Programme director
Traditional leaders amongst us here representing the local communities
CEO of SANParks Dr David Mabunda
CEO of Public Sector Banking (national government) at FNB, Ms Yvonne Zwane
Members of the media
Ladies and gentlemen
The issue of this group is a unique feature of our society. You will not find it anywhere in the world. We must continue to showcase our rich diversity which makes us one.
I am deeply honoured and wish to express my appreciation at the invitation to be amongst you this morning. It is a morning of great pride not just to us who are here but to the South African nation at large, since today’s event is to commemorate part of our national heritage, our national parks.
I hope that our commemoration today will not be over shadowed by our people being unable to get the necessary access to this heritage and thereby not just enjoy these surroundings, but in fact understand that they own this heritage as South Africans. We dare not forget that South Africans are a highly politicised people and they really understand their rights and whatever benefits come with them. In the same vein, I would like to implore SANParks that as they popularise the parks in the nation, there must also be consideration for responsibilities towards them. That should be an opportunity to educate ourselves. The more people we educate and they understand the need for conservation, the better for us. It will help us achieve the ideal of the conservation we pursue.
Through my interaction with the officials at the department and Dr Mabunda on matters of the parks, it has become clear to me that these parks are not just huge expanses of land, but have a huge impact on our lives in so many ways. We also have international obligations and treaties that we have to meet. These treaties and obligations come with their own peculiarities and challenges that cannot just be ignored.
This wonderful park that we are in today is one of the Trans-Frontier Conservation Areas (TFCA) that we share with our close neighbours, namely Mozambique and Zimbabwe in this instance. Whereas not all of the TFCAs are functional, we have consciously started a process that says there should not be artificial borders for the animals that are in these parks. Married to that is the fact that the visitors we are luring to our country and region, together with our own people, can then enjoy the real pleasure of the regional wildlife.
It is envisaged that the TFCAs will also assist in uplifting the neighbouring countries by adding positively to their GDPs through tourism. We still have challenges in some areas like the acquisition of land to realise our ideals but all of that is work in progress. We will sort out the issues related to land in the future hoping that we will reach a win win situation, where the communities around the parks will smile as a result of such consultations.
I believe that our national parks speak to the correct use of our resources for sustenance but with the full recognition of the fact that such use needs to be sustainable as well. We are fully engaged with other role players by South Africa being a signatory to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), an international regulatory body for the management of protected areas and biological resources. We need to understand that sustainable resource use is more than hunting; tourism is also about sustainable use of natural resources. All of this needs to speak to the fact that our communities and government are not only interested in the extractive use of natural resources like hunting, this actually undermines our people’s understanding of the use of the term.
Ladies and gentlemen, I am of the belief that the national parks that we have need to assist our country as we deal with the real challenges to the environment like air pollution and depleting marine resources. I need to add water pollution as well, an example of which is the pollution in the Letaba River in the area. There are further challenges that we have of a lack of water resources for communities and ensuring economic growth. Our responsibilities are to also look after these parks for posterity, not just in historical terms but because they are also helpful when looking at challenges like we now face of climate change.
Like all of us I am sure the CEO would make a point about needing to ably manage the parks even in the face of shrinking budgets due to the current economic climate. The responsibilities for SANParks, mainly those of preserving this heritage whilst at the same time popularising it, will remain. In doing all of that there needs to still be strict compliance with environmental legislation.
In as far as ensuring the continuity of the viability of these parks, we will need to work together as CEOs of these parks in order to share experiences and thereby enrich one another and our efforts. Making the parks viable is located within our people.
I cannot end our interaction today without speaking about one of the worst challenges that we face. The challenge is that of poaching. This country but also the world over, has experienced an escalation of activities in this regard. A harsh example is that since January this year a total of 84 rhinos have been killed.
The figure is made up as follows:
* Kruger National Park: 33
* Ezemvelo KwaZulu-Natal Wildlife: 19
* Gauteng: 3
* North West: 5
* Limpopo: 7
* Eastern Cape: 1
* Mpumalanga: 16
We have agreed with the MECs of Environment and SANParks that SANParks will lead an inter-provincial agencies’ team which will be aimed at coordinating efforts by all the affected parties. The Department of Environmental Affairs has established a multi-party national biodiversity investigators’ forum as a platform for discussion and the sharing of information on biodiversity related law enforcement issues, including rhino poaching. Since the beginning of the year a total of 22 poachers, mostly foreign nationals have been arrested by both the SANParks and the Ezemvelo KwaZulu-Natal Wildlife joint operations.
We know as well about the escalation in the poaching of abalone and other species. We will never abdicate our responsibilities in the efforts to combat poaching, we are aware of the need for more resources in this fight and that is why we are working towards the establishment of environmental courts. These will be used to prioritise environmental and water use crime. Discussions and plans in partnership with the Minister of Justice are at an advanced stage and I must say that this is an encouraging sign of true cooperative governance.
As we commemorate South African National Parks’ Week, I hope I will hear stories from some of our compatriots who were able to enjoy some free time in our parks and who understand better why we need to preserve the parks as a great part of our heritage.
I thank the media in taking interest in our environment. This has created hype and these stories will then permeate our society as well.
I also wish to thank Ms Yvonne Zwane from FNB. She has displayed commitment and passion and this is very encouraging. It is not just about resources but also about leadership and the warmth that has come through as part of the human and natural touch of the bank.
On access to the parks, Dr Mabunda, I think we need to do more. We need to have partnerships with the Departments of Transport and Tourism. I am happy to have come here and as well because the children that have been here will go back and be environmentalists that our country can use.
I thank you.
Issued by: Department of Water and Environmental Affairs
14 September 2009
