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Tanzania unveils funds for wildlife compensation

Xinhua, January 4, 2017 Adjust font size:

The Tanzanian government has allocated about 1.3 million U.S. dollars for payment to families of people killed or injured by wildlife across the East African country.

Ramo Makani, Tanzania's Deputy Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism said on Tuesday that the funds will be paid to victims and next of kin in the affected areas, particularly those located close to protected sanctuaries.

He said that the amount will be paid to victims who have submitted their required documents to the ministry.

"This includes victims who were affected with the wildlife for the past ten years. And for the killed victims, the money will be paid to their next of kin and those who were injured or their farms were destroyed, the money will be paid directly to them," the minister said.

Without divulging the exact number of the victims across Tanzania, Makani said most of the victims are from 80 districts.

He named Bunda and Serengeti in Mara Region as the highly affected districts with wildlife attacks because they are being close to the UNESCO's World Heritage Site -- Serengeti National Park, Lake Victoria, Grumeti and Ikolongo Game Reserves.

In terms of compensation, Serengeti is the leading district in the country where victims will get about 187,176 U.S. dollars, followed by Bunda, whose people will get about 121,854 U.S. dollars.

The minister also suggested the need for village leaders to ensure that wildlife corridors remained open without human interactions.

"From my knowledge, routes that were being used by elephants 40 to 30 years ago, they (animal) will continue to use them, that's why it is important those areas to remain open. No one should be allowed to do human activities like farming," the minister said.

In recent years, herds of elephants from Serengeti National Park have been invading farmers' crops in Mara Region, causing food security concerns in the area.

For instance, in September last year, 30 herds of elephants from Serengeti National Park invaded villages in Serengeti District injuring two children and destroyed peoples' houses and tonnes of maize stored in warehouses. Endit