The Chronicle
Leonard Ncube in Hwange
GOVERNMENT is working on amending the Communal Areas Management Programme for Indigenous Resources (Campfire) to make traditional leaders legal signatories of trust funds generated through resources from the specific local communities.
Government came up with the Campfire programme in the early 1980s as a way of ensuring that communities benefit from wildlife resources in their areas.
The programme was managed through rural local authorities which after generating funds, distributed them to wards for development programme after a needs assessment.
In some communities, schools, clinics and roads have been built using Campfire funds.
However, there have been concerns about lack of transparency as some communities have not been benefiting despite some hunts happening in their areas.
Government then approved proposals to re-focus and revitalise the Campfire and in the new set up, Chiefs will be signatories to the fund.
This followed a wide consultative review process that was conducted in 2016 which revealed that Campfire was experiencing institutional, operational, legal and external challenges while being highly dependent on hunting revenue, which generates 90 percent of its total revenue.
To guarantee proper regulation and enforcement of the stakeholder benefits and to resolve misunderstandings between rural district councils and the producer communities, Cabinet concurred on the need to ensure that Campfire becomes more efficient and induces economic growth in line with Vision 2030
Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (Zimparks) spokesperson Mr Tinashe Farawo told villagers in Mabale, Hwange district this morning during a visit by the Thematic Commitee on Peace and Security to meet victims of human-wildlife conflict, that work is in progress and an announcement will be made by responsible authorities soon.
Government is working on a new Campfire document so that Chiefs will be signatories. The Minister (Environment) will announce in due course and we can’t talk about it now,” he said.
He was responding to concerns from members of the community who said they were not benefiting from the programme.
Responding on the same issue, Zimparks director operations Mr Arthur Musakwa said Campfire is being reviewed because it was noted that resources were not reaching the intended beneficiaries and the aim now is for Chiefs to have a say in how resources are distributed.
Hwange Rural District Council chief executive Mr Phindile Ncube said seven out of 19 wards directly benefit from Campfire because they are producer wards while the rest rely on availability of resources.
The Thematic Commitee on Peace and Security is visiting communities affected by human-wildlife conflict in Hwange and Binga districts to have an appreciation of challenges and a report will be tabled in Parliament to shape the agenda on addressing the problems. [email protected]
Article Source: The Chronicle