Problems of Wildlife Management in Zambia

PROBLEMS OF WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT IN ZAMBIA

INTRODUCTION

Wildlife: This refers to plants and animals growing or living in natural conditions, not kept in a house or on a farm.

Management: according to the oxford advanced learners dictionary is the act of running and controlling a business or similar organization.

Wildlife management: The procedure undertaken to control wildlife populations at desired levels.

Historically, African societies had a stable co-existence with wildlife, a function of the intrinsic value attached to ecological conservation in African culture (Hadley, 1985; Marks, 1976). However, the institution of colonial centralized governments undermined customary laws as well as the authority of traditional African leaders who enforced them (Swift, 1982; Willis, 1985). As the colonial governments were unable to provide an effective alternative means of wildlife conservation, the result was a poaching "gold rush" for the riches of rhino horns, elephant ivory and other short-term gains. Thus the problems that were brought from this are as follows:

(1). POACHING OR ILLEGAL HUNTING: As stated by Mabugu .R, and Mugoya .P (2001), this is a single and most serious problem faced by national parks and wildlife services. Poaching comes about because of;

LACK OF PUBLIC AWARENESS: Local people are not aware of the importance of wildlife management, Ngowe N. M. (2004), and the lack of such cardinal knowledge results in the local people exploiting the resource.

LACK OF PUBLIC PARTICIPATION: There is no interaction between wildlife managers and the local people and as such the public does not have any interest in protecting, conserving and managing the resource. The only interest they have in wildlife is to poach and other wildlife trophies

(2). ILLEGAL COMMERCIAL TRADING: there is a readily available illegal commercial market for the trophies that are obtained from poaching and this has led to the increase in poaching as poachers are driven by the rise in price of trophies such as ivory, game meat, animal skins.

(3). LESS OR NO FUNDING: Funds in the wildlife sector are less or none at all and this brings about the following problems:

UNDERSTAFFING: This is as the result of less or no funding from the government to support the staff that works in wildlife management. Thus resulting in small numbers of staff. Understaffing can also be as a result of lack of skilled personnel in managing wildlife.

LACK OF EQUIPMENT: The management lack equipment that can aid in their effective management of wildlife such as helicopters for patrols, guns to control poaching and cars.

FAILURE TO RESTOCK: For example, in a case where a named specie of wildlife, say rhinos, are poached excessively and restocking is needed, funds are limited and such ventures always fail.

(4). HABITAT FRAGMENTATION AND LOSS: By definition, this is the reduction of the adjacent habitat of a species