3 minute read
Community Resilience in times of crisis
It is now officially more than a year since we all started tumbling around in this global maelstrom of chaos and confusion. The pandemic has surely affected each and every one of us in some way or another. Some economies and industries may have fared better than others, but as a global collective we have certainly suffered. And because we are so incredibly connected to each other through the digital realm, and by default each other’s problems, we are indelibly aware of each other’s problems. Each other’s state of mind. A global anxiety still permeates the air and we’re all on edge, whether we are facing hardships personally, professionally or maybe even none at all. We’re anxious because the world around us is. This anxiety is global news and we are all very aware of it.
What, then, becomes of those individuals and communities who may not be as connected to the global digital consciousness as we are? Those communities who live simpler lives in simpler places. Those who are not connected to formal businesses, do not live in cities with high infection rates, and are not fed a constant stream of anxiety via smartphones and Zoom meetings. Has this global disorder affected them as much as it has us? The answer: of course it has.
How has the pandemic affected Namibia’s rural communities, and its conservancy programmes which are responsible for much of the country’s conservation drives.
Rural communities in Namibia survive largely on economic opportunities related to their natural environment. Whether it is tourism, conservation hunting or sustainable use, their livelihoods are built on Namibia’s strong natural wealth.
Namibia’s conservation success to date stems, to a large extent, from the success of its world-renowned Communitybased Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) programme. Established in the mid-90s, it gives rural communities rights to the natural resources they live among. Through the establishment of legal entities known as conservancies, communities organise and formalise systems of governance. These communal conservancies allow rural people togenerate income, create jobs and boost their livelihoods through the sustainable use of their natural resources. Examples of such uses include photographic tourism, conservation trophy hunting, harvesting of indigenous plants and the creation and sale of arts and crafts. These communities are in turn tasked with the protection of their natural resources. They are incentivised to do so. They are the first line of defence.
In 2019 alone, the CBNRM sector was able to generate around N$ 156 million in revenue. Between 1990 and 2019, CBNRM contributed more than N$ 9.7 billion to Namibia’s net income.
The pandemic poses a significant threat to CBNRM in Namibia. Lack of tourism, conservation hunting and free movement has debilitated a sector that has been thriving for almost three decades. It is sad to realise that a programme such as this could be completely dissolved as a result of the pandemic.
What would this mean for Namibia’s communities and conservation?
The money collected from these sources goes towards operational costs and community benefit projects. If communities had to diversify their income sources, many may opt to turn to less conservation-friendly practices such as larger-scale agriculture or illegal mining to replace the lost income stream.
In response to the threats posed to the CBNRM sector as a result of the pandemic, Namibia’s Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism launched the Conservation Relief, Recovery and Resilience Facility (CRRRF) in May 2020. The fund was established by MEFT through funds raised by the Environmental Investment Fund, the Namibian Association of CBNRM Support Organisations (NACSO), World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), and with pledges of support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Nedbank Namibia. The aim of the facility is to provide relief to the CBNRM and conservation sectors in Namibia to ensure job security, the continuation of humanwildlife conflict mitigation projects as well as wildlife crime prevention initiatives and conservation projects.
While these efforts will help conservancies weather the storm, true recovery will only begin once Namibia’s successful and crucial industries such as tourism and conservation hunting regain their footing.
Elzanne McCulloch
