Germany blesses Namibia with N$60m kitty

Germany has provided a grant of approximately N$60 million to Namibia to establish a sustainable financing mechanism for the country’s state-protected areas.

This was announced on Thursday in a joint media release by a German development agency and the German embassy.

According to the statement, the National Planning Commission of Namibia, together with the environment ministry and Germany’s KfW Development Bank signed a grant agreement to the value of €3 million (N$60 million) last week Friday.

The statement says the aim of the fund is to establish a sustainable financing mechanism to support Namibia’s state-protected areas.

“The financial contribution complements the environment ministry’s own budget allocation via the Game Products Trust Fund towards its state-protected area network.

“The funds are earmarked for the sustainable management of Namibia’s 20 national parks with the aim of contributing towards the conservation of Namibian biodiversity and functioning ecosystems, while at the same time improving rural livelihoods and local incomes,” the statement reads.

The statement says communities adjacent to protected areas and areas where natural resources are managed will benefit from improved protected area management of national parks through their community-based natural resources management structures.

This is through the implementation of tourism concessions, improved human-wildlife conflict management and other targeted conservation management interventions.

The statement says new income opportunities from nature-based tourism, sustainable value chains, and biodiversity-related job creation will result from enhanced park management guaranteed via means of sustainable finance interventions.

“Namibia has made considerable efforts to protect its natural environment and resources, and has placed large parts of the country under formal protection. All national parks are of great economic, social and ecological importance and they provide sources of livelihood for Namibians in many respects,” the statement reads.

“With an innovative approach referred to as ‘Integrated Park Management’, the environment ministry seeks to achieve biodiversity conservation on the one hand and poverty reduction through job creation via tourism on the other,” it continues.

The statement adds that communal conservancies and local communities are involved in the planning, development and management of national parks and protected areas and are thus given incentives to manage Namibia’s natural resources sustainably.

“As a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, the sustainable management of Namibia’s national parks has become increasingly challenging. KfW development bank, together with the environment ministry, has financed substantial infrastructure investments in several national parks through the Namibia National Parks Programme.

“The sustainability of these investments and the long-term operation of Namibia’s national parks and the wider state-protected area network need to be ensured via sustainable financial support,” the statement reads.