Poachers destroying Nyika Plateau
Minister of Tourism, Wildlife and Culture Michael Usi has said there is need to deal with poachers before they deplete game in the country’s reserves and national parks.
The minister said that poachers in Nyika National Park are not only killing animals, but also destroying the eco-system through setting the forest on fire, thereby affecting tourist attraction sites.
Usi said this at the weekend after touring the park in Rumphi to appreciate the some of the challenges facing Nyika National Park.
He said: “We need to ensure that the poachers are stopped. The fires they are setting up are causing the land to be dry and destroying the forest. In essence, the poachers are destroying Nyika National Park slowly.”
Deputy head of development cooperation at the German Embassy, Knut Gummert, whose government, through KFW, is funding the Malawi-Zambia Transfrontier Conservation Area Project, said communities around Nyika need to be given economic incentives to stop poaching.
“We need to increase the number of game in Nyika National Park, and that means reducing poaching by giving people income opportunities.
“People opt for poaching because they lack opportunities and this is one part of our project, to give them opportunities,” he said.
Gummert warned that if not controlled, poachers will kill all game for meat and the fire they start in the park will destroy the flora and fauna in Nyika.
Meanwhile, Peace Parks Foundation, an organisation implementing the project, has established a Rapid Response Unit, where K9 sniffer dogs—a blend of Doberman+Blood Hound—are being used to track down poachers.
The sniffer dogs have been equipped with GPS tracking devices being operated by field rangers.
Peace Parks Foundation chief executive officer Werner Myburgh said their activities in the park will go beyond protecting wildlife.
Tourism sector contribution to the gross domestic product in 2020 fell by 50.2 percent due to Covid-19, according to World Travel and Tourism Council.
The sector contributed 3.3 percent of GDP or K207 billion last year down from 6.7 percent or K416 billion in the previous year.
