26 Jul 2023

Indigenous knowledge has played a vital role in conservation and management of the environment and wildlife.

Vice President and Leader of Parliament, Mr Slumber Tsogwane said when debating the Wildlife Conservation and National Parks (Amendment) Bill of 2022 on Tuesday July 25. 

He said CITES should be engaged on how indigenous knowledge had helped in preserving the environment and wildlife.

Mr Tsogwane said through indigenous knowledge practices, the environment was preserved while wildlife multiplied, leading to issues of human-wildlife conflict. He noted that the conservation of wildlife and the environment was part of the nation’s culture.

He said CITES needed to appreciate the burden that came along living alongside wildlife, adding that it would not be ideal for the country to pull out of CITES due to its disapproval of how the conservation organisation approached issues of wildlife management.

Mahalapye West MP, Mr David Tshere said Botswana should start to lobby other members to influence the outcome of CITES decisions to favour the country while Mr Thulagano Segokgo of Tlokweng said environment and wildlife conservation should only be done for the betterment of people’s livelihoods.

He said the Wildlife Conservation and National Parks (Amendment) Bill of 2022 was not formulated to constrain locals from benefiting from natural resources, but to comply with CITES regulations.

Maun East legislator, Mr Goretetse Kekgonegile said failure to conserve fish could lead to sources of livelihoods being eroded. He said wildlife-human conflicts were on the increase in his constituency and that farmers were abandoning their farms for safety, adding that it had affected their lives.

Mr Kekgonegile said as the country domesticated CITES protocols, the organisation should also look into supplementing livelihoods of communities which had their lives affected by the human-wildlife conflicts.

Specially Elected MP, Ms Beauty Manake said the fish industry provided a huge opportunity for the country to diversify its economy and attain its aspiration of being a high-income economy.

She added that there was a need to see which fish breeds could do well in the country. Responding to MPs comments, acting Minister of Environment and Tourism, Mr Sethabelo Modukanele noted that the bill sought to empower Batswana through creation of jobs and related opportunities in compliance with CITES regulations.

Mr Modukanele said the bill would facilitate and develop SMME sector of the fish industry.

The bill was passed to the third stage. Ends