24 Jan 2022

Former President, Mr Festus Mogae has underscored the need for African communities to be involved in the continent’s conservation agenda.

He said this recently when virtually delivering an acceptance speech as patron of the IUCN Africa Protected Areas Congress (APAC) scheduled to be held in Kigali Rwanda in March 2022.

Mr Mogae who is also a member of the Africa Wildlife Foundation’s Global Board of Trustees stated that African’s involvement was necessary for ownership and integration of the Agenda 2063: The Africa

We Want, which encapsulates not only Africa’s aspirations for the future but also identifies key flagship programmes which can boost Africa’s economic growth.

He stated that APAC was a turning point for the relationship between the global community and African institutions.

In that regard, he stated that for change to be sustained in Africa there was need to give agency to African institutions at all levels, local to national, and national to regional.

He further argued that there was need for cooperation with the global community, but one that was premised on respect and equal partnership with African institutions on the continent. “There is need for greater trust in the capabilities of Africans and African institutions to lead the conservation agenda,” he said.

The former president further stressed the importance of resource mobilisation not only to address species conservation, but also to improve the livelihoods of local communities living adjacent to wildlife areas.

He said such communities were the last line of defense for wildlife, which roamed their land and therefore, sustainable conservation related enterprises, would go a long way in ensuring they benefitted from conservation, and may provide long lasting solutions to conservation challenges.

“In order to curb these ever-present risks, we must increase the level of community engagement given their critical role in wildlife conservation, as well as maintain eternal vigilance to ensure poaching is eliminated,” he said.

Mr Mogae said it was imperative that communities in wildlife areas were supported in their conservation efforts, particularly as their livelihood depended on tourism.

Mr Mogae said communities living in conservation areas were the best stewards of natural resources as they understood both the intrinsic and financial value of wildlife and wild lands, hence the need for their involvement.

He suggested that APAC 2022 congress should create lasting solutions that could ensure that the rights of communities in wildlife areas remained at the centre of discussions.

Further, he stated that the congress should address creative resource mobilisation to support communities that mainly depended on tourism and had borne the brunt of COVID 19.

Mr Mogae joins two other leaders - former Prime Minister of Ethiopia Hailemarian Desalegn and former Niger President Issofou Mohamadou an APAC patron.

The APAC inaugural Congress is set to gather African leaders, citizens, and interest groups, to discuss the role of protected areas in conserving nature and safeguarding Africa’s iconic wildlife, as well as promoting sustainable development, while conserving Africa’s cultural heritage and traditions. ENDS