Zimbabwe: a model for the sustainable use of wildlife and the development of innovative wildlife management practices

Synopsis

In the African context, Zimbabwe has been one of the most aggressive promoters of the sustainable use philosophy. In contrast to the fact that the world’s biodiversity is shrinking daily, Zimbabwe’s wildlife management practices, both in the Parks and Wildlife Estate (PWLE) and the communal/private land sector, are expanding. More than 30% of the country’s land mass is now under some form of wildlife use. Few countries in the world can match this trend. There are greater numbers of several wildlife species, including the elephant, than at any time in the country’s history, despite human population growth and land tenure problems. A marked exception to this is the black rhinoceros. It is possible that if innovative wildlife management practices were introduced into the conservation of this species (including consumptive use) several years ago, the black rhinoceros’s status would have been very different today.

Why are land areas for wildlife increasing? Zimbabwe boasts several progressive and innovative conservation initiatives, including the Communal Area Management Programme for Indigenous Resources (CAMPFIRE), the Conservancy concept, Intensive Protection Zones (IPZs) for the rhinoceros and detailed evaluation of multi-species (cattle and/or wildlife) production systems. Within these initiatives, sport hunting and live sales of wild animals are generating considerable income to both the private sector and communal wildlife programmes. Other innovative research programmes include use of electric fencing in control of problem animals. This chapter presents information on these initiatives and challenges the view, from an African perspective, that exploitation (sustainable use) of wildlife is negative and may only achieve short-term economic objectives.