Greater Mikumi
WHERE WE WORK
Positioned in central Tanzania adjacent to the Selous Game Reserve, Mikumi National Park is home to iconic wildlife like elephants, lions, zebras, and buffalo. The park also faces ongoing human-wildlife conflict as nearby communities struggle to protect their crops and livestock from animal incursions.
While the region has often been overlooked by conservation practitioners, our team is collaborating with park management and local communities to find solutions that benefit both people and wildlife.
Improved habitat and livestock management are vital to curbing incursions into the park in search of forage. In addition, carnivore conflict poses a threat to pastoralists’ livelihoods and wellbeing as wildlife ventures into communal lands. Our Warriors for Wildlife, Living Walls, and Sustainable Rangelands Initiative tackle these root causes of human-wildlife conflict.
The lands around Mikumi face tough hurdles but optimism prevails. Our team, partners, and local people stand determined and are taking steps for a better future.
Charles Trout, Co-founder and Chief Program Officer
On the Ground in Greater Mikumi
Building Local Capacity for Conservation
In 2023, APW team members, alongside partners at Tanzania National Parks Authority (TANAPA) and local officials, hosted a stakeholder workshop to discuss human-wildlife conflict issues and assess prospective pilot villages in Kilosa District. We also held introductory meetings in Kiduhi and Parakuyo villages, recruiting four Warriors for Wildlife to serve as local human-wildlife coexistence officers.
With their training completed, these men and women now gather crucial conflict data and engage communities in coexistence strategies, marking a proactive step in harmonizing people and wildlife. As we expand programming into rangeland conservation in 2024, a new world of possibilities is on the horizon.
Planting Trees of Change with Living Walls
With the partnership of TANAPA and Mikumi District representatives, we unveiled two demonstration Living Walls in Kiduhi village in 2023. These eco-friendly enclosures offer nighttime sanctuary for livestock, reinforcing bomas against predator threats. Anchored by live Commiphora trees and strengthened with chain-link fencing, Living Walls are formidable barriers, shielding livestock from lions, cheetahs, hyenas, jackals, leopards, and other carnivores. Community members play crucial roles in planting the trees and participating in installation.
Word of mouth about the new structures will help inform neighbors in Kidhu and surrounding villages about our collective strategies for lion-livestock resolution. We’re already fielding an influx of calls from interested livestock owners!
Conservation Solutions: Work in Progress
Protecting carnivores like lions and leopards and large mammals like elephants and buffalo means reducing conflicts with people whose livelihoods rely on natural resources around protected areas. Our approach around Mikumi includes:
- New Warriors for Wildlife
- New Living Walls
- Sustainable rangeland management
- Monitoring wildlife populations
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