Zimbabwean wildlife pays the cost of economic crisis

Last updated at 17:06 02 July 2007

Zimbabwe, once one of Africa's premier safari destinations, has suffered severe wildlife losses on private game ranches and in conservation areas due to forced farm seizures and the country's economic crisis.

Animal welfare group the Zimbabwe Conservation Taskforce (ZCT) said the farm seizures ordered by President Robert Mugabe's government in 2000 triggered an estimated 83 per cent slump in wildlife.

The drop also closely followed a dramatic decline in the number of Zimbabwe's private wildlife ranches and conservation parks, which the group blamed largely on government land policy.


"According to our records, there were 14 conservation parks prior to the land reform and now, the only one left of any consequence is Save Valley Conservancy," it added.






"Because of the land reform and the way that it was done it was just free for all on the farms and the animals were the first to go," ZCT chairman Johnny Rodrigues said.

"We are talking about the low rainfall areas where you can't grow crops," he added.

Rodrigues said a lot of the animals were poached by the war veterans who seized the farms for food and cash amid meat shortages caused by the farm takeovers.

The group said wildlife was still "fairly abundant" in Hwange National Park and Mana Pools but that in other parks visitors were reporting far fewer sightings.

Local wildlife officials say the country's elephant population has soared to more than 100,000 - twice as much as the 45,000 it can sustain.

The farm seizures are partly credited with setting off the country's economic meltdown, which has resulted in widespread food shortages and massive commodity price hikes that have pushed inflation over 3,700 per cent.