Whose heritage? The state, local communities and game in South Luangwa National Park (SLNP) of eastern Zambia, 1890-2001.
Date
2021
Authors
Kumwenda, Simon
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
The University of Zambia
Abstract
The study examines a history of conflicts between humans and wild animals (human-animal
conflicts) and conflicts between humans and the government (human-state conflicts) in the South
Luangwa National Park (SLNP) and the surrounding Lupande Game Management Area (LGMA)
from 1890 to 2001. SLNP located in Mambwe District was in about 1830s inhabited by the
Kunda people from the Democratic Republic of Congo whose socio-economic wellbeing
depended on subsistence hunting and a bit of crop cultivation. Their utilisation of wildlife
resources before colonial era conflicted with the interests of wild animals. This began human
animal conflicts (HACs). It is argued in this study that the Kunda’s access and control over
natural resources, including game, was undermined with the imposition of colonial conservation
policies in 1890. The study found that the local people’s culture, traditions and taboos helped
them to better use wildlife resources than in the colonial era.
It is also argued in this study that the birth of the SLNP in 1971 and the creation of the Zambia
Wildlife Authority (ZAWA) in 1998 both negatively impacted the wellbeing of the Kunda. The
study further found that even though in the 1980s the local people were co-opted into wildlife
operations through community based conservation programmes, conflicts did not abate. The
study argued that although conservation policies brought jobs and markets to the local people for
their agricultural merchandise and crafts, the majority had their wellbeing undermined.
Conservation laws to a greater extent benefited the government through revenue collection.
Finally, the study found that centralisation of wildlife resource management and utilisation by
the government clearly shows that SLNP is the state’s heritage and that it was the centre of
conflicts.
Description
Thesis
Keywords
Human-animal relationships. , Wildlife conservation. , Wildlife management.