Fraser Mpofu
12 March 2008
Harare — Johan Verhoef, the international co-coordinator of the Limpopo-Shashe Transfrontier Conservation area involving Botswana, Zimbabwe and South Africa, says the initiative of the three countries will help Botswana and Zimbabwe benefit from the 2010 World Cup to be held in South Africa.
Verhoef, from South Africa, says the Transfrontier Conservation Areas (TFCAs) linking South Africa and its neighbours hold a lot of promise for southern Africa.
He says while South Africa's tourism and hospitality sectors are bracing up for healthy benefits that are likely to accrue from hosting the FIFA World Cup in two years' time, its neighbours must also put in place strategies to ensure that they also benefit, and the TFCA plan is one of them.
Verhoef was addressing a two-day strategic planning workshop in Gwanda, a town in southern Zimbabwe last week Wednesday.
"Initiatives like the Limpopo-Shashe TFCA can help South Africa's neighbours to benefit from some opportunities accruing from the World Cup finals in South Africa," he said.
"The concept of cross border conservation areas, if pursued properly will help because football fans that will descend on South Africa will not just come to watch football. In between matches they do other things and visit our tourist attractions," he said.
The Limpopo-Shashe TFCA is situated at the confluence of the Limpopo and Shashe rivers. This area is rich in plant and animal life, scenic geological features and important archaeological sites.
Verhoef said he is happy about progress, especially by Botswana and South Africa because both countries already have roads, lodges and other infrastructure that falls under the Limpopo-Shashe TFCA. Zimbabwe, he said, might not need to spend a lot of money erecting lodges, but they might set up tented camps under the "touch the earth lightly".
"Building big structures can be costly and it needs a lot of time. You can set up tented camps. I think Zimbabwe can consider this," Verhoef said.
Verhoef said the technical committee made up of experts from Botswana, Zimbabwe and South Africa has drafted a document detailing how the Limpopo-Shashe TFCA could benefit their tourism and hospitality sectors.
Verhoef added that while the cross border initiative is relatively new, stakeholders are pushing a fast track approach so that by the time tourists arrive in 2010, the TFCA will have developed more.
"While this project is relatively new, we do not want to miss out on the World Cup. We will request to be allowed to fast track the planning process," he said.
In Botswana, land that falls under the Limpopo - Shashe TFCA encompasses the Northern Tuli Game Reserve (Notugre), after private landowners in the area agreed to remove the fences that separate their properties and jointly manage wildlife resources.
Notugre embraces 36 farms with a combined area of 70,000 hectares. It is renowned for its Tuli elephants, the largest elephant population on private land in Africa.
On the South African side, the land that was committed to the TFCA comprises private land, state-owned land and national parks.
In Zimbabwe, the TFCA covers the Tuli Circle Safari Area measuring an area of 41 100 ha. This area is contiguous with the northern end of Notugre and has no physical barriers to impede the movement of wildlife.
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