Sindisa Foundation - Save Heal Protect

Projects

Programmes - Namibia

The large size, small population and the aridity of Namibia make it uniquely different to other southern African countries. The Namib Desert, the Skeleton Coast, the escarpment leading up from the coast to the Kalahari in the east, the Etosha Pan, the Caprivi wetlands on the Zambezi River and a diverse mix of people from San to Himba set the country aside. It is a harsh and extreme land but at the same time, breath-taking in its beauty. Namibia is also where the Sindisa Foundation began. The Skeleton Coast Research Camp, research projects into black-faced impala and desert lichens, student conservation expeditions, planning and development of private nature reserves and community conservancy programmes are all part of the Sindisa contribution.

Damaraland desert-adapted giraffe Expedition briefing

Each of the countries of southern Africa is a crucial cog in the regional environment and Namibia is no exception. It is a participant in four TFCAs – Kalagadi (Botswana and South Africa), Richtersveld (Namibia and South Africa), Kunene (Namibia and Angola) and Kaza (Namibia, Angola, Botswana, Zambia and Zimbabwe). Under the current strategic initiative the promotion and support of Namibian conservation efforts has a high priority for Sindisa. Two projects have been identified which Sindisa has and will support under the Rapid Response Fund.

Black rhino releaseBlack Rhino Custodianship Programme
Black rhino conservation in Namibia is a success story although much remains to be done to secure the long term survival of the sub-species Diceros bicornis bicornis which inhabits the arid western regions of southern Africa. The success is in no small way due to the efforts of Save the Rhino Trust (SRT) founded by Blythe and Rudi Loutit in the northwest of Namibia and to the Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET) Rhino Conservation Unit. The latter established the Black Rhino Custodianship Programme in the early 1990’s whereby breeding groups of rhino were translocated from Etosha National Park and established on private land where the owners took responsibility for their protection. In more recent times, populations have been, and continue to be, established on communal conservancies throughout the country. Sindisa assists the MET Capture Team with a Rapid Response Fund and is currently sourcing funds to contribute to a project run by the SRT to train field monitors to deploy to each of the Custodian locations.
 

Birds Without Boundaries
Cape Griffon Vulture Conservation
The vulture is one of the key species in African wildlife ecosystems. It is the garbage cleaner of the bush and is particularly important in this role as they appear to be the only species that is immune to deadly diseases such as anthrax and botulism. Both of these diseases are found throughout southern Africa and are potentially devastating. Vultures range widely and the borders of countries are unknown to them. All five countries forming the Kaza TFCA, for example, will share vultures and thus cooperative monitoring and protection programmes are essential.

Vultures The Cape Griffon Vulture Project conduct by Maria Diekmann through the Rare and Endangered Species Trust (REST) hopes to turn around a catastrophic decline in the species in Namibia from 2000 to 11 in 50 years. The remnants of the population inhabit a single colony on the Waterberg Plateau in central Namibia. The Project protects the nesting site, educates farmers and rural communities and conducts research into the ecology and movements of the birds.

It is essential to expand the Project to cover all species of vulture and to link it with similar projects in all the southern African countries. In this regard Sindisa hopes to help with the implementation of a regional monitoring, education and protection programme throughout the countries forming the Kaza TFCA under the banner of Birds Without Boundaries.