by Maxwell Chivasa
A guaranteed renewal of resources for economic, agricultural, tourism and fishing activities in SADC member states through environment protection will boost the region’s investment potential and speed up economic development, says a top SADC executive.
A clear and sound pol icy and strategy on environment and sustainable development would “certainly” attract investment to the region.
“Environment protection should be top on the agenda in all our economic endeavours otherwise we are doomed. And therefore we should develop a sound policy and strategy for environment and sustainable development,” warned the director of SADC Environment and Land Management Sector (SADC ELMS), Bantung Leleka, in South Africa recently.
Leleka, from Maseru. Lesotho. where the SADC ELMS is based, was speaking during one of the sessions of the recent Annual Consultative Conference of the Southern African Development Community in Midrand, South Africa. The conference’s theme was “Towards Enhanced Trade and Investment in southern Africa”.
With investors now environment conscious, that is, wary of renewable resources- and sustainable development, Leleka believes natural resources of southern Africa could sustain any form of investment. “But agriculture cannot sustain economies of this region with land degradation, the fishing industry cannot survive with pollution of our natural waters and our economies and even mining itself rely heavily on protection of our natural resources.”
Leleka’s proposal that environmental issues within SADC be taken into consideration by all other sectors of the region, was adopted as one of the conference’s recommendations.
Population increase is a big challenge to the region placing natural resources, land, protected areas and wildlife under immense pressure. About 80 percent of the population in the SADC region depend on forests for energy, meaning that land — a key resource for any farming — would continue to be degraded. Governments do not have funds to implement the transfer of energy efficient technologies to “our people” in the rural areas and save the environment.
“This is a very big challenge, but there are opportunities which might help us to carry on: said Leleka, “we should be able to cooperate with the Biodiversity Convention in all our activities. II
Forests are under threats from various quarters either for firewood or for agricultural purposes. Delegates proposed that protected areas for tree species be set up for scientists to extract genetic material as “a hedge against extinction”. Such ventures would have community participation near the resources.
The idea of private forestry was also proposed as an important area of development in the region which could be expand with high standards being observed.
Community based wildlife management was viewed as an appropriate conservation strategy. particularly the Zimbabwean experience of the Communal Areas management Programme for
Indigenous Resources (CAMPFIRE) project and the (ADMADE) Administrative Management Design for Game Management Areas experience in Zambia.
Leleka also urged investors to ensure that local communities benefit from investment in the region. “When you invest in an area. it is important that people there benefit from your projects. An investor could get water from within 500 metres when people of that area travel 20km to get water that is not the development we want.”
Protection of wildlife resources sustains tourism in southern Africa and is the most compatible resource that provides an immense contribution to economic development to the region. Unlike agriculture, tourism is an all-weather industry which is -drought resistant.
While the industry is promoted for foreigners, people within the region have to be encouraged to know more about their environment and natural resources. ‘They would then develop an interest to protect the environment.
In the fishing industry, FAO estimates about 3 million tonnes of fish can be harvested from SADC waters annually. Some fishing joint ventures have been a success in Angola and Mozambique, boosting. the quality of production from the region. Potential investors could be involved in similar ventures.
Namibia’s Andrea Ashena of the SADC Marine Fisheries Sector told the (Agriculture. Food, Fisheries, Natural Resources and Environment) session that the fishing levels had hit maximum levels in some areas, thus placing a number of fish species on the endangered list. Overfishing threatened the viability of the industry in southern African countries.
The situation has been very gloomy in some countries and is only recovering now. In Namibia, where marine stocks are a major contributor to the economic growth, stocks have proved to be a major foreign exchange earner, with exports bringing in several millions of dollars.
At the same time, the Namibian government is implementing stringent controls on marine fisheries in an area of about 200 nautical miles in the Atlantic ocean, advising and underpinning on how much could be harvested, thus preventing harmful fishing. Government had set up policies to be adhered to by the private sector.
SADC’s fishing coordination sector is trying to be export-oriented. And experts have come up with sound marketing proposals which included harvesting from deep sea for exports which compete well on the market globally. Other steps put in place to “beef-up” the fishing sector include government subsidies for fishing activities and importing other fish species that were almost extinct for breeding, said Ashena.
With so much investor-friendly opportunities in southern Africa, the region is poised for a major economic development that will see several member states easing poverty among ordinary communities. (SARDC)
