Human and wildlife conflicts escalate in Tanzania, threatening tourism

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Written by Linda Hohnholz

TANZANIA (eTN) – Escalation of human and wildlife conflicts in various wildlife protected areas of Tanzania pose a threat to a smooth growth in tourism, the mostly wildlife dependent sector.

TANZANIA (eTN) – Escalation of human and wildlife conflicts in various wildlife protected areas of Tanzania pose a threat to a smooth growth in tourism, the mostly wildlife dependent sector.

Any tourist booked to Tanzania is thrilled to see and take photos of the Big Five before completing a visiting program in this African destination.

Lion is the most favored wildlife species to be seen by every tourist visiting Tanzania who wants to get a a snapshot of the big cat before leaving home.

The recent killing of six lions in northern Tanzaniaโ€™s premier tourist circuit has raised an eyebrow as to whether the Tanzanian government is serious and committed to enhance tourism development through the spirit of good neighborliness with local communities.

Tourist stakeholders in the northern tourist city of Arusha has so far blamed the Tanzanian government for poor and political management of wildlife parks, a situation which has led to a growing human and wildlife conflict.

Local communities neighboring Tanzaniaโ€™s northern wildlife park of Tarangire have recently killed six lions which strayed into their village community. This is the second such incident, the first being when seven lions were poisoned in Ikoma Wildlife Management Area, a neighbor to the famous Serengeti National Park.

Conservationists from Tanzaniaโ€™s Sokoine University of Agricultural and Wildlife Studies see the growing human and wildlife conflict as a result of poor management of wildlife parks in relation to local communities through sustainable utilization wildlife resources in a collaborative approach.

Local government administration, which sets out plans for local community development and economic plans, has been blamed for blindness and poor perception of wildlife conservation for sustainable development and for not spelling out the benefits from tourism to local communities.

This recent killing of six lions has so far fueled more hostility between the local communities that neighbor Tarangire National Park, after the government of Tanzania assigned armed police officers to arrest and interrogate suspected killers of the six big African cats.

Four people who were attacked by the lions snuck out of a local hospital when they were tipped off that they were being hunted by the police for interrogation and arrest. This situation is likely to fuel more hostility between local communities and wildlife in the area after the government has failed to reconcile and settle the conflicts amicably.

The benefits of wildlife to the national economy and the welfare of the local communities has remained a de facto barrier. The government of Tanzania has failed to spell out the direct benefits of tourism and conservation to local communities that neighbor the national parks, other than through politics and forceful mechanisms in pushing the protection of wild animals.

Tourist income ends up in the pockets of foreign companies and rich tourist franchise entities, while local communities who are the major stakeholders in conservation, remain languishing in abject poverty, a situation driving them to hate the wildlife, conservationists said.

Often communities do not know how much money from wildlife is due to them or how much the operators are paying to the government. Tourism ventures on community lands have been taxed at a high rate of roughly 40 percent of all revenue through regulations that were introduced in 2007 by the government of Tanzania.

Many communities bordering Serengeti and Tarangire National Parks are getting little revenue from tourism, making wildlife conservation less economically attractive to local communities in those two leading wildlife parks in northern Tanzania, researchers said.

About the author

Avatar of Linda Hohnholz

Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

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