The Angolan experience: bringing animals without land to a land without animals
Date
2016-09
Authors
van Hoven, Wouter, author
International Wildlife Ranching Symposium, publisher
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Abstract
The 27 year long civil war in Angola has devastated the national parks and wildlife populations of this country. In cooperation with the Angolan government we planned the return of many locally extinct species including elephant. All animals had to be airlifted, including elephant in family groups and giraffe plus 12 other species. The wildlife was all released into a Special Conservation Area within the Kissama national Park. The operation will be discussed, how it was planned, and the ecology behind it, the benefit to the local communities, and where it stands today. Wildlife in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has been devastated during the past years of civil war. The Kiala Community Land just north of the Angola border together with private land form a natural area of 500 000 ha. We are planning with the community to fence the first 75 000 ha and reintroduce wildlife in order to start a conservation plan based on ecotourism and the sustainable use of natural resources. Can we repeat the Angola project in DRC?
Description
Presented at the 9th international wildlife ranching symposium: wildlife - the key to prosperity for rural communities, held on 12-16 September 2016 at Hotel Safari & the Safari Court, Windhoek, Namibia.