2020
by Southern Tanzania Elephant Program

Supporting the Village Game Scouts of MBOMIPA Wildlife Management Area, Tanzania to conserve elephants and critical wildlife habitat

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Community managed nature protection Ecosystem protection Species protection
2020
by Southern Tanzania Elephant Program

Supporting the Village Game Scouts of MBOMIPA Wildlife Management Area, Tanzania to conserve elephants and critical wildlife habitat

The aim of this project is to increase protection for MBOMIPA WMA, a critical elephant area and wildlife habitat of Ruaha-Rungwa, by increasing the capacity of Village Game Scouts (VGS) to use smart conservation tools for adaptive and effective management of law enforcement threats, and by supporting extensive patrolling of the WMA by VGS teams.

 

We will fund three teams of Village Game Scouts (15 personnel) to conduct 23 days of foot patrols every month for one year. We will train and equip VGS to gather data on wildlife and illegal activities using the Spatial Monitoring and Reporting Tool (SMART) software while on patrol, and support mapping and analysis of patrol data to target protection efforts. This will help to track changes in the occurrence of illegal activity over time and enable improved monitoring and adaptive management of the WMA. STEP will also provide essential vehicle support, including rotating VGS each month and food resupplies.

Name organisation:
Southern Tanzania Elephant Program
Start date:
01-05-2020
Funding:
€10000
Country/Territory:
Tanzania
Name organisation:
Southern Tanzania Elephant Program
Start date:
01-05-2020
Funding:
€10000
Country/Territory:
Tanzania Africa

MBOMIPA WMA is a community-owned conservation area

MBOMIPA WMA is a community-owned conservation area comprising critical wildlife habitat in Tanzania. A lack of tourism investment means the area has no funding for protection and is vulnerable to poaching and habitat destruction. To enable the WMA to attract tourism investors for its long-term economic viability, it is vital we support protection of the area by Village Game Scouts and build local capacity for monitoring and adaptive management. By doing so, we have an opportunity to increase security for the area, protect important populations of elephants and endangered carnivores, and increase the area’s attractiveness for investment.