The Lubombo Conservancy

Lubombo Conservancy

Introduction

The Kingdom of Swaziland lies at the centre of an area critical to biodiversity conservation in Southern Africa. On the western border of this small country, runs the Lubombo Mountain range, with its unique vegetation and animal species.

A group of private landowners in conjunction with existing declared national parks, and the community of Shewula, have joined together to form the Lubombo Conservancy. This is the first attempt by such a diverse group in Swaziland to jointly plan and create an enlarged conservation area. The Lubombo Conservancy is also in the centre of the much larger Lubombo Transfrontier Conservation Area (TFCA), that encompasses parts of Mozambique, northern KwaZulu Natal in South Africa and Swaziland.

Background and Formation

For several decades there was a vision among authorities, landowners, managers and interested parties for the cooperative management of a number of contiguous, but separately managed areas in North-eastern Swaziland. These areas, comprising 60,000 hectares, include statutorily proclaimed protected areas, private property, and Swazi nation land. This area is unique in its scenic beauty, rich diversity of habitat and endemic species, strategic position for access by tourists and traditional Swazi linkages - the Royal hunting ground in Hlane and the Shewula community involvement. In addition the protagonists saw the opportunity to forge ecological and economic linkages across the border with Mozambique in the development of the envisaged TFCA.

To promote this vision, a working group representing all the interested parties was established. With financial support and guidance of the Peace Parks, culminating in a ceremony on the Lubombo escarpment, the Lubombo Conservancy became reality.

Founder members included:

• Hlane Royal Game Reserve (managed by Big Game Parks, a private sector business operating in the Conservation and Tourism field in Swaziland)
• Mlawula Nature Reserve (managed by Swaziland National Trust Commission, the parastatal responsible to the Ministry of Natural Resources for management of all national game parks and antiquities)
• Shewula Community Nature Reserve (managed by the Shewula Trust, a committee elected from community members)
• Mbuluzi Game Reserve (established and managed by Tambankulu Estates) and
• Nkhalashane Siza Ranch (part of a state cattle ranch, and managed by the Ministry of Agriculture)

Management and Progress

The driving force behind the Conservancy is the Committee elected annually at the Annual General Meeting. This committee comprises persons who are all full time managers and executives of other businesses or government departments, and who have given and continue to give voluntarily of their time and services.

Despite the limitation this situation has placed on the level of time and energy available to progress the objectives of the Conservancy, much has been achieved. The address of the Chairman reporting to the Membership at the 2nd Annual General Meeting held in September 2001 summarises this progress. 

CHAIRMAN'S REPORT

SECOND ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING OF THE LUBOMBO CONSERVANCY ON 18 SEPTEMBER 2001

Ladies and gentlemen -

It marks another small step forward for conservation and tourism in this region that I am able to have the privilege of standing before you today at the Second AGM of the Conservancy.

Our dream of a major conservation and wildlife reserve in NE Swaziland reaching across into our neighbouring countries is becoming more and more of a reality.

This meeting today takes us one more step forward, and small as it is, it takes us closer to the fulfilment of that dream.

The constitution of your Conservancy sets out 8 key objectives:

• Promote co-operative management of conservation areas in NE Swaziland
• Re-establish species and restore degraded areas
• Promote sustainable management
• Promote nature based tourism
• Promote conservation based community development opportunities
• Improve quality of life of rural based communities
• Promote cultural tourism
• Promote transfrontier co-operation

We considered each of these noble objectives at our meeting last year, and once again, there is no better way for me to deal with the business of this conservancy than by taking stock of progress in meeting them.

Let us have a look at each of them in turn.

PROMOTION OF CO-OPERATIVE AND SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT IN NE SWAZILAND

As reported last year, Conservancy members identified the following key areas of potential co-operative management at their first meeting.

• Security
• Fencing
• Culling
• Marketing and Tourist development
• Staff housing
• Alien Plant control
• Disease control
• Game introduction

Over the past year your committee has made significant progress the areas of Security, Fencing, Marketing and Alien Plant control.

The security personnel of the five core members are talking to each other! Under the guidance of George Mbatha of Hlane, there have been a number of meetings at which they have shared information and experiences, and we are expecting that this contact will lead to the formation of a cooperative security effort, which will operate across the entire Conservancy area.

A special meeting, which Olga Jacobs of the "Working for Water" programme in SA addressed, discussed the serious problem of alien invasive plants. Triffid weed in particular poses a huge treat to the bio-diversity of this region, and it was the primary focus of this meeting. This meeting was attended by a wide cross section of interested parties from Government, NGO's and the Private Sector, and has served to kick-start national action to address this grave problem for Swaziland. Since this meeting there have been a number of further meetings and workshops, and it appears as if the Alien Plant threat is now being treated with the seriousness it deserves.

On the Marketing front we are delighted today to distribute the first example of joint advertising and promotion by the conservancy. More about this later.

Talks between members about removing fences continue, and a major success has been achieved with the agreement by Swaziland Railways that we may remove the fence on either side of the railway line running through the Conservancy. This fence, apart from the impediment it posed to the free movement of wild life, posed a serious danger to animals getting caught in it and injured or killed. Its removal is an important step forward for the Conservancy.

The formulation of a management plan for the Conservancy, which I reported on last year, has been stalled. The Peace Parks Foundation, which provided the guidance and lead in motivating the preparation of this plan has subsequently found it impossible to advance any funds for this purpose. The Terms of Reference have been drawn up, and we will continue with our efforts to secure funding for this important exercise.

RE-ESTABLISHMENT OF SPECIES AND RESTORATION OF DEGRADED AREAS

We all have a dream of wild life roaming freely and safely in the White and Black Mbuluzi Valleys free of Lantana, Triffid weed and Pathenium.

An essential step in this process is the removal of fences, which impede the natural movement of game and consequently limit the gene pool and population growth. As reported, the first step has been taken.

The aim of removing, or at least relocating, the red line fence has been set back as a result of the recent foot and mouth outbreak.

PROMOTION OF NATURE BASED TOURISM

Tourism is the largest industry in the world today, and offers Swaziland the only possible way out of the jobless future we face. During the past year some 4000 tourists have overnighted in the Conservancy. In addition, some 15000 day visitors have passed through the parks and nature reserves of the Lubombo Conservancy. Many of the day trippers would become overnighters were it not for the lack of overnight accommodation.

This represents an infinitesimal share of the Southern African tourist market, and the potential to increase this is huge. No single player in this business will do it alone. It will have to be a joint effort.

The publicity gained by the Conservancy has contributed to putting Swaziland on the tourist map, and has reinforced the reputation of the country as one of the leaders in conservation in Southern Africa, but we have much more to do.

The Brochure, which you have seen today, is a small step in the effort to win the hearts and minds of the Tourist, but it is a giant step for our conservancy to have got to this point.

Particularly the commitment that the Shewula community has made in setting aside land for conservation, and the construction of the Shewula bush camp, has caught the imagination of the public and the conservation community. In the past 5 months 438 bed nights have been provided to tourists who have passed through this camp, and we congratulate this community on their ongoing efforts to lift themselves out of the poverty trap by using their natural tourist potential.

The well-known and prestigious Quest organisation, based in the UK, chose Swaziland as one of its destinations this past year, and 16 members of this Group visited us early in the year and undertook various community projects. The participants have become fervant ambassadors for the Conservancy and Swaziland, and this visit will become an ongoing annual visit.

PROMOTION OF CONSERVATION BASED COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES

From the practical implementation of this objective flows the achievement of the next two objectives identified in our constitution

• "Improvement of the quality of life of rural based communities"
• "Promotion of cultural tourism"

A basic requirement for improving the quality of life people is money, which flows from jobs. Jobs flow directly from Tourists, and we need the commitment and energy of all concerned in promoting Swaziland and the Lubombo Conservancy as a premier tourist destination in Southern Africa.

There have been Swazi stands at a number of promotional shows in SA over the past year, and members of the Conservancy have played an active role in these promotional efforts. Their hard work is much appreciated.

PROMOTION OF TRANSFRONTIER CO OPERATION

Discussions between leaders of the Shewula community, and their counterparts in Mozambique have continued. The primary item of common interest is security, with cattle theft being at the forefront.

This contact point has served and will continue to will serve as a base from which to advance the discussion on joint conservation effort.

CONCLUSION

Last year I said to you that in starting the Lubombo Conservancy we had set out on a task like the construction of a complex and large building of which we have dreamed for many years. Like a Swazi home, it will never be completed and each year we will add a little more.

By drafting the constitution we drew the plans of the house. By forming the organisation and by the work done over the past year we have dug and laid the foundations. We have now started to lay the bricks, and the first small room is up to window level.

All that remains is for me to thank the committee members for the time and effort they have put in to laying the foundations. I would like to particularly single out Kim Roques who has so efficiently carried out his task as Secretary/Treasurer.

Thank you all for attending and for the support you have given to the Conservancy over the past year.

JPH/18 September 2001

Lubombo TFCA

This proposed TFCA straddles the border between South Africa, Mozambique and Swaziland. It encompasses an area between the Lubombo Hills in the west, and the Indian Ocean in the east, and offers a unique combination of big game, extensive wetlands and coastal areas. The TFCA is 4,195 km2 in extent, of which 317 km2 (8%) is in Swaziland, 2783 km2 (66%) in Mozambique and 1095 km2 (26%) in South Africa (see location map at Annexure 1, and TFCA area at Annexure 2)

In Swaziland, the land included consists primarily of the Lubombo Conservancy. The Maputo Elephant Reserve in Mozambique was established in 1932, and was subsequently enlarged in 1969. All the remainder of the land in Mozambique is state owned communal land, with a relatively low population density. In South Africa, the Ndumo Game Reserve was established in 1924, and the Tembe Elephant Reserve in 1983.

The 103 species of mammals in the proposed TFCA include both black and white rhino. Other Red Data Book mammals include samango monkey, suni and red duiker. Unfortunately severe poaching has reduced or even eliminated several species of large animals from the Mozambique side, presenting an important opportunity for mammal restocking programmes, particularly of buffalo, hippo, tsessebe, Burchells zebra, blue wildebeest, roan, sable, oribi, waterbuck, eland, kudu, impala, bushbuck, steenbok, suni and nyala. When ungulates are established, cheetah and wild dog can follow. Of the more than 427 bird species found in the area, four species and 43 subspecies are endemic to the Maputaland Centre of Endemism. In the Ndumo Game Reserve alone, 416 bird species have been recorded. The 112 species of reptiles include the loggerhead and leatherbacked turtles, which nest along the extensive beaches.

The vegetation of Maputaland falls within the savannah biome, and consists primarily of Subhumid Lowveld Bushveld and Natal Lowveld Bushveld, with limited Coastal Bushveld-Grassland, a complex mosaic of savannah, sand forest, grassland, dune forest, floodplain, pan systems and swamp communities. The conservation of these sand forests and their associated fauna in particular is important, as this habitat type is very limited in extent. The world's largest remaining area of sand forest (5km wide and 20 km long) lies to the north of Ndumo Game Reserve in Mozambique. This area has tremendous potential for tourism because of its rich birdlife.

The TFCA also has a strong cultural history. In Swaziland, in part of the proposed TFCA, archeologists have made several interesting discoveries, including a very rare record of modern man dating back 110,000 years, as well as many Early and Middle Stone Age remains.

The extraordinary biodiversity of this TFCA, coupled with its magnificent scenery, makes this a potentially significant new Southern African tourist destination. Existing tourist facilities are concentrated on the South African side of the border. Ndumo Game Reserve and Tembe Elephant Reserve have a good network of roads, and well established but limited accommodation facilities. Hlane, Mlawula and Mbuluzi Reserves in Swaziland have limited accommodation, ranging from camping to several self-catering 4 bedroom lodges. In the Maputo Elephant Reserve only camping is available, and access is restricted to 4X4 vehicles.

There are many opportunities throughout the TFCA for private sector investment in tourism.

Funding Request

In reviewing progress and considering the way forward for the Conservancy and the TFCA, the Conservancy Committee believe the time has arrived to appoint a full time Conservancy Coordinator who will provide the impetus to build on the foundations laid thus far.

FUNDING FOR THIS POST IS NOW BEING SOUGHT - IF YOU ARE ABLE TO HELP PLEASE CONTACT THE CHAIRMAN AT bcpd@africaonline.co.sz

The Conservancy Coordinator

Job Description

The following tasks are seen as central to the job of the Coordinator

• Promote cooperation between members and other stakeholders in the fields of law enforcement, marketing, wildlife management (including removals, harvesting, introductions), and infrastructure development
• Identify the appropriate training and capacity building for members to be able to fully participate in the cooperation process
• Development of the information base required to guide members in developing integrated management policies and programmes
• Actively participate in related regional initiatives e.g. BCPD project, Lubombo Spatial Development Initiative 
• In cooperation with the members produce a Management plan for the Conservancy
• Broaden and increase conservancy membership

Skills Required

Obtaining voluntary cooperation from people in state, private sector and traditional structures is a delicate process.

• The Coordinator will need to have strong leadership skills, but with the sensitivity to relate to the widely different stakeholder group
• He/she will need excellent communication and people skills
• He/ she should be in possession of an appropriate university degree with the relevant environmental and /or biological components
• Experience in wildlife and conservation management, with experience in community based conservation is considered essential
• Experience in private sector ecotourism would be a great advantage.

Budget

Links

Swaziland Spotted Hyaena Project

Lubombo TFCA

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This page was last updated on 27 October 2004