UK TROPHY BAN BILL TO BE PRESENTED BEFORE PARLIAMENT

The proposed trophy hunting import bill has is scheduled to appear before the United Kingdom Parliament after community based organisation made a pledge to support the counter.

The NCONGO executive director, Mr Siyako Simasiku mentioned to the representatives that the proposed bill before the UK parliament threatened the rights and the lives of peoples in the African community thus their efforts of countering it. The organisation’s representatives aimed to support Ngamiland Council of Non-Governmental Organizations (NCONGO) and other SADC countries in their quest to counter the bill.

The community trust representatives argued that a trophy hunting ban if considered will be a serious blow, as hunting was a source of livelihood for the communities in the SADC remote areas as it was done in a controlled manner in Botswana which offered benefits and the revenue generated also benefited the livelihood of the communities.

Mr Simasiku also apprised the gathering about the Community Leaders Network of Southern Africa, a collaborative grouping of rural representatives from nine SADC member states, which was formed in 2019 after the inaugural African Wildlife Summit held in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe.

“Our work is to strengthen the Community Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) programme as well as to use community generated data to inform decision making,” he added.

Mr Simasiku explained that the movement aimed to ensure decisions reflected the needs and rights of local communities to manage and benefit from natural resources and to promote participation and influence policy negotiations. He urged community based organisations to attend conventions to learn more and exchange ideas with their counterparts.