Private wildlife conservation in Zimbabwe: joint ventures and reciprocity Wels, H. Citation Wels, H. (2003). Private wildlife conservation in Zimbabwe: joint ventures and reciprocity. Leiden: Brill. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/1887/12899 Version: Not Applicable (or Unknown) License: Leiden University Non-exclusive license Downloaded https://hdl.handle.net/1887/12899 from: Note: To cite this publication please use the final published version (if applicable). Private Wildlife Harry Wels Harry Conservation in Zimbabwe AFRIKA-STUDIECENTRUM SERIES Private Conservation Zimbabwe in Wildlife Joint Ventures and Reciprocity This book is the first about private wildlife conservation and community involvement in Zimbabwe. It is a case study based on ethnographic fieldwork done in 1998. It focuses on the joint venture between a private wildlife conservation initiative, the Save Valley Conservancy, and its surrounding communities in terms of reciprocal exchange and the land question. It makes clear, amongst other things, that the current political tragedy in Zimbabwe about land did not start when Mugabe lost the referendum in February 2000. The book tries to offer an explanation for the unforgiving route that Mugabe has obviously taken in the land question, despite his words of reconciliation when he came to power in 1980. This book is of particular interest to students, practitioners and academics in the fields of (private) wildlife conservation, community participation and organisational co-operation. Afrika Harry Wels Ph.D. (2000) in Organisational Anthropology, Vrije Universiteit Studie Amsterdam, is Associate Professor at the Department of Culture, Organisation and Management, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, the Netherlands. He has published broadly on centrum issues of organisational co-operation in southern Africa, African including Trust and Co-operation. Studies Centre Centre d'Etudes Africaines AFRIKA-STUDIECENTRUMHarry Wels SERIES www.brill.nl BRILL ISSN 1570-9310 BRILL BRILL ASC02 1 23-09-2003, 16:36 ASC-2-wels.qxd 9/30/2003 12:41 PM Page i Private Wildlife Conservation in Zimbabwe ASC-2-wels.qxd 9/30/2003 12:41 PM Page ii Afrika-Studiecentrum Series Editorial Board Prof. Nicolas van de Walle (Michigan State University, USA) Prof. Deborah Posel (Director WISER, South Africa) Dr Ruth Watson (University of London, UK) Dr Paul Mathieu (FAO, Rome) Dr Piet Konings (African Studies Centre) VOLUME 2 ASC-2-wels.qxd 9/30/2003 12:41 PM Page iii Private Wildlife Conservation in Zimbabwe Joint Ventures and Reciprocity by Harry Wels BRILL LEIDEN • BOSTON 2003 ASC-2-wels.qxd 9/30/2003 12:41 PM Page iv This book is printed on acid-free paper. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Wels, Harry, 1961- Private wildlife conservation in Zimbabwe / by Harry Wels. p. cm. — (Afrika-Studiecentrum series, ISSN 1570-9310 ; v. 2) Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index. ISBN 90-04-13697-5 (pb. : alk. paper) 1. Wildlife conservation—Zimbabwe. I. Title. II. Series. QL84.6.Z55W46 2003 339.95’16’096891—dc22 2003065216 ISSN 1570–9310 ISBN 90 04 13697 5 © Copyright 2003 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands Cover photo: The fence of the Savé Valley Conservancy (photo by the author) All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission from the publisher. Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use is granted by Brill provided that the appropriate fees are paid directly to The Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Suite 910 Danvers, MA 01923, USA. Fees are subject to change. printed in the netherlands To Marianne Contents List of maps ix List of figures ix List of tables ix Abbreviations and acronyms x Acknowledgements xii INTRODUCTION 1 Theoretical framework 7 On methodology 15 Structure of the book 16 1 PRIVATE WILDLIFE CONSERVANCIES: EARLY DAYS IN SOUTH AFRICA 18 Private wildlife conservancies in South Africa 20 Game guards and poaching: relations between conservancies and neighbouring communities 28 Towards wildlife utilisation in conservancies 32 2 PRIVATE WILDLIFE CONSERVANCIES IN ZIMBABWE AND THE LAND QUESTION 42 The physical features of present-day Zimbabwe 44 The Land Question in Zimbabwe, 1890-1980 47 Annexation of the Lowveld 51 Further land alienation and African responses 57 Acts of legitimation 63 The land question after independence, 1980-1992 66 New attempt to redistribute the land, 1992-1998 72 3 THE SAVÉ VALLEY CONSERVANCY: GENESIS AND THE LONGING FOR BUFFALO 86 Introduction 86 The ‘inevitability’ of the SVC 89 Description and formal organisation of the Savé Valley Conservancy 105 Main themes within the SVC related to organisational co-operation with neighbouring communities 116 The fence 118 The SVC fence and the urge to hunt 123 The buffalo as a symbol of economic prosperity 132 viii 4 THE SAVÉ VALLEY CONSERVANCY AND ITS NEIGHBOURING COMMUNITIES: CASES OF RECIPROCAL EXCHANGE 152 The development of the SVC trust 154 Cases of reciprocal exchange between SVC (members) and communities 159 More examples of interaction between SVC (members) and communities 190 The further development of the joint venture between SVC and SVCT 198 5 THE POLITICS OF GIFT GIVING: JOINT VENTURES, RECIPROCITY AND CONTEXT 216 References 229 Index 241 List of maps 1 Zimbabwe and the location of the Savé Valley Conservancy xiii 2 Physiographical division of Zimbabwe in four zones 45 3 Categorisation of Natural Regions in Zimbabwe 46 4 SVC and surrounding districts 107 5 SVC and individual properties, 1998 108 List of figures 1 Conservancy road sign in South Africa 27 2 Cartoon about financial situation Zimbabwe, 1998 82 3 Organogram SVC 113 4 Organogram joint venture SVC and neighbouring communities 139 5 Organogram joint venture SVC and neighbouring communities for IFC application 142 6 Organogram Joint Committee of RDC’s 199 7 Organisational structure of SVCT 206 List of tables 1 Average trophy fees 1995-1997 in South Africa (PHASA) 36-37 2 Average prices for wildlife at wildlife auctions in South Africa,1997 38 3 SVC list of properties, owners, operations and area (ha) 109 4 Number of African Buffalo on private land, present and projected 134 5 Average trophy fees of the four key species in CAMPFIRE areas (US$) 134 Abbreviations and acronyms AA Appropriate Authority AGM Annual General Meeting AGRITEX Agricultural and Extension Services ARDA Agricultural and Rural Development Authority BSAC British South Africa Company CA Communal Areas CAMPFIRE Communal Areas Management Programme for Indigenous Resources CASS Centre for Applied Social Sciences CCM Conservancy Committee Meeting CEO Chief Executive Officer CFU Commercial Farmers Union CITES Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species CPA Cattle Producers Association CSC Cold Storage Commission DA District Administrator DNPWLM Department of National Parks and Wildlife Management DVS Department of Veterinary Services E(E)C European (Economic) Community EIA Environmental Impact Assessment FMD Foot and Mouth Disease GEF Global Environmental Fund ICA Intensive Conservation Area ICFU Indigenous Commercial Farmers Union IFC International Finance Corporation IPZ Intensive Protection Zone IUCN International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources IWL In With Labour MDC Movement for Democratic Change MLGH Ministry of Local Government and Housing MoU Memorandum of Understanding NCA Natal Conservancy Association xi NPB Natal Parks Board NRM Natural Resouce Management PG Provincial Governor PHASA Professional Hunters Association of South Africa PS Permanent Secretary RDC Rural District Council SANP South African National Parks SVC Savé Valley Conservancy SVCT Savé Valley Conservancy Trust SVWSL Savé Valley Wildlife Services Ltd TTL Tribal Trust Land WPA Wildlife Producers Association WWF World Wide Fund for Nature / World Wildlife Fund ZANU-PF Zimbabwe African National Union – Patriotic Front ZBC Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation ZDF Zimbabwe Development Fund ZFU Zimbabwe Farmers Union ZRP Zimbabwe Republican Police ZTA Zimbabwe Tobacco Association ZTA Zimbabwe Tourism Association Acknowledgements This book, based on my Ph.D. thesis, would not have been written without the co-operation in 1998 of the landowners and managers in the Savé Valley Conservancy (SVC) and the communities surrounding the SVC, organised in the Savé Valley Conservancy Trust (SVCT). They all endured and (usually) answered what to them must have sometimes seemed stupid questions. They made me feel welcome in their midst. I am particularly grateful to Clive Stockil, Graham and Chantal Connear and especially to Bonafice Shumba who, as Liaison Officer of the SVC, served as my guide and interpreter in the communities in many instances and was himself an important source of information and insight. At the household level we are indebted to Marc and Beryl Fraser who helped us wherever they could to make our place a home for the time being and Judith Kashere for keeping our household running. I also owe a lot to the willingness of the Centre for Applied Social Sciences (CASS) at the University of Zimbabwe for granting me a Visiting Fellowship. Isaac Malasha was my main liaison at CASS. He helped me through all the bureaucracy involved in planning and actually doing fieldwork in Zimbabwe. In the Netherlands I owe much to my colleagues at the Department of Culture, Organisation