Exploring the efficacy of community-based natural resource management in Salambala Conservancy, Caprivi Region, Namibia

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study is titled 'Exploring the efficacy of community-based natural resourcemanagement in Salambala Conservancy, Caprivi Region, Namibia. Salambala wasone of the first four conservancies to be registered in Namibia following thedevelopment of legislation which enabled local people on communal lands to obtainconditional rights for the consumptive and non-consumptive use of wildlife in theirdefined area, and thereby to benefit from wildlife.Community-based natural resource management (CBNRM), an approach to naturalresource management which rests on sustainable development, is the theoreticalbasis for this study. Characteristics of CBNRM, a brief history of its implementationand impacts in southern Africa and key principles for sustainable CBNRM initiativesshall be discussed.The study includes a discussion on the history and development of Salambala, butfocuses specifically on two issues, (i) whether Salambala is a sustainablecommunity-based resource management initiative as per the principles required forsustainable CBNRM, and (ii), whether it is meeting its own stated aims andobjectives.This study demonstrates that Salambala Conservancy is adhering to the principlesrequired for sustainable CBNRM and that it is, on the whole, achieving its aims andobjectives. It is thus delivering benefits to the community which, currently, outweighthe costs of living with wildlife, and wildlife numbers are increasing. In addition, thevast majority of local people surveyed have support for the initiative. However, thereare a few critical issues which must be addressed, such as human-wildlife conflictand the need to increase benefits through, for example, further tourism development,if Salambala is to continue on this path.The methodology used during the study included interviews, the use ofquestionnaires on a sample of the population and extensive documentary analysis ofboth CBNRM and the history of Salambala's development.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University