The Citizen (Dar es Salaam)
Zephania Ubwani
18 August 2009
Arusha — The United Nations Education, Science and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) has raised concern over increased human activities in the Serengeti National Park (Senapa), one of the heritage sites listed under it.
The United Nations body feels with more vehicles getting into the protected area and encroachment from outside, the park may lose some of its unique qualities.
Dr James Wakibara, the Park's chief ecologist warned that the danger emanates from Serengeti embracing "mass tourism" as practised in neighbouring Kenya.
He expressed the experts' concerns during the 50th Anniversary since the park's establishment and its separation from the Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA). The ecologist said although there was no evidence of significant decline in number of animals there, human induced activities was a matter of concern. He told experts who met here to mark the Golden Jubilee that the park management has recently received complaints from Unesco on the matter.
He noted that increasing pressure on the Serengeti ecosystem could be manifested with the vehicle congestion and permanent structures. Without giving figures, the chief ecologist pointed out that the growing number of vehicles has led to rising road kills and off-road driving.
"We like to see more and more visitors coming but the number of vehicles is worrying because they can scare away animals and tamper with nature," he said.
The 14,763 square kilometres Serengeti is not only Tanzania's oldest and most popular of all the national parks but also a world natural heritage site. Famous for its annual migration of wildebeests and other ungulates, it was in 2006 proclaimed the world's eight wonder because of its wildlife splendour.
Dr Wakibara added that the annual migration of animals, including 1.3 million wildebeests, remained the driving force in the Serengeti ecosystem that extends to Maasai-Mara in Kenya.
Wildebeest population declined in the 1960s to 1980s but has regained and played a role of regulating the ecosystem such as suppression of fire outbreaks, he added.
Unesco's concern on Serengeti is the latest in a series of concerns by the world body to natural and cultural sites within the country listed under it. Recently the Paris-based UN body threatened not to upgrade the Olduvai Gorge prehistoric site because of the threats posed to the archaeological relics found there.
Olduvai Gorge, located midway between Ngorongoro and Serengeti is the site where remains of Zinjathropus, a primate closer to human being, were discovered in 1959.
The Golden Jubilee for both Senapa and NCA also included that of the historic discovery of the 1.75 million years old skull of the Zinj which made the place famous the world over.
The anniversary reached climax yesterday with the unveiling of a new monument at the site, about 250 kilometres west of Arusha. Experts say deterioration of the site, absence of tangible conservation measures and threats posed to the prehistoric findings, may delay the process to upgrade Olduvai among the world heritage sites.
Early this year a parliamentary team which visited NCA was told that Ngorongoro could be delisted by Unesco from the world natural heritage sites if its management does not step up conservation and reduce human activities such as farming.
Other natural heritage sites in Tanzania listed by the Unesco include the Serengeti NP, Mt Kilimanjaro and the Selous Game Reservein Morogoro Region, Zanzibar's Stone Town and Kilwa Ruins.
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another big problem in serengeti are the some Tanapa vehicles which drive extremely fast. they are a danger to wildlife and other cars.