Namwater and the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism have implemented initiatives to mitigate the increasing cases of human-wildlife conflict.
The national water utility plans to construct a water treatment plant at Rundu, while the environment ministry has put 40 crocodiles up for sale.
In an interview with The Namibian a fortnight ago, Abraham Nehemia, the chief executive officer of NamWater, said the water treatment plant project is focused on the Kavango East and West regions.
Crocodile attacks on humans and livestock have become serious threats to the communities in these areas.
While the complete eradication of such incidents may be challenging, Nehemia emphasised the importance of minimising occurrences through practical measures.
“Although you can’t stop it completely, because some houses are 50 metres from the river and the water point is 500m away, it’s not always necessary to go to that extreme. Residents can opt for the nearest water source or consider boiling water, for instance. But it will help minimise the incidents,” he said.
According to Nehemia, the water treatment plant project will involve connecting pipelines from Grootfontein to Mururani Gate, another pipeline towards Katwitwi in Kavango West, and a third pipeline along the road leading to Divundu in Kavango East.
He highlighted that these initiatives aim to rectify the past neglect of the Kavango regions in terms of water infrastructure.
“Initially, after independence, the focus was on areas where people did not have access to any water. This has caused delays in infrastructure development in both regions. However, every Namibian has the right to access clean water,” he stated.
The funding for the water treatment plant project will be provided by the Africa Development Bank, and the tender for construction will be advertised next month.
In another effort to address human-wildlife conflict, the environment ministry has announced the sale of 40 crocodiles to the public.
The spokesperson for the ministry, Romeo Muyunda, explained that the sale aims to minimise incidents and reduce the impact of crocodile attacks on communities, particularly in the north-eastern regions of Kavango West, Kavango East, and Zambezi.
“This is in line with the recommendation made at the recently concluded conference on human-wildlife conflict management, where the ministry was advised to reduce the number of crocodiles in the affected regions,” Muyunda said.
Interested buyers are required to submit written financial offers in sealed envelopes to the ministry by 17 July, at 16h30.
Muyunda also explained that buyers intending to export crocodiles must provide official proof of approval from the conservation authorities in the importing country. The capture of crocodiles will be supervised by the ministry, and the costs will be borne by the buyer.
“All related activities, including disease testing and any necessary after-capture care, are at the expense of the buyers. Buyers must demonstrate that they have suitable habitats for crocodiles,” Muyunda added.
He noted that the ministry has incurred significant financial losses, paying over N$2,3 million since 2019 to compensate for losses caused by crocodile attacks, including livestock losses, injuries to individuals and loss of human lives.
