Protecting Angola's Cherished National Park

The Angolan government has endorsed a $10 million project to further protect the 1.5 million hectare Iona National Park, a conservation area shared with neighboring Namibia.

The Park, (Parque Nacional do Iona) is situated in the south-western corner of the Namibe province, about 200 km from the city of Namibe.  Iona National Park was proclaimed a national park in 1937, and it covers an area of 15,150 km2, or 5,850 square miles, making it the largest national park in the country.  Iona National Park has natural borders - the Atlantic Ocean in the west, perennial Cunene River in the south with the Curoca River forming both northern and eastern borders.  

Before the Angolan civil war, Iona National Park was known as an animal paradise, rich in big game. Unfortunately, illegal hunting and poaching, as well as the eradication of infrastructure have caused considerable damage to Iona, as well as most other national parks in Angola.  The wildlife in all the parks have been almost completely wiped out after the devastation wrought by decades of war.  However, efforts are now underway to replace most of the lost wildlife. The “Big Five” of Iona National Park now include: Springbok (Gazelle), Kudu, Ostrich, Oryx and (very rare) cheetah. Other animals in the park include mountain zebra, impala, klipspringer, and the quelengue.  Although the landscape is empty, many animals (especially Springbok) can still be found inside and outside the park.

Iona National Park is also home to over 15,000 indigenous peoples such as the Mucubal and Himba, as well as many Kimbundu groups. Most are subsistent farmers and herders who remain isolated and oblivious to the outside world.  The indigenous people of this region have been studied by anthropologists, who say they are the most culturally intact on the African continent.

In the new agreement, the Ministry of the Environment will work with the Global Environment Facility, the European Union and the UN Development Program to monitor the size and dynamics of plants and animals and ward off the continual threats, such as poaching. (Sonangol Universo Magazine)

Angola's Neighborly Game Reserve

Angola has joined forces with Namibia, Botswana, Zambia and Zimbabwe to create the world’s largest nature reserve area, measuring a massive 287,000 sq km.

The Okavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area or KAZA TFCA, is made up of 36 national parks across the five countries, creating a reserve 15 times the size of Tanzania’s Serengeti. The idea is not only to protect the wildlife within the conservation area but also to boost tourism between the neighbouring countries. 

The KAZA TFCA is expected to span an area of approximately 287 132 km², almost the size of Italy (300 979 km²) and include no fewer than thirty six (36) formally proclaimed national parks, game reserves, forest reserves, game/wildlife management areas as well as intervening conservation and tourism concessions set aside for consumptive and non-consumptive uses of natural resources.

 

The biological resources of the KAZA TFCA will incorporate the largest contiguous elephant population on the African continent. The area is also endowed with an abundance and diversity of wildlife species that are of considerable economic and ecological value. The plant life is equally phenomenal with at least 3,000 species, some 100 of which are endemic to the sub-region, as well as more than 600 species of birds that are characteristic of the southern African savannahs, woodlands and wetlands. The KAZA TFCA also includes some of the world’s renowned natural features and tourist attractions, such as the Victoria Falls (one of the seven natural wonders of the earth and a World Heritage Site) and the Okavango Delta (the largest Ramsar Site in the world).

Keeping out the Lions. Not Your Everyday Intruder!

Recent reports tell of lions causing panic to the people of the village of Cowpea, Cutato the riverbank to the north of the town of Calussinga in the Andulo district. This region is part of the Andulo nature reserve of the Luando area where there is an attempt to raise up the numbers of wildlife to enhance the tourism industry. Bund Faustina, the communal administrator, explained to the press yesterday that the end of Angola's armed conflict created ideal conditions for the return of wildlife and these animals are returning to areas closer to the communities that were once abandoned during the conflict.

The official said that while pursuing other large mammals at night, the felines are now circulating through the outskirts of villages where people are now planting their gardens.

The administrator not only urged people to avoid taking up residence in their gardens during the growing season, in view of the new dangers there, but also appealed to the population to not kill these wild animals indiscriminately since there is need to conserve wildlife.

In this area of the country,many people previously engaged in hunting wild animals, taking into account that the municipality of Andulo has a varied fauna, which features lions, elephants, deer, hippos, rabbits. The inhabitants of Calussinga practice mainly subsistence agriculture. (Journal de Angola)