Sustainable consumptive wildlife utilization and eco-tourism

The concept of sustainable consumptive wildlife utilization has been formulated so as to counter the negative trends that were inherited from the wildlife based tourism and wildlife management policies that existed during and soon after the colonial period up to the late 1990’s. By then, conservation and tourism policies overlooked the interests of the local people by emphasizing control and regulations while neglecting incentives that would contribute to the success of wildlife conservation and management programs in the country. The local people were denied and opportunity to make their contributions towards wildlife conservation and management.

There was initially a lukewarm acceptance of the policy guidelines that “Somalia had an obligation of protecting the country’s fauna and flora for prosperity’’ by the local community areas the attractions abound. Equally, Educational approaches and extension efforts were not very successful, as the local communities were not benefiting directly from those resources with in their areas.

Empirical research however, indicated that the local communities better appreciated direct sharing of benefits accruing from the wildlife conservation and tourism. The concept entails optimum resource management, efficiency in productivity as well as equitable sharing of the benefits.

The Somalia Transitional Federal Government, through it’s conservation arm, The Somalia Wildlife Service has put in place measures that ensure co-opting the support and participation of land owners in the management of wildlife. This involves sensitization, mobilization as well as education of the stakeholders.

The Somalia Wildlife Service has also put in place appropriate measures which are aimed at capacity building by the relevant institutions in order that all the stake holders become competent wildlife managers with adequate knowledge and skills regarding the contribution of wildlife visa-a-vis such alternative land uses as live stock keeping and agriculture. Optimum or sustainable consumptive wildlife utilization therefore may only be achieved after area specific feasibility are carried out to determine its viability and compatibility with non-consumptive uses.

Another important consideration is the sensitivity to disparity in culture, ecology, and topography in the context of changing technology pertaining to the game cropping, culling, game ranching, game farming and sale of live animals. The concept also entails accommodations of public interest with out necessarily compromising private and community interest.

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