HWC

Human Wildlife Conflict

One of the hardest questions we are asked by local people is why do we protect animals that regularly destroy their crops and can be a very real danger to life for the subsistence farmers who struggle in the local poor rural communities just to get by on a daily basis.

Elephants, hippos, buffaloes and even crocodiles have all been known to kill local villagers who are defenceless against them.

After requests from the Chiawa Community.  CLZ facilitated and held a meeting at the Base Camp in November 2006 to determine, document and map human animal conflicts in the LZ. Community members present were from as far afield as Lusitu and Gwembe. From information collected it was evident that Elephants pose the biggest threat to rural livelihoods.

With DANIDA funding CLZ has carried out conflict mitigation activities such as chili fencing projects with willing farmers in the Chiawa GMA.

Chili Fencing Projects

CLZ supported an African Wildlife Foundation initiative in the Chiawa area educating the local community on how to protect their valuable crops from foraging elephants using this cost-effective deterrent method.  Lectures and workshops both at CLZ and in the field were run, teaching farmers how to construct the fences using pieces of cloth soaked in oil and home-grown chilies.

Chili seed was also provided to the farmers so that they could continue to grow their own chilies and therefore maintain the fences independently themselves.

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A Protected Environment With Abundant And Diverse Wildlife

Contact Conservation Lower Zambezi: CLZ@iwayafrica.com