NCAA Highlights the Need to Keep Protecting People’s Rights to Promote Sustainable Conservation.
While relocating residents of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and all other places under its management, the Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority (NCAA) will continue to respect people’s rights.
This is in line with the Millennium Goals, which prioritize sustainable conservation to combat climate change and the well-being of communities.
In an interview with our reporter, Mr. Hamis Dambaya, the authority’s acting public relations manager, explained that the government is working to relocate people living in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area in order to guarantee sustainable conservation and improve citizen living standards in accordance with the Millennium Goals.
He stated that in all places where residents have willingly relocated, natural vegetation has begun to regenerate, and the environmental conditions are good.
It is critical for the world to understand that the residents of that area are not being relocated to make room for tourism activities, but rather to improve conservation and citizens’ lives by providing better and safer conditions outside the conservation area.
“There is no logical link between the voluntary relocation of residents from the conservation area and tourism.
Tanzania offers several tourism sites beyond Ngorongoro. What we are doing is protecting the land and everyone who arrives and sees the true state of environmental damage due to excessive human activity would agree with the government’s good.” Said Mr. Dambaya
He added that the population and cattle in the area have grown to an alarming degree. If these individuals and their cattle continue to dwell in the region, which only comprises 8,292 square kilometers, without being educated to voluntarily relocate, the conservation area is at risk of disappearing and damaging the neighboring ecosystems.
“A rational person, after calculating the number of 8,000 people in Ngorongoro in 1959 and 260,000 livestock, would not oppose the initiative of educating over 110,000 residents and more than 860,000 livestock in the same 8,292 square kilometers to voluntarily relocate,” Mr. Dambaya said.
“Many of individuals opposed to this effort are not residents of Ngorongoro. You will see them wearing traditional attire and traveling to various countries to raise funds and persuade the natives to oppose the government’s idea of voluntary relocation,” Mr. Dambaya stated.
Mr. Dambaya encouraged international media outlets not to fall into the trap set by certain campaigners. Instead, they could visit Ngorongoro to see the reality and learn how the project is being carried out with great enthusiasm, with no residents being imprisoned, pressured, or assaulted, as some activists claim.
Tanzania’s government has decided to put this project into action in order fulfil a number of global environmental and human rights objectives. Residents in the neighbourhood have died as a result of injuries and wild animal attacks.
This initiative will be implemented in accordance with all applicable legal principles, processes, rules, human rights, and good governance.
