RUVUMA ELEPHANT PROJECT Communities and anti-poaching in the
Selous-Niassa Corridor, Tanzania By Maximillian Jenes & Wayne
Lotter
Slide 2
PROJECT AREA
Slide 3
RUVUMA ELEPHANT PROJECT Approximately 2 million hectares in
size including: Village and agricultural land, Forest & game
reserves, Wildlife Management Areas (community cons. areas) Very
few roads Project area consists of: Lots of Miombo woodland &
Wildlife Elephant, buffalo, lion, leopard, wild dog, antelope
Slide 4
AIM & OBJECTIVES OF THE PROJECT RUVUMA ELEPHANT PROJECT Aim
- to improve the status of elephant conservation in the area
between Selous Game Reserve in Tanzania and the Niassa National
Reserve in Mozambique Key objectives include to: Control the
poaching of elephants Manage human-elephant conflict
Slide 5
CONTROL POACHING FOOT PATROLS RUVUMA ELEPHANT PROJECT Each
village in the WMA has 10 to 12 village game scouts Have been given
training Undertake regular joint patrols with Village Game Scouts
Government Game Scouts 50 scouts doing patrols, from pool of 200
Reward performance!
Slide 6
Slide 7
Slide 8
CONTROL POACHING AERIAL PATROLS RUVUMA ELEPHANT PROJECT Using
ultra light fixed winged Bantam aircraft Cover big area quickly
Spot illegal activity, inform & direct anti-poaching teams
(Rapid Response Teams)
Slide 9
CONTROL POACHING AERIAL PATROLS cont. RUVUMA ELEPHANT
PROJECT
Slide 10
HUMAN ELEPHANT CONFLICT RUVUMA ELEPHANT PROJECT Training and
erection of chili pepper fences 41 km of fence already erected No
crops raided in area with chili fence
Slide 11
HUMAN ELEPHANT CONFLICT cont. Growing chili for fences and for
market Also put up beehive fences for human-elephant conflict &
for market
Slide 12
SUCCESSES Project has dramatically reduced poaching Helped
villagers protect their crops from elephant High level of community
participation Multi-dept. Govt. participation
Slide 13
CONCLUSIONS Community involvement is the heart of success
Without extensive community engagement the Ruvuma Elephant Project
would definitely not have been able to dramatically reduce poaching
and IWT The community has been motivated to participate in
anti-poaching because the Project has: Shown genuine concern in
helping with crop protection & in giving them the financial
benefits of the introduced chili and honey opportunities Rewarded
good behaviour & cooperation, equally, reliably and without
fail Included a conservation education and awareness component
Slide 14
CONCLUSIONS cont. Efforts to mobilise community-based
anti-poaching are likely to be successful in cases where: they are
treated as equal Partners & respect is shown to Their
priorities are Fairly and Consistently Rewarded for their
cooperation constant communication is maintained with them (to
enhance intelligence info on IWT) Without community involved
anti-poaching efforts will likely fail!
Slide 15
THANK YOU And thanks to our partners Liz Claiborne Art
Ortenberg Foundation The Wildcat Foundation PAWA The Thin Green
Line Foundation Woodchester Trust