Zimbabwe & Zambia to launch UNIVISA on November 28

Zimbabwe and Zambia will this month introduce a joint travel visa to ensure international tourists visit both countries without immigration hassles, state media reported Sunday.According to the Sunday News, the Kavango Zambezi (Kaza) universal visa (UNIVISA) would be launched in Victoria Falls on November 28 as part of measures to facilitate tourist arrivals and increase revenue.

(with thanks to Ilala Lodge Facebook Page) Quoting Tourism Minister Walter Mzembi, the paper said the proposed UNIVISA is expected to benefit tourists from 40 countries.
“The UNIVISA project is being pursued by Zimbabwe and Zambia and it is being funded by the World Bank,” Mzembi is quoted as saying.
Under the new system, tourists would acquire visas at ports of entry for US$50 each.
The visas would be valid for 30 days and would allow holders to tour Zimbabwe and Zambia without restriction.
The arrangement is expected to be expanded to include Namibia, Botswana and Angola following a six-month pilot phase.
Presently, tourists have to secure separate visas to enable them to enter Zimbabwe and Zambia and are subjected to conventional immigration procedures.
Source: Zimbabwe, Zambia to launch UNIVISA project on November 28 (09/11/14)

Kaza aim for regional visas

The five member countries involved with the Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA TFCA) are aiming to have uniform visas by the end of this year, Zambian Tourism and Arts Minister Sylvia Masebo has reported following a meeting for KAZA Ministers of Tourism, Wildlife and Natural Resources in Angola.
Ms Masebo said a common visa would be a milestone for the region as it would allow for the free movement of people and goods within the five-member countries and ultimately promote tourism in the region. “One of the points to note from the just-ended Angola meeting is that by December 31, 2013, it is hoped that we shall have the common KAZA-TFCA visa between five member countries. This will allow for free movement of people and goods and it will be a milestone for tourism promotion,” Ms Masebo said.
“We have come from a very successful KAZA-TFCA Ministers meeting in Angola. During the 20th session of the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) General Assembly in Livingstone, this month, delegates will be taken to KAZA-TFCA projects in Zambia,” Ms Masebo said.

Kaza meeting calls for shared vision for regional development

The Angolan Minister of Hotels and Tourism, Pedro Mutindi, called for the member countries of Kavango Zambezi (KAZA) Transfrontier Conservation Area (TFCA) to be united for the materialisation of the initiative for the benefit of all.
Speaking at the closing act of the KAZA ministers meeting, held in Menongue City in the southern Kuando Kubango province, the Minister, who has chaired the meeting, highlighted the need for the member countries (Angola, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Namibia and Botswana) to be more and more united so that issues related to economic, academic, social and tourist development may be achieved.
At the opening of the meeting the governor of Kuando-Kubango province, Higino Carneiro announced that two aircraft will be made available for air patrol and transportation of personnel deployed at the Luiana, Mavinga, Mucusso and Luengue parks for the protection and management of wildlife resources. The ministers of Zambia and Namibia, Sílvia Masebo, and Huaekua Herunga, respectively, attended the meeting.
More about KAZA
The Kavango-Zambezi (KAZA) Transfrontier Conservation Area is situated in the Okavango and Zambezi river basins where the borders of Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe converge.
It is set to become the world's biggest conservation area and will eventually span an area of approximately 520,000 km2 (similar in size to France). It will include 36 national parks, game reserves, community conservancies and game management areas. Most notably, the area will include the Caprivi Strip, Chobe National Park, the Okavango Delta (the largest Ramsar Site in the World) and the Victoria Falls (a World Heritage Site and one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World) and has the potential to insulate the region from the effects of flooding and climate change. The natural resources contained in the KAZA TFCA are also critical to the sustainable development of the region on account of their inherent and enormous socio-economic value.
Kavango-Zambezi promises to be southern Africa's premier tourist destination and vitally important wildlife refuge, with the largest contiguous population of the African elephant on the continent, representing over half the total population.
Source: Angolan Press Agency

Are fences the way forward for cat conservation?

Source: Africa Geographic
Date: 11 June 2013
By: Chloe Cooper

Conservation-minded people seem to think that fencing in our big cats may be best for their safety (see previous blog post Half of Africa's Lions Facing Extinction). It seems entirely contradictory that people who are striving for the openness of borders and the development of transfrontier parks and conservation areas are among those who are supporting the notion of erecting fences and creating separate reserves in order to contain our wildlife. Transfrontier areas aim to extend park boundaries across countries and through human settlements in order to re-establish the ancient migration pathways throughout Africa, as the same time equipping people with the tools required to live harmoniously with the wild animals. It is a spectacular thought. Imagine an Africa of yesteryear – a wild continent, rich in resources, wonderful wildlife, cultural celebration and the sustainable living ethic of a greedless nation. Without the introduction of capital to the continent and the financial implications associated with success, it is possible to imagine that we would not be facing a conservation crisis such as the one that faces us today.

Part of what makes lions such a remarkable success as a species was investigated in an article published by Africa Geographic in May – ‘Brawn and Brains’ by Anthony Ham. He observed that lions in the Central Kalahari Game Reserve (CKGR) were a lot calmer and more confident than their relatives beyond the border. Those lions living nearer to human settlements demonstrated fear and skittishness when approached by a vehicle, while the cats in the CKGR were not unnerved. It is an obvious association. Lions preying on livestock outside park boundaries are shot and killed, so they have developed a fear of anything human. Those who prey on game within reserves are not at risk of attack by humans, thus they do not fear them.

When I asked Sabi Sand professional field guide Jason Kipling to comment on the ‘border-safety’ intelligence lions seem to possess, he related this level of association to the behaviour of elephants in Botswana. He told me that the wildlife conservationist Pat Dewil had reported that elephants demonstrated vastly different behaviour within just a few metres of a hunting zone. In the hunting area, they became fearful and anxious; when they moved just a few strides away into a ‘safe’ zone, they became calm and relaxed – a replica of the behaviour in lions, as described by Anthony Ham. This information plays a vital role in the movement to protect Africa’s lions. Jason is of the opinion that containing lions within the protective borders of national parks and reserves is the only way forward if we are to save the species from extinction due to human conflict and hunting. He emphasised that the risk of lions being killed in areas like the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, where livestock grazes nearby, is much higher due to the lack of fencing separating predator and prey. One would think that this activity is likely to result in poor quality lion-viewing due to the stresses experienced by animals that have been exposed to the trauma of shootings.

n more ways than one, the loss of lions will devastate Africa – that much is certain. It is not purely the job of ‘greenies’ to protect a species. It falls upon the shoulders of governments to promote the glory of their countries from a tourism perspective, in order to support economical demands. Jason provided me with some real insight into the not-so-welcome notion of physically segregating our wild lands and enclosing Africa’s biggest cat.

If any animal is to be kept within a boundary, we need to make sure that the balances are right in terms of numbers. National parks and private reserves probably have more lions than they can support, due to the fact that they promote business. However, if all the territories are not occupied and there is enough prey to support lions within the parks and reserves, there should be no resason for the cats to breach the fenced boundaries. In a nutshell: strict population control of both predator AND prey species needs to be practised if we want to successfully keep lions in fenced and protected game reserves.

For full artilce visit: Is Fencing in Our Big Cats for the Best?, Africa Geographic, June 2013