World Wildlife Day and Arusha Declaration on Wildlife Protection

Today 3rd March,2020 being a World Wildlife Day we choose to reflect on Arusha Declaration on Wildlife Protection.

To all environmental and animal rights defenders, being the World Wildlife Day, we wish to celebrate this day and have merry while marking the milestones achieved.

Since 1930 when the Major  R.W.G Hingston a surgeon and naturalist whom had served with the British Army in India, the Middle East and East Africa undertook the survey of East and Southern Africa led to creation of Serengeti National Park.

In 1961 as most African Countries were smarting from colonial struggles, the government of Tanzania-Arusha was privileged to host the first symposium on the Conservation of Nature and Natural resources in modern African States. At the meeting Mwalimu Julius Nyerere issued what became to be known as the Arusha declaration on wildlife Protection.

In the declaration it is states that the survival of our wildlife is a matter of grave concern to all of us in Africa. These wild creatures amid the wild places they inhabit are not only important as a source of wonder and inspiration but are an integral part of our natural resources and of our natural resources and of our future livelihood and wellbeing.

In accepting the trusteeship of our wildlife we solemnly declare that we will do everything in our power to make sure our children’s, grandchildren’s will be able to enjoy this rich and precious inheritance.

The conservation of wildlife and wild places calls for specialists’ knowledge, trained man power and money, and we look to other nations to cooperate in this important task-the success or failure of which not only affects the continent of Africa but the rest of the world as well.

Wildlife species in the region seem to diminish at an alarming rate thus the need for more wildlife management interventions, it’s on this front that we call for government in East Africa to conduct, surveys and map how to undertake wild life census.

Emerging trends indicates that a new trends of animal poaching is emerging i.e the Chinese are involved in Zebra and Donkey Skin Trade its on this basis that recently the Minister of Agriculture Hon. Peter Munya issued a ban on all donkey skin trade and went ahead and directed the closure of all  Donkey abattoir across the country.

Kamotho Githinji

Director

East Africa Climate Change Network.