Mwenezi West community sends SOS over wild animals from Mjingwe Conservancy

George Maponga in Masvingo

Communities from Mazetese and Maranda communal lands in Mwenezi West are appealing to Government to help in the restoration of wildlife conservancy operations at Mjingwe Conservancy in the area to stem rampant human/wildlife conflict.

The community under the Mazetese/Maranda Community Share Ownership Trust wants to partner with an investor to co-manage the wildlife-rich conservancy which requires restoration after suspected poachers razed down the perimeter fence around the 7 000-hectare facility.

Freely roaming wild animals from the conservancy, including buffalos, giraffes, kudu and wildebeest among others are blamed for the rampant destruction of villagers’ crops and property every year after the perimeter fence was destroyed.

The community also says buffaloes kill a couple of people every year from their area raising urgency on the need to tame the raging human/wildlife conflict.

Mazetese/Maranda Community Trust Chair Mr John Magovanyika laments the sad situation at Mjingwe saying Government must intervene to restore order by getting the local community a partner prepared to inject funding for the revival of the once lucrative wildlife conservancy project.

Mr Magovanyika reckons that a new investor would breathe fresh life into the project saying allowing the situation to deteriorate further will be a bitter pill to swallow for a community that he says has lost an estimated 5000 cattle to the foot and mouth disease, contracted from buffaloes, over the past couple of years.

“We need Government to come in and help us find an investor with the capacity to revive operations at Mjingwe because right now the situation is terrible as freely roaming wild animals are destroying our crops and property and even killing people in some extreme cases,” he said.

“What is more worrying is that lately illegal gold miners have been invading the game park digging for gold while mopane worms poachers are also on the prowl, spawning environmental degradation.”

Zimparks spokesperson Mr Tinashe Farawo says they want a model, at Mjingwe, that would benefit the local community instead of causing them pain.

He says the surrounding community should benefit from good roads, schools and other facilities and also get employment once conservancy operations at Mjingwe are restored to normalcy.