Maputo, 12 Jun (AIM) – The Secretary of State for the northern province of Niassa, Silva Livone, has announced the suspension of the management of Niassa Especial Reserve (REN), the country’s largest reserve.
The Niassa Special Reserve is managed under a public-private partnership agreement involving the Mozambican government, through the National Administration for Conservation Areas (ANAC), and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS).
The Secretary of State, speaking to reporters, after a meeting with wildlife exploitation companies, said that the suspension is the result of the failure to curb the human-wildlife conflict that has claimed victims among the local population in the region.
“We will establish a multi-sectoral team to manage the reserve until further notice. It has been proven that there is a weak commitment among the operators, the reserve management, local communities and the population. As a result of this poor coordination, arrogance and poor performance, the levels of human-wildlife conflict continue to persist. What we want is to protect fauna and flora, protect people, protect our communities and develop our province”, he said.
“In the administration of the Niassa Special Reserve, they will be accompanied by other defence and security institutions from our province, with contingents of five members from each institution”, said Livone.
The Secretary of State also appointed an interim management team led by Adelino Emílio, the current head of the inspection department of the provincial Environment Services.
“There must be a strong contingent from the Natural Resources Protection Police to support their colleagues, and the entire jurisdiction of the REN must be strongly protected until further notice. If there is a threat, it must be met in proportion to the threat, including terrorism, because we know the modus operandi and practices these people have been carrying out in our province”, he said.
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