Hell, everything is going to be on the short end, especially the people in the countryside. They just traded a decent working enviroment for a starving economy. If even Ray Atkinson wouldn't recommend hunting there after defending it for a while, how many other outfitters and PH's that have integrity are going to still do business with them. Of course in the vacuum, all cockroaches will come out.

What a transparent push to take it all. The fact that all the rich, white, fat-cats that spent all their money and energy to build conservancies is just unfair.

Redistribution of resources is the only fair way to deal with others success; fair to the lazy and the short-sighted. Stupid they are not. Lord, do they know how to steal.

I guess Brother Bob is a commie after all.

I wonder if the wildlife will come out of this with the short end of the stick? Ha!

Security of Tenure Key to a Successful Wildlife-Based Land Reform: Draft Policy



The Herald (Harare)



February 16, 2004

Posted to the web February 16, 2004



Harare



SECURITY of tenure over wildlife resources is key to a successful wildlife-based land reform, according to a revised Wildlife-based Land Reform Draft Policy.



According to the document, existing legislation vests ownership in the State and ascribes use rights to landowners and the policy proposes that appropriate provisions of the Parks and Wildlife Act be extended to new settlers.





The draft policy was released last Thursday during a one-day workshop of stakeholders in the wildlife sector. The workshop was aimed at finding ways to kick-start a process of wildlife based land reform.



This is in line with the recommendations made by the Presidential Land Review Committee chaired by former Secretary to the President and Cabinet, Dr Charles Utete.



The committee recommended that the Government should seriously consider enacting a law requiring conservancies to be run on corporate basis.



The Minister of Lands, Land Reform and Resettlement, Cde John Nkomo, told stakeholders who attended the workshop that there was need to balance protection and management of conservancies with community interests.



Cde Nkomo, who is also the chairman of the Presidential Land Resettlement Committee, said unless conservancies took into account the needs of the local people and provide incentives for sustainable use of resources, poaching may reach unsustainable levels.



According to the draft policy all farms including those constituting conservancies acquired and designated as core wildlife production zones may be declared State land.



The Parks and Wildlife Authority, for the benefit of the indigenous people, would administer the farms.



New settlers outside core zones would be encouraged to engage in wildlife production, where greater profitability and sustainability can be demonstrated.



The policy advocates for the development of wildlife management plans and their implementation should be monitored to ensure that beneficiaries of the reform programme manage these resources sustainably.



Requests from landholders to be compensated for wildlife or be allowed to translocate wildlife would be considered on a case-by-case basis.



This would take into account several factors such as whether the claimant can produce proof of financial investment of the specific animals under consideration or whether requests to translocate are in accordance with regulations relating to the movement of animals.



The policy recognised that current maximum farm sizes have a rather agricultural rather than a wildlife basis and that maximum farm size requires detailed technical review in the context of wildlife production.





Government would mobilise support from the private sector, State departments and non-governmental organisations to support the implementation of the wildlife-based land reform.



For a long time, conservancies have been the preserve of a few white people and the Government was now moving to rectify the situation to ensure that blacks also benefit from the lucrative sector.