Financial mismanagement rife at conservancies

DIRECTOR of parks and wildlife management in the environment ministry Colgar Sikopo says they have received numerous complaints about the misuse of funds at conservancies.

During the annual meeting of the conservancies chairpersons’ forum held at Otjiwarongo last week, he stressed that accountability and good governance in conservancies is one of the most important aspects of development and operation.

Conservancy members had complained of the misuse and misappropriation of finances and other conservancy property by conservancy committees at the expense of the broader conservancy community.

“In order for a conservancy to serve the interests of residents, the conservancy committee needs to be accountable to those residents,” he said.

Sikopo added that good governance means that decisions taken by the committee are open and transparent, the finances are well-managed, and there is no corruption and conflict of interest in decision-making and the distribution of benefits.

“The poor management of finances in some conservancies is a concern,” he stated.

Following new directives, conservancies are required to have only three bank accounts: an income account, an operational account and the human-wildlife conflict self-reliance scheme (HWCSRS) account.

“The fourth bank account is optional, based on the need. Opening or operating an additional bank account, including such bank accounts requested or dedicated for the implementation of donor-funded projects, must be supported by the ministry in writing,” he advised.

Sikopo said all conservancies must thus provide a list of existing bank accounts and an update in writing by 31 August.

In addition, no conservancy is allowed to issue loans to individuals or organisations, unless it is duly registered as a micro-lending business. He also cautioned conservancies not to lend money to ministry staff and other government officials, or to support non-governmental organisation partners in the community-based natural resources management sector.

All transfers and withdrawals from the operational account must likewise be verified with supporting documents by the ministry’s regional office before any withdrawals are made.

Verification can be done through a disbursement form, a monthly resolution form – monthly costs approved by the quorum of the management committee – a monthly budget, or minutes of meetings.

Deputy environment minister, Bernadette Jagger also condemned the misuse of funds, adding that conservancy money should be handled with honesty and transparency.

“If finances are not well-managed, it means the communities will not benefit, and I don’t want to go into what I have heard. (These are) not stories that have been sent to me, I was there in some of the conservancies where bad stories came out,” she emphasised.

Jagger added that she does not want to see any conservancy member in court over allegations of corruption.

In addition, she advised conservancies not to elect people on political or ethnic lines, and that there should be clear requirements attached to positions in order for suitable people to be appointed.

“I want us to work out clear guidelines so that communities know when they come to annual general meetings to elect the leadership of conservancies, what they should look out for,” she said.

The deputy minister added that there should be proper inductions done for chairpersons or secretaries who join the committees halfway through a term of office.

Tania Fisch from the !Khob !Naub Conservancy said some of the financial issues reported in the southern conservancies include too many committee meetings being held, which use up a large part of the budget, and the failure by committees to recover mismanaged finances.

Fisch added that there is a lack of financial understanding by the general members of conservancies, which creates a loophole for the mismanagement of finances by committees, and a failure to service conservancy bank accounts.

Another issue she raised was the lack of record-keeping on human-wildlife conflict accounts by previous committees, making it difficult for new committees to carry on.

From the north-west conservancies, there were issues raised of outdated financial policies, lack of financial management capacity from those elected into positions, and a lack of supporting documents for transactions.

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