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Wildlife Conservation and Environmental Management in an Outpost of Tyranny
Brian Gratwicke and Brent Stapelkamp, ZimConservation
March, 2006

http://www.zimconservation.com/opinion3.htm

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Executive Summary
Zimbabwe finds itself in the midst of an unprecedented political and social upheaval as a direct result of the government-instigated private-land seizures that began in the year 2000. Throughout this turmoil there has been a widespread fear of state agents, lack of fuel, corruption and a rampant disregard for ethics, hyperinflation, a lack of foreign currency, loss of skilled professionals to other countries, a disintegrating education system, widespread HIV and skyrocketing mortality rates, a collapsing tourism industry and a general lack of information about what is really happening in the country.

These rapid social and economic changes have been extremely detrimental to both wildlife and environment, yet the wildlife crisis has been somewhat overlooked given the overwhelming humanitarian disaster gripping the country. Information about the wildlife and conservation industry is scarce and otherwise anecdotal as many wildlife management systems have been dismantled. Even so, a reflective analysis of anecdotal reports reveals some consistent patterns:

• Wildlife on most of the privately owned conservancies and game farms in the dryer areas of the country have been severely poached by a variety of people exploiting the break down of the rule of law.
• The damage to Zimbabwe's wildlife heritage has not been systematically assessed due to the prevailing war-like situation on the ground, but all reports point to catastrophic losses of irreplaceable endangered species such as black rhinos and painted dogs, as well as the destruction of commercially important herds of wildlife.
• The Communal Lands and National Parks have been less severely affected, but worrying reports indicate that the security of wildlife and the environment in these areas continues to deteriorate daily, and risks to animal populations in these areas are increasing due to chronic environmental problems, increasingly uninformed and irrational actions by politicians, loss of human capacity and deteriorating infrastructure.

Chronic environmental problems affecting Zimbabwe include deforestation and overgrazing, water pollution, invasive plant and animal species, uncontrolled fires, human-wildlife conflict, dams, elephant over-population and wildlife borne disease. Zimbabwe is sorely lacking the finances and expertise to systematically tackle these problems, and many of the management, mitigation and education programs in place prior to the year 2000 have stopped due to the deteriorating working conditions and the flight of conservation professionals. The prevailing situation has severely demoralised the remaining conservation professionals and educators.

Recommendations

1. Foreign governments and agencies should a) support and encourage access to conservation information and educational materials; b) support the prioritisation of conservation needs; c) avoid direct funding and/or antagonization of the government; d) actively praise and recognize positive actions and innovations developed by the remaining conservation-related organizations e) start small, flexible grant-programs to provide conservation opportunities and to cultivate what is left of Zimbabwe's remaining conservation skills base; f) provide tourists with balanced information about the risks and benefits of travelling to Zimbabwe, bearing in mind the crucial economic links between Zimbabwe's wildlife and its tourism industries.
   
   
2. Local conservation NGO's should a) continue to explore and implement, wherever possible, pragmatic solutions to conservation problems; b) forge local alliances and communicate lessons-learned through local forums; c) establish close contact with multi-laterals and international organisations; d) identify and prioritise the environmental problems under the current regime; e) maintain relationships with reform-minded government officials; f) keep detailed records of past and present wildlife populations.
   
   
3. The Zimbabwean Government should a) work to strengthen democratic institutions; b) resolve and land-tenure disputes in a fair, professional and legally sound manner; c) facilitate the visits of international researchers, NGO's and multilateral institutions; d) work in co-operation with neighbouring Southern African nations on transboundary conservation initiatives; e) increase funding to wildlife management and protection departments; f) reduce the population pressure in rural areas by providing incentives and opportunities that encourage rural-urban migration; g) allow foreign and local journalists free access to rural areas and National parks; h) implement constitutional reforms that protect the wildlife, environment and biodiversity found in Zimbabwe.
   
   
4. Opposition parties should a) seek to de-politicise wildlife conservation issues; b) consult with locally-based professionals and stakeholders to form a comprehensive wildlife policy and recovery plan, then use it as part of the election platform c) the shadow minister for environment and tourism should convene conservation meetings and conferences to promote internal communications and dialogue among conservation groups.
   

Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank the 6 reviewers who made valuable comments on initial drafts that have greatly enhanced the manuscript.

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