Sioma Ngwezi National Park is situated in south-western Zambia and is an important conservation area that sees the movement of wildlife between two of the largest rivers in Zambia, the Zambezi and the Kwando. Both rivers and their surrounding areas play an integral role in providing much-needed resources to communities and wildlife in the Kavango Zambezi (KAZA) Transfrontier Conservation Area, and so the protection and management of this area are of utmost importance.
Simon Mayes, Technical Advisor for Peace Parks Foundation in Sioma Ngwezi National Park, takes a team visiting from Peace Parks’ head office in Stellenbosch on a tour of the headquarters which was officially opened in January 2016. The building of the new facilities was made possible thanks to efforts from both the German and Zambian governments as well as the communities within the area.
The headquarters consists of 11 offices used by senior and junior staff and a radio control room that helps maintain communication between the staff at headquarters and the rangers on the ground. It also consists of staff housing equipped with electricity and water. Simon shows the team the new storeroom, which doubles up as a mechanics workshop should any of Sioma Ngwezi’s patrol vehicles need repairs.
Donor funding has also allowed for the purchase of two new patrol boats, which will help assist with river patrols on both the Zambezi and the Kwando Rivers. River patrols are an important aspect of conservation management helping to mitigate any human-wildlife issues, and enable ecologists to do hippo, bird, and other wildlife counts as part of their monitoring and research work.
The headquarters also safely houses vehicles used for regular patrols within the park and a tractor used for ongoing road maintenance, amongst other tasks.
Peace Parks is proud of the work being done in Sioma Ngwezi and recognises that developing infrastructure such as housing and offices for the staff is important to conservation efforts, as comfortable working and living environments go a long way in promoting productivity.
