Abdulraheem Aodu
28 September 2008
Kaduna — The beauty of nature is boundless. It is distributed in the form of geographical features, including flora and fauna species all over the world. But over the years, human engendered development and other forms of human activities as well as natural disasters continue to prove considerable threat to the survival of the natural beauties bestowed by nature especially the flora and fauna.
Kamuku Games Reserve was established like any other games reserves to conserve nature and provide tourists with an aperture to observe the aesthetics of nature made up of plants and animals both on land and in water in their natural habitat.
The Kamuku Park was established to conserve genetic resources of indigenous wildlife, management for education and tourism purposes, create public awareness in wildlife conservation and seek public support for wildlife conservation and management.
According to the Kamuku National Park management, the park boasts of animals paramount in the Sudan savannah like western hartebeests, roan antelopes, warthogs, pitas monkeys, Tantalus monkeys, oribis, Grimm's duikers, bushbucks, reedbucks, elephants, baboons, civet cats, side stripped jackals and genet cats.
Birds such as ground hornbills, hammer kops, cattle egrets, herons, bustards, grey hornbills, bateleur eagles, fish eagles, harrier hawks, guinea fowls and stone partridges abounds in the park.
However, this conservation is facing its biggest threat as the ecosystem faces many, dangerous disturbances. Deterioration has set in, deforestation has turned the formerly thick and green forest to a shadow of its former self while most of the animals either have fled the reserve, having been consistently hunted and poached by hunters or currently faces extinction at the reserve.
Kamuku Games Reserve was started in 1936 as native authority forest reserve of Birnin Gwari by the then colonial administration of Northern Nigeria. However, in 1968 it was upgraded to the status of a games reserve under the authority of the then North Central State. In May 1992, Kaduna State Government entered into agreement with Savannah Conservation Nigeria, a Non Governmental Organisation (NGO), for the management of the reserve.
Following the return of democratic government in 1999, federal government in an extraordinary gazette no 33 of May 1999 proclaimed the games reserve as one of the two new national parks in Nigeria to join the six existing ones like Yankari, Kainji Lake, Gashaka Gumti, Cross River, Chad Basin and Old Oyo.
Contagious with Kuyanbana Games Reserve in Zamfara State in the north and Kogo Forest Reserve in Katsina State in the east, Kamuku National Park is situated within Birnin Gwari Local Government in Kaduna State. It borders four other states namely Niger, Kebbi, Zamfara and Sokoto states. Covering a landmass of 1,120 square km, with annual rainfall of 1250mm, the park has two entrances at Kanfanin Doka along Birnin Gwari - Funtua road and Dagara entrance along Kaduna - Lagos road.
Bordering communities like Dagara, Maigora, Yelwa, Wonkikina, Sabolayin, Kurigi, Masigi Ganda, Dokoro, Ungwan Nabongwo, Ungwan Marafa, Goron Dutse, Gwaska, Kuiga Magajin, Doka, Kungi Mando, Birnin Gwari and Kaganji, Kamuku Park receives patronage from foreign tourists, local tourists, researchers and students.
When Sunday Trust sought the view of the management of the park on its fast deteriorating state, Head of Management Information Unit of the Kamuku National Park, Malam Nuhu Mohammed said the Kamuku Park is one of the ecotourism centres in Nigeria because of its geographical location and historical remain adding that it has however suffered deforestation and hazards from game poachers, encroachers and settlers.
He said, "Managing conservation parks is a capital intensive venture, therefore low funding from government remains our major constraint. We also craved federal legislative support in making stringent laws that would help us curb killing of animals within the park by game hunters and poachers. Three of our rangers have lost their lives to these poachers over the years and their activities have not abated".
"Fulani herdsmen and cattle rearers also grazed within the park while their cattle and other domestic animals encroaches the park thereby introducing domestic diseases like rhinderpest to the park animals, they end up disturbing the ecosystem of the park.
"Logging by timber merchants and encroachment by farmers who farm on the park and settlers who build their settlements on the park against regulations are also huge hinderers to nature's conservation as it leads to deforestation of the reserve. Grazing also increase pressure on the ecosystem."
The keeper of Kamuku Park, Mr. Bulus Madaki could not agree less on the current state of the park in contrast with what it used to be when it was better managed and well funded. Madaki, who has managed the games reserve for over three decades, told Sunday Trust that the park was previously doing well to the extent that it employed five rangers among about 100 workers, built schools and mosques for its surrounding communities.
According to him, Kamuku Games Reserve also cultivated farms whose proceeds were used to feed the ageing people of the surrounding communities, while it reared cattle, which are handed out to the youth and men of the surrounding communities to support and enable them earn a livelihood as well as discourage them from poaching the games within the park or farming within it.
However, Bulus said all that changed following the departure of the then manager a Briton named Jonathan, as the games reserve fell on hard times after him, with Tim the new keeper unable to make the institution work like his predecessor. But Madaki stated that the greatest dangers to the park over the years are from poachers, encroachers and farmers who unsettle the ecosystem through their activities thereby endangering the food chain and food web.
"The park has been in existence for many years, as i have been here for over twenty years, but the games reserve enjoyed its biggest development during the era of Jonathan a Briton who managed it passionately using his personal fund. During his period as the manager, he constructed a radio station that allowed us to communicate with Buruku, Yankari Games Reserve and other nearby strategic institutions. The park also had five rangers who are well paid and did their job effectively.
"We built the staff quarters with one bricklayer called Dan Sokoto. We have about 100 workers here then. He built a primary school, which at a time had about 20 pupils, to help provide western education for the children from surrounding communities. Suzie another foreigner who was with him was the teacher who conducted the school.
"Jonathan built mosques for the people in the communities to worship, he started a large farm and build a store where the proceeds from the farm is stored these are used to help people of nearby communities in order to discourage them from farming within the games reserve.
"During this time, we built an overhead water tank and constructed a borehole to supply it; the park also had a tractor as well to work the farmland. When Jonathan was about to return to Europe, he told me he did not want the games reserve to die, thus he said he would form an organisation that would provide funding for the park with at least N40, 000 required monthly to fund the games reserve.
"Mr. Tim later came to replace Jonathan but he knew nothing about managing games reserve as all the facilities built during the era of Jonathan virtually died when he became manager. So I was compulsorily retired in 1985 while the primary school was moved to Dagara then the National Park was established and the games reserve was taken under its management. I was later brought back on contract but I had to leave again due to the poor condition of the place but Jonathan came back and had me recalled.
"When Jonathan came back and saw the condition of the park, he reiterated that he did not want the park to die and did everything to save the park. He discussed with various organisations including the British High Commission on how they could help to fund the games reserve and preserve the natural conservation from extinction. It was also during this time that the Kaduna State Government went into agreement with Savannah Conservation Nigeria with the support of British High Commission towards the management and funding of the park.
"Savannah Conservation is still living up to their commitments, as they built a reception, offices, quarters and lounges within the park for visitors and staff. They also pay the two guards working at the park. Though I am being paid allowance by the National Park. Apart from students, researchers and local tourists, foreign tourists do still patronise the park, the last set of foreigners visited the park about 10 months ago."
Speaking on what the park offers for tourists, Madaki said despite the threats posed by poachers and herdsmen, which has hindered the progress of the park, it still offer some tourists attractions as animals can be watched as they come around in droves in the morning and early evenings. He however called for vehicle, communication gadgets, more rangers to monitor the park and living quarters for the rangers and guards.
"Since the park borders five states, we face poaching from all the states especially Kebbi and Sokoto states, as the few workers cannot cover the whole area. I remember one painful experience when Jonathan came with one Russian lady tourist, they went into the forest with some rangers then they came across some poachers who came to hunt games, the poachers shot and killed one of the rangers. Since we started, we have lost about three rangers to poachers.
"We need government assistance to reduce poaching and encroachment by cattle rearers; we need vehicles to enable the rangers patrol the park adequately. When herdsmen enter the park with their cattle, we report to the national park who will in turn take necessary legal actions.
"Fulani herdsmen and their cattle cannot be easily stopped from entering the park, we have arrested them severally but they continue to bring their cattle to the park because they believe their cattle cannot reproduce well without grazing on the park. The park used to have lions, buffaloes and water boars but not any longer they have migrated. The wild carnivores are few here," he added.
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