Following meetings with CITES and regional Game Authorities, Mozambique has slassed hunting quotas in most areas. The Coutada's, Nyasa hunting blocks, and the 4 registered game ranches are unaffected- and infact, have seen an increase in CITES quota animals. Everybody else has been sevearly cut. No elephant or Leopard allocated and only 41 bffalo allocated outside of the above mentioned areas.

Going to be a few long faces but Mozambique is trying to get control of both the hunting and timber idustries which have become too dispersed and corrupt over the years.

Trying to arrange for Dr Soto, the National Director to go to SCI and give everybody a brief on what these dvelopments mean.- appart from the fact that the pice for my inside knowlege just went up

Well, isn't that just typical Africa. - They announce that just as everyone is out of contact in the US selling the very quota the damn Government has just cut.....

Thanks for letting us know.

This has been brewing for a while. The "informal" hunting operations in Mozambique have been popping up, probably a bit too rapidly, for their liking.

These sudden and unexpected moves sure makes the effort of running a Coutada worthwhile!

I wonder if it's also got something to do with a desire to get the US F&WS to accept Mozambican ivory? - The F&WS refuse to issue import licences despite the Moz CITES permits saying they don't consider the country has a responsibly organised Elephant control programme. - Or at least, that's what their last e-mail to me said. If that policy were reversed, it would probably mean a big increase in visiting US hunters......

You're probably not far off the mark with your ivory philosophy. (I hope so anyway!)

quote:

Originally posted by Ganyana:
Following meetings with CITES and regional Game Authorities, Mozambique has slassed hunting quotas in most areas. The Coutada's, Nyasa hunting blocks, and the 4 registered game ranches are unaffected- and infact, have seen an increase in CITES quota animals. Everybody else has been sevearly cut.

Can someone knowledgable please explain the difference in the hunting areas:
- coutada;
- nyasa hunting blocks;
- 4 registered game ranches; and
- other areas.

Thanks.

Steve

Dr Soto and possibly the minister will be at SCI.

Nitro the Coutada's an the Nissa hunting blocks are th only "hunting areas"for forien visitors recognised by Mozambique law. There have been many large hunting concessions run along the Lines of Zimbabw's CAMPFIRE in many areas -particularly Tete province eg Piet Hougards old hunting concession where the quotas were issued by the province rather than at a national level. Now central government is clamping down

Is not COUTADA the Portuguese word for BLOCK?

John- Check out the map thread Terry Carr set up in the reference section. The coutadas are shown there.

quote:

Originally posted by crane:
John- Check out the map thread Terry Carr set up in the reference section. The coutadas are shown there.

Thanks Crane!

quote:

Originally posted by shakari:
Well, isn't that just typical Africa. - They announce that just as everyone is out of contact in the US selling the very quota the damn Government has just cut.....

Thanks for letting us know.

Steve

Does this have any affect on your hunting?

John,

No, not really. Mozambique has never been a big player in our business (whereas Tanzania and Botswana are) I have a kind of love/hate relationship with Mozambique....... We operate up there for a few years (usually) on a shortish season and after a few years, I get sick of all the hassles and lack of Government organisation etc (such as has been shown on this occasion) and then we stop going there for a few years...... Last time we did anything up there was two or three years ago and we don't currently have any plans to go back there in the foreseeable future. - Unless of course, any of our regular clients particularly ask us to take them there.....Even then, I tend to send one of our other guys, rather than go myself.

We also don't use agents much and nor do we market at the conventions - although I'd have liked to have gone this year to see everyone. - left the flight arrangements too late though. Instead, we rely on our website, recommendations and repeat bookings. - but jeez, do I feel sorry for the guys over there now trying to market Mozambican hunting...

Our Tanzania and Botswana business on the other hand increases every year. and luckily,
they're also my two favourite African countries.
We tend to be in the position where we sell out pretty much all of our quota and dates rather than end up with vacancies and left over quota.

All that said, the newish BW scheme for taking problem Elephants in some areas and giving them CITES permits will mean we can sell more of those hunts. - We haven't started marketing those yet, but all in price will around US$25K all in. Last year the pilot scheme averaged about 45 lbs a side and the biggest was a single tusker of around 77 lbs or so.

All that said, I don't mean to criticise any of the guys who do operate in Mozambique. Many are top class and (Johan/Bahati for example), have great reputations on both sides of the fence. -

I think the reason it just ticks me off soooo much is that they must have more patience than I do in dealing with Government beauracracy - or rather the lack of it. I guess also, my (game dept and otherwise) contacts in TZ & BW are better than they are in Moz. In TZ & BW I KNOW I can always pick up the phone and get any and all problems sorted out with a phone call or two. - In Moz, it'll take me a bloody week or more..... Maybe I should just call Johan and get him to sort these things out for me!

An example of how Mozamique manages to stuff up the simplest of things happened late last year. Two buddies of mine were flying round (in a kitfox) doing game assessments on various areas and had to land due to a technical problem. They had full flight plans and all correct paperwork etc but ended up being arrested as suspected drug smugglers. - As it turned out, they were looked after very well and stayed in the home of the local police chief overnight and then went to court the next morning....... thanks to various other factors, they were quickly relelased - but it could have gone the other way and they'd have had a lot of problems...... in most other African countries they'd never have been arrested.

Sorry for wandering a bit off topic there folks!

Thanks for the complement there, Steve!

Yes, Mozambique is not easy in many respects, but good hunting in open wilderness makes it worthwhile. We largely shield the hunter from the crappy side of it and the only time they may experience a taste of the "system" is when the trophies take time to get out of there. Fortunately money makes most problems go away at the end.

"Sorting things out" is a never-ending, continuous process and extremely frustrating. One has to adopt a whole new mindset to handle it. I believe that it is slowly improving, but still very far from ideal. We have been there for 10 years and we are still ripping our hair out sometimes. Learn to roll with the punches is the best policy ... albeit "count to 10" stuff and against your every common sense principle! (Common sense really is not that common everywhere)

Every time we fly to Moz, we have to get a flight clearance - every time and 24 hours prior to flying, as we are flying foreign (SA) registered aircraft. A flight plan is not enough. But, hey, in Zambia all aircraft have to get approval for every flight, every time, from the Zambian Air Force. Even locally registered aircraft. Ignore that and you may have the aircraft seized. That is worse. In this day and age ...

I'll be in Reno next week and will try and track down the Moz delegation to have some one-on-one. Could be fun with my bitty Portuguese and their bitty English!

quote:

Originally posted by NitroX:
Can someone knowledgable please explain the difference in the hunting areas:
- coutada;
- nyasa hunting blocks;
- 4 registered game ranches; and
- other areas.

The Coutadas were formally proclaimed during the 1960's by the then Portuguese government as areas designated for the purposes of hunting, and in so doing to preserve their status as wilderness & wildlife areas.

quote:

Originally posted by Bahati:
Thanks for the complement there, Steve!

Credit where credits due bwana.- As I've said before, there's an Africa wide network of the good guys in this business and we all seem to either know each other or know of each other....

as there are the good guys, so there are the bad. Peter McHendry is back and trying to set up operations in Mozambique. After his last fiasco and run in with Piet Hougaard and Gary Kelly in the '90's one would have thought he would have stayed out of the safari business.

Further to my post before last on this thread - I've just heard the quota for our Tuli Block operation is one Leopard, which we've had booked/sold for two years - and three non CITES Elephants which we weren't expecting, and consequently have available. They will probably sell quickly though. - esp with the current Mozambican quota cut. - I don't have prices yet but will post them as soon as I can. - probably sometime next week. The permits won't specify the sex, but as I don't agree with sport hunting cows, I'll only be offering bulls.

So if anyone's interested, please let me know or watch my website......

quote:

Originally posted by Ganyana:
Dr Soto and possibly the minister will be at SCI.

Both gentlemen were there and I had dinner with them and a few other outfitters one evening. Their attitude was very positive and supportive of our efforts in the Coutadas.

If anyone has booked a hunt in any area affected by the quota cuts please e mail me on chipitani@hotmail.com - I have a go ahead on the Chipanje Chetu area in NW Moz that has not been affected by the cuts - I will be willing to help.

Muvhimi

quote:

Originally posted by Muvhimi:
If anyone has booked a hunt in any area affected by the quota cuts please e mail me on chipitani@hotmail.com - I have a go ahead on the Chipanje Chetu area in NW Moz that has not been affected by the cuts - I will be willing to help.

Muvhimi

Help me Andy, help me!

quote:

Originally posted by shakari:
and three non CITES Elephants which we weren't expecting, and consequently have available.

I thought PAC elephant were illegal in Mozambique?

quote:

I thought PAC elephant were illegal in Mozambique?

Dan, sounds like these are in the Tuli block in Bots.

Oh, I thought we were still discussing Moz.

Muvhimi

Before offering help to anyone I think you need to make sure about a quota for the area.

Your source of information, by phone, from the man that facilitated the area?? let him show you the official quota on paper

He done much more than just facilitated.

As of today 22.00hrs Mozambican time there is no quota allocated for Cipanje Chetu.

And all 40 cites permit elephants a allocated to existing Coutadas, Game farms, the 2 hunting blocks on the south shore of Cahora bassa and the hunting blocks around Niassa reserve namely block A-D. where did he get 2 elephants from??

Why don’t you contact DNAC in Maputo Directly and ask for the official Quota? There are no secrets on quotas they get publish every year in the newspapers in Moz.

There are actually not cuts in quotas the only thing what has changed that the legal operators got their quotas and the informal did not get any.

DNAC / MITUR should be applauded for stopping the “informal operatorsâ€

Did you ever hunted in Mozambique?

And by the way the picture 500grs posted is not in Niassa more like Utah in the USA I guess.

Cheers

quote:

Originally posted by freischuetz:

And by the way the picture 500grs posted is not in Niassa more like Utah in the USA I guess.

I don't think anyone said the pic in my sig line is in Niassa.

500 grs see “New Hunting area in Mocambiqueâ€

Quote:
Muvhimi
Posted 20 January 2007 17:32
Hi Guys,

My apologies for the delay in responding but have been travelling.

This deal is completely legal and owner, through a tender last year has a hunting quota from the relevant Authorities. I was given the species available for hunting ( which starts in 2007) off their quota by telephone.

I have personally never been to this particular block but have been on the east of Niassa. 500grains - thanks for the photo. The terrain is more mountaineous than the eastern blocks..................

Hi Frieschuetz,

I have confirmation of the quota from Howard Hunter who is the representative for this area . After the story about quotas being cut and not issued he phoned me at SCI , having just spoken with the Minister in Moz and confirmed the quota has been issued and is correct. E mail him yourself on hunter@zol.co.zw. if you feel I am B/Sing everyone. Howard asked me to market this area as could not make it to SCI himself. Thats all I am doing.
And yes I have hunted Mocambique. Thanks for your interest and input.

Muvhimi