Conservancies are not just conservation areas, but they are institutions driving development, securing services, and creating opportunities.
Against this background, Prime Minister Elijah Ngurare has called on community conservancies to maintain unity at all times to ensure that communities derive equal benefits from conservation and natural resource management.
Speaking at the launch of the Namibia for Life Project Finance for Permanence (PFP) initiative in Windhoek, Dr Ngurare stressed that conservation can only succeed when local communities are fully involved by granting rural communities greater authority over wildlife, forests, and tourism resources.
"For us to achieve what we are undertaking here, unity is paramount in all conservancies. If we are united in those conservancies, we can achieve a great deal and more; if we are not united in those conservancies, then these agreements we are going to sign here will bring disunity instead of unity. We will not go far, and if we can all agree that these resources are for generations to come, then we will go very far."
He also called on communities to make use of the Namibia for Life Project Finance for Permanence (PFP) initiative to address pressing issues facing their communities.
Part of what we are investing here, or the bulk of it, is that we must invest in water. If we get water right, we get food security right. If we get water right, then we can speak of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and that is also true not only for conservancies but for the whole of Namibia."
Namibia, with the Namibia for Life project, is the first country in Africa to successfully close a Project Finance for Permanence (PFP) deal in conservation.
Dr Juliane Zeidler is the Country Director for WWF Namibia.
"This moment comes at a time when conservation organisations globally are facing funding constraints. Namibia stands out as a country where government and civil society continue to work in strong partnership."
The Community Conservation Fund of Namibia (CCFN) will manage the financing mechanism of the project.
"The significant future challenge and responsibilities for the CCFN's board include, firstly, to wisely invest in the endowment portion of the PFP to create truly sustainable financial support for CBNRM for the future. Secondly, to exercise greater control over the use of funds to ensure that conservancies get real value for their money. Thirdly, to utilise the opportunity to test the socioeconomic development fund model in rural communities, create positive examples for livelihood diversification with expertise from the Development Bank of Namibia and Impact Tank," reiterated CCFN Chairperson Advocate Andrew Corbett.
To date, Namibia has registered 87 communal conservancies and 48 community forests; these institutions collectively employ more than 2 500 people, including over 700 game and forest guards.