005
Harare

THOUSANDS of families are set to benefit from the US$3 million (over Z$2 billion) raised from the Communal Areas Management Programme for Indigenous Resources (Campfire) Association through safari hunting trophies last year.

This comes as a relief to some communities who live in drought-prone areas.

Campfire Association director Mr Charles Jonga this week said 120 participating wards from the Zambezi Basin, Hurungwe, Gokwe, Binga, Chiredzi, Hwange, Matobo, Beitbridge, Gwanda, Insiza, Bulilima and Mangwe areas would receive up to 55 percent of the revenue raised.

"The bulk of the communities have already received their share of the money and have injected the funds into various community-based projects in the case of those not hit by this year's drought," Mr Jonga said.

He said so far other under-developed communities such as Guruve and Hurungwe had upgraded schools, built clinics and purchased tillage equipment to improve farming activities.

The Lower Guruve community, whch bore the brunt of human-animal conflicts, was also expected to benefit from its vast wildlife resources.

"This year alone five people in Lower Guruve perished after they were attacked by elephants that freely roam the area," Mr Jonga said.

He said it was against this background that his organisation and the Parks and Wildlife Management Authority made it mandatory that money generated from the hunting season should go towards animal control and the socio-economic development of these areas.

"We are also in an ongoing process of coming up with new strategies to curb poaching as this, in a way, is an act of exploitation of natural resources," said Mr Jonga.

This year's hunting season in Campfire Association areas started in April with a quota of 245 elephants for hunting purposes.

The Zambezi Basin has up to 300 elephants and was awarded only 10 elephants for this year's hunting quota.

Zimbabwe chairs the Southern African Elephant Management Taskforce and was selected to spearhead the campaign meant to combat the environmental threat posed by the growing elephant population in the Southern African Community Development (Sadc) region.

Zimbabwe's elephant population is currently estimated at about 100 000 against a carrying capacity of 50 000.

The animal's huge appetite for vegetation and the growing population has brought more management challenges to Campfire and the entire Sadc region.