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World |
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Organisations |
| Species: |
All Rhino Species |
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AfRSG report. One major development in the period under review is the recent signing of a memorandum of understanding, whereby a consortium has been formed to implement a regional programme of rhino conservation within the Southem African Development Community (SADC) member states in the framework of a Maputo Consultative Meeting. The program is to be funded for three years by the Italian government. SADC member states currently conserve 83.1 % and 98.3% of the continent's black and white rhinos respectively. The SADC Wildlife Sector Technical Co-ordinating Unit (SADC-WTCU) will chair the consortium, and provide the linkages with SADC structures for decision-making on regional rhino conservation policies and programme implementation arrangements. The four other collaborating partners in the consortium are the World Conservation Union Regional Office for Southern Africa (IUCN-ROSA) which will provide support and assistance to the SADC-WTCU in motivating and co-ordinating the programme at political and technical levels; IUCN SSC's Rhino Specialist Group (AfRSG) which will provide rhino conservation direction and prioritarisation; WWF's Southern African Regional Programme Office which will implement, in conjunction with relevant rhino management authorities, specific rhino projects as identified within the programme; and finally an Italian NGO, CESVI Co-operazione e Sviluppo, which will undertake the management if programme finances and administration, as well as acting as the interface between the implementing consortium of the programme and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Directorate-General for Development Co-operation which is funding the programme.
The programme has been established to provide expertise, specialised logistic support, training, information and catalytic funding in support of SADC regional conservation projects and policies for rhinos as flagship species. Such projects and policies are to be aimed at maximizing population growth rates, enhancing overall biodiversity, ensuring economic sustainability, and stimulating local community conservation awareness and involvement in the protection and wise use of these species. By establishing regional co-ordination in the management of charismatic
rhino species, it is intended that a precedent will be created within SADC so that this c- oordination can be extended to other wildlife species that should be managed at a regional rather than at a local level.
The SADC rhino programme will be limited to three rhino subspecies whose historical range included more than one SADC state, and whose future metapopulation management is also likely to involve more than one SADC state (i.e. southern African subspecies Ceratotherium simum simum, Diceros bicornis minor and and Diceros bicornis bicornis). The programme will concentrate on rhino projects that are of a regional nature (e.g. those which involve sharing of expertise between SADC member states, involve sharing or exchange of their rhinos, are conservation models for potential replication elsewhere in the region, and/or have regional economic or political implications).
The SADC rhino programme will primarily be concerned with fundamental rhino man- agement issues and with clearly relevant aspects of land-use economics, community interactions, and applied research. It will endeavour to assist SADC rhino range states to the extent they request with the establishment of pro-active measures to protect the rhinos from poaching, but will not become involved in law enforcement or in the investigation of illegal activities. It thus will not duplicate the wor-k of the Southern African and Elephant Security Group (RESG) or any other regional security/ intelligence networks (e.g. Lusaka Agreement). The programme will include public and private sector rhino conservation projects, and priorities for action within the programme will accord with the regional rhino conservation priorities which are going to be periodically determined by the consortium using criteria outlined by the AfRSG. The programme seeks to complement and not duplicate existing national and regional rhino management committees (notably the southern African Rhino Management Group), and at a continental the work of the AfRSG.
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African Rhino Specialist Group (AfRSG)
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